Will California's pomegranate crop be down this year?

California’s pomegranate harvest has started in a bright way. Some early varieties were harvested in August and will be available until September 20th. Harvest of the main Wonderful variety will start in the first week of October. “It will take about a week for all shippers to get up to speed, so promotable volumes will be available as of October 7,” says David Anthony with Ruby Fresh. “Harvesting will continue for about four to five weeks or until the rain stops it.” Pomegranates are usually available until Christmas.

“For the following three reasons I believe this year’s crop will be better than last year’s,” said Anthony:

- Many growers didn’t water their trees last season. Although the trees are hardy and quite drought resistant, the crop was smaller in size due to the lack of water.

- Growers didn’t adequately prune and thin their trees last year. They didn’t want to invest the labor as they were not sure whether the trees were going to make it through the season. This season, growers have invested in pruning and thinning.

- Last season lacked proper pest management, resulting in a worse  pest problem with conventional trees. Better pest management this year has contributed to a better crop.

Although pomegranate quality will be better this year, Anthony expects total volume to be down compared to last season. “Due to the drought, some growers held up their hands last year and said ‘we surrender’. These growers removed their trees and replanted their orchards with nut trees instead,” said Anthony. A total of about 4,000 acres was removed, which is about 15 percent of total acreage.” I believe this will have an impact on the pomegranate deals this year,” admitted Anthony. “We won’t have the abundance of supplies around Thanksgiving. Supply will be brisk.” 

“On a positive note, I am expecting a better return for the growers. We have firmed up our pricing and have done less pre-season pricing than in years past,” said Anthony. When it comes to sizing, Anthony doesn’t foresee a lot of changes this season. Typically, the crop peaks on 24s followed by 30-36s. Availability of 16s and 18s will be more limited. There is always less big size fruit available. Club stores prefer big fruit and are willing to pay the price. As a result, there won’t be as many 16s and 18s available for others. 

Anthony also expects high demand for exports. Typically, Ruby Fresh exports about 20-25 percent of its crop with the bulk of these going to South Korea, Taiwan and Australia. 

For more information:

David Anthony

Tel: +1 559-933-0340