Entering into the Memorial Day holiday, with cherry season imminent, industry takes a break to enjoy what could be the last weekend away from the office until the end of July, or later for some. Cherry season can be intense—a huge influx of seasonal workers, long hours of harvesting and packing, and numerous strategy sessions to match supply with demand focusing on the best prices/returns. As industry concentrates on cherries, apples continue to ‘chug along’ in the background but not without a lot of attention.

Export sales traditionally decrease in the spring and summer months as Southern Hemisphere producers make their presence known with a new crop. Most markets ‘dip’ as the new crop arrives from the Southern Hemisphere, but a few strategic markets continue to support Washington State. Mexico and Canada remain the industry’s best partners with Indonesia, China, India, and Egypt continuing to import until new Washington supplies become available, or better yet, run out. Outside of Mexico and Canada, as you can imagine, Red Delicious remains the variety of interest. So, as the industry moves into overdrive supporting our cherry growers, apples are never out of our sight.

Top 10 Export Markets 2009-2010
1. Mexico
2. Canada
3. Taiwan
4. Hong Kong/China
5. India
6. Indonesia
7. United Arab Emirates
8. United Kingdom
9. Saudi Arabia
10. Russia