January 15, 2026

Postharvest

Featured stories about postharvest topics — and more — in this issue.

January 15, 2026 — Digital Issue

A Kwik Lok labeling machine that can print custom QR and UPC barcodes on bag closure labels at the company’s Yakima, Washington, facility in December. The company debuted the machine and its labels at the 2025 International Fresh Produce Association show in October. (TJ Mullinax/Good Fruit Grower illustration)

Produce labels of the future

Over his 35-year career, Wally Penhallegon, fieldman for Pine Canyon Growers, says the technology for determining apple maturity hasn’t changed: He still slices apples to taste and conduct starch tests, as seen in this Fuji block about a week out from harvest in Orondo, Washington, on a smoky day in October. (Kate Prengaman/Good Fruit Grower)

Old school with a new tool for checking apple maturity

A worker thins peach fruitlets by hand in a Michigan Fruit Ridge orchard in June 2021. According to a Michigan State University study, hand thinning costs Michigan peach growers about $3 per tree. Growers and researchers are trialing mechanical and chemical methods in hopes of finding a cheaper method. (Matt Milkovich/Good Fruit Grower)

Getting a hand on peach production costs

The Wyckoff family, owners of Wyckoff Farms and Coventry Vale Winery in Grandview, Washington, has purchased Ste. Michelle Wine Estates. (Ross Courtney/Good Fruit Grower)

New owners bring new optimism to Washington wine industry

Madrona Murphy, left, and volunteer apple identification expert Lori Brakken collect samples from pre-20th century trees in October at a land preserve on the north shore of Orcas Island, Washington. Murphy and her ecological nonprofit are trying to turn heritage apple trees into a local source for the hard cider industry in the San Juan Islands, a Puget Sound archipelago now known more for whale watching and scenic vacation rentals. (Ross Courtney/Good Fruit Grower)

A taste of history in the making

A modified Korvan blueberry harvester picks cider apples in 2020 at the Washington State University Northwestern Washington Research and Extension Center in Mount Vernon. The center maintains online guides for how to grow cider apples in the maritime climate on the west side of the state. (Courtesy Aidan Kendall/Washington State University)

Cider center supports Western Washington growers

Adam Zediker of Columbia Farm Services speaks about the importance of training people well and making careful decisions about overtime during the Washington State Tree Fruit Association Annual Meeting in December at the Wenatchee Convention Center in Wenatchee, Washington. He’s joined on the panel by Gilbert Plath of Washington Fruit Growers, left, and Jose Ramirez of KS Orchard and El Paraiso Orchard, right. (Ross Courtney/Good Fruit Grower)

Survival strategies for apple growers — Video

Good Stuff, January 15, 2026

The Washington Winegrowers Association’s annual WineVit Convention and Trade Show in Kennewick, Washington, provides opportunity for the industry to collaborate and celebrate, as seen at last year’s leadership lunch. (TJ Mullinax/Good Fruit Grower)

Higgins: Resilience and innovation

1983: Low oxygen-stored apples show promise

1960: Controlled Atmosphere Storage Rush On in the Yakima Valley

1960: Apples Come Out of CA Storage at Hood River

1956: Apples Can Be Promoted and Sold in the Spring

Eric McNerney, a young grower from Hood River, Oregon