The slogan “eat apples” has been replaced by “eat Alsatian apples”. Over two weeks a radio spot financed by the region will be broadcast over three local radio stations as well as adverts in two daily newspapers, to promote local apples.
The campaign is being launched mid harvest, as “the situation is not good. We are starting to be saturated” says Pierre Barth, President of the Association of Apple Producers in Alsace. “We harvest but do not know if we will earn money”. The problem is due to consumption decreasing, a good production this year, and the Russian embargo.
Mr Barth explains that "Poland is the biggest European producer and exports a quarter of its production to Russia. With the embargo, this is coming back to the European market”. No matter what happens, local production (gala, elstar and other galas) which reaches 10,000 tons will be consumed in Alsace. But what worries the farmers is the prices. Mr Barth says that with prices “between €0.60-€1, they have rarely been so weak”.