New York State’s tree fruit industry, with its volume and history tied to processing, is in transition, moving more toward the fresh market every year. The shift is occurring through a sharp focus on market niches, modernized packing and storage facilities, and improved fruit quality. In the last five years, the percentage of New York apples sent to the fresh market has gradually crept upward, moving from 46 percent fresh in 2000 to 52 percent fresh in 2004, when the state produced a record 30-million-bushel crop. “We are obviously transitioning to more fresh,” said Jim Allen, president of the New […]