Poor climate reduces apple production and prices rise

Poor climate reduces apple production and prices rise (Alberta Times) There is a serious shortage of apples in the country's apple market this year, but not for Apple's iPhone and other series of products...

(Alberta Times)

There is a serious shortage of apples in the country's apple market this year, but not for Apple's iPhone and other series of products. Due to the impact of the spring cold wave, the apple harvest has dropped by 14% from last year, the lowest since 1986. The early spring in March this year caused the fruit trees to bloom early, but the cold snap in April caused the flower stamens to wither. The U.S. Apple Association said that the harsh weather destroyed 52% of the apple harvest in New York State, and nearly 90% of the apple harvest in Michigan. Apple-producing areas from Canada to North Carolina were affected. The reduction in apple production will cause prices to rise. The retail price of some varieties will increase by one yuan per pound, and the price of juice will increase by more than 20%. Crunch Pak, an apple supplier to stores such as Walmart, Costco and Kroger, said rising apple prices late this year and early next year may be more severe in the Midwest and Northeast because apple reserves will be reduced by then. The New York State Legislature is considering emergency cuts to taxes on apple growers. In some orchards, apple juice costs as much as $8 a gallon, twice the national average price of gasoline. In some states, high-quality fruits such as Empire have suffered greater losses due to production losses. Orchards have had to cut back on fruit sales at street stalls and reduce people’s orchard picking activities. A spokesman for the New York State Apple Association said: "Generations of growers have not seen such a large loss in production since the 1940s." Ouellette, an orchardist in Sterling, New York, said that his 20% loss in production will be made up by price increases "because of the huge market demand." Young Gister, a fourth-generation orchardist in Michigan, said that this year’s apple production is only 7,000 bushels, compared with 120,000 bushels in good years. Without a bumper harvest in Washington state, the largest apple state, the national apple supply will be even more severe. This year's apple harvest in Washington is likely to be nearly 109 million bushels, the second-highest in history. "We usually have 50 to 60 percent of the national market, but this year it's up to 80 percent," the state apple committee said.