Since mid-June Swiss cherries are again available. And fruit producers expect an average harvest.
The cherry season started. In mid-June, the first cherries were picked, and larger quantities will be available in the stores from July. This year the Schweizer Obstverband (the Swiss Fruit Association) expects a yield of nearly 2,200 metric tons of consumption cherries, which roughly corresponds to the amount of last year.
Large cherries are especially popular with customers.
However larger cherries are more vulnerable. During rain and hail they damage more easily than smaller cherries. Nowadays consumption cherries are mostly grown in orchards, so they can be protected against bad weather and pests with netting and plastic.
Pests keep producers on their toes
Customers don’t only desire large cherries, but also cherries without pest damage. This is a major challenge for producers, because the red, sweet fruit is popular with insects too. One of the worst is the cherry fruit fly (Rhagoletis cerasi).
And in the last few years there has been a new challenge. The Drosophila suzukii, a vinegar fly introduced from Asia which causes the fruit industry new problems. The 2 to 3 mm small insect survives for several generations - unlike the cherry fruit fly - and lays several eggs in the cherries. And above all, the Drosophila suzukii infests ripe fruit just before the harvest. That makes controlling this pest particularly difficult.
A short season
Unlike apples, cherries from Swiss cultivation are only available for about eight to ten weeks. The limited availability increases their exclusivity. And another difference is that cherries are not sold under their variety name in the supermarket. This is because the individual cherry varieties don’t differ as much in taste and appearance as apples do. In the beginning of the season early varieties like Burlat can be found in the supermarkets and at the end of the season late varieties such as Sweetheart are available. However, for consumers they are all cherries - red and sweet.
Cherries, whose color ranges from red to yellow-orange through to black depending on the variety, are extremely healthy. They contain the valuable vitamins C, E and folic acid as well as the minerals potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, and silica and pectin.