Washington state's pear harvest began this month, and volumes could be down because of smaller fruit. While warm weather brought on fruit early, it could also affect fruit growth.“Volumes are down a little as fruit size itself is down,” said John Onstad of Sage Fruit. “The reason is high temperatures, sometimes exceeding 100 degrees, in late-June and July stopped pears from growing.” Those high temperatures brought on this year's harvest early, but it also hampered growth.
In addition to small volumes, there's been slow movement for Washington's Bartletts and Starkrimsons, which are the state's early varieties. Production is still ramping up, and growers are in no hurry to churn out big volumes while there is still competing fruit on the market.
“Bartlett movement is a little slow while California is still in the game,” noted Onstad. “No one is in a big hurry to move Bartletts, with volumes being down because of size. I think most people in Washington are going to wait for California to transition out in September.” There has been no significant movement overseas, either, as growers typically wait for Anjous and Boscs to push export sales.
For more information:
John Onstad
Sage Fruit
+1 509 248 5828