The improved harvests Yakima Valley growers have seen for early-season fruits such as cherries and apricots are predicted to continue with this year's apple crop.
A forecast issued Tuesday by the Washington State Tree Fruit Association estimates a statewide crop of just more than 134 million standard 40-pound boxes of fresh apples, a 28.8% increase over the 104.3 million boxes harvested in 2022.
"There is a lot of excitement as we are seeing a more normal harvest and excellent fruit quality this year," said Jon DeVaney, WSTFA president, in a news release.
"A moderate spring and a warm early summer created near-perfect growing conditions, so our domestic and foreign customers are going to see great size, color, and overall good quality in our apples," DeVaney said. "The harvest is just getting underway now, and our growers look forward to bringing in a great harvest that will benefit consumers around the state, country and world."
As with other Yakima Valley fruit, the 2022 apple harvest was much smaller than normal due to cold spring temperatures and snow that inhibited pollination when apple trees were blooming. Local growers also reported that last year's harvest started at least two weeks later than usual for many varieties due to the difficulties and delay in pollination.
This year, the WSTFA reports the more moderate spring and summer weather has helped apple growers deliver a healthy crop closer to the previous six-year average production. Growers are reporting good size distribution and high quality across all varieties, the organization said.
Growers received more good news in June as U.S. and India trade officials announced the Asian nation will lift its tariffs on American-grown apples.
India placed tariffs on apples and other American agricultural products in 2019 in retaliation for steel and aluminum tariffs enacted by the U.S. The combined tariff on apples was 70% after the increases.
Before the tariffs, India was the second largest export market for Washington's apple crops, representing about $120 million in business. In 2022, Washington exported less than $1 million worth of apples to the country, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell's office reported.
"It's great for the state and for consumers around that world that our growers have rebounded from a down year with a strong, healthy crop in 2023," said Derek Sandison, director of the Washington State Department of Agriculture. "More importantly, thanks to moderate weather the quality of apples is exceptionally high."
New varieties gain in popularity
The WSTFA forecast indicates a robust production in five popular varietals.
Overall, the WSTFA predicts Gala will represent the largest part of the harvest at 19.8% of the state's harvested apples. Honeycrisp is projected at 14.6%, Granny Smith at 13.8%, Red Delicious at 13% and Fuji at 11.7% of total production.
More apple varieties continue to be grown, including Honeycrisp, Ambrosia, Envy and Cosmic Crisp. These four varieties are expected to represent more than a quarter of this year's production.
Cosmic Crisp, a proprietary variety grown only in Washington state, continues to grow in its share of the total crop, with 5.9% of the harvest. This reflects the ongoing diversification of the state's apple production to serve a diverse and growing customer base, WSTFA officials reported.
The organic apple market continues to grow. Washington leads the nation in the production of organic apples, WSTFA reported. The organic forecast for 2023 is 21 million boxes, or 15.7% of the total harvest.
DeVaney noted that not all organic production is packed and marketed as organic and WSTFA members are always working on new strategies and techniques to deliver fresh, healthy apples.
"Our growers have a long tradition of meeting consumer demand and they are proving it again by producing more 93% of the country's organic apple output," he added.
Washington apples are vital to the state's economy and are its leading agricultural commodity by production value. Apples represented 21% of the state's total agricultural value in 2021, the WSDA reported. Twenty percent of the harvest was exported in 2022, down from the five-year average of 28% due to lower overall production in 2022.
"Apples are Washington state's calling card to every corner of the globe," said Sandison, the WSDA director. "This year, we are literally putting our best crop forward and that's good for our state economy, our workforce, and our growers."
Tuesday's forecast is based on a survey of WSTFA members and represents the best estimate of the total volume of apples that will eventually be packed and sold on the fresh market, excluding product sent to processors.
Apple harvest typically begins in August and continues into November. The forecast is still subject to several months of variable weather which can affect the final harvest total, the WSTFA reported.
