Washington apple growers are expecting a record-tying crop this year.
Production companies have estimated a harvest of 142 million 40-pound box equivalents of fresh apples, according to the Washington State Tree Fruit Association.
The Yakima-based group bases its annual forecast on a survey of its members as they prepare for harvest, which runs August through November. The figure usually changes with weather and market conditions. If the prediction holds, however, the 2025 harvest would be tied with 2014 as the largest on record in Washington, by far the nation’s largest apple producer.
The 142-million-box forecast comes on the heels of two other large harvests — 136 million boxes shipped from the 2023 crop and 131 million expected to be shipped from 2024 — at a time when the industry says an oversupply is driving prices down below an ever-increasing cost of production.
“Challenging economic conditions, including concerns about labor supply during harvest, means that many growers will be more selective in what they pick,” said Jon DeVaney, president of the tree fruit association, in a news release. “As a result, there is a high probability that the final harvested crop will be smaller than the potential reflected in this forecast.”
The apple marketing season runs from August through July, but large volumes the past two years have spilled over into the following seasons. Some overlap is normal, but the July 28 shipment report showed 18 million boxes of the 2024 crop still in storage and awaiting shipment, just as warehouses brace themselves for this year’s apples.
Honeycrisp explains a lot of the 2025 jump. This year’s volume is estimated at 21.6 million boxes, 59 percent higher than 2024, which would make it the state’s second most common apple, behind Gala. However, Honeycrisp trees are prone to alternate bearing, and the 2023 crop was also high at 20.3 million boxes.
Prices of the high-value Honeycrisp tend to set the tone for the entire apple category.
Gala is forecast at 25.2 million boxes, only 2 percent higher than 2024. Third-place Granny Smith is anticipated to jump 20 percent to 21.4 million boxes. In fourth, Red Delicious would drop by 10 percent to 16.8 million boxes, followed by WA 38 — marketed as Cosmic Crisp — increasing by 11 percent to 13.7 million.
Organics are estimated to be 15 percent of the 2025 harvest. Washington produces about 90 percent of the nation’s organic apples. •
