While the season is off to a later start, Marboe thinks it’s back to the normal harvest start. “We’ve been early the last few years because of weather and so forth,” he says. “But this year we started harvest about where expected, late August with Barletts and now we’re up with Anjous.”
Marboe anticipates that the pricing, which is slightly stronger than last year, is also looking consistent.
Pouches are in
Meanwhile Oneonta is introducing new products this season to help raise the profile of the pear category. “We put out a 1 lb. Seckel (sugar pear) pouch bag. We’re also doing it with Forelles this year. We’re seeing a lot more pouch bags in the other varieties as well. It’s really helping the pear category. The retail trade has been asking time and time again for help in making the category stronger so this is another way I see it growing and getting pears into the hands of consumers.”
Gem variety
At the same time, Oneonta also has a new variety of pear in the ground, the Gem. “It’s textured like an Asian pear but it’s sweet and has a bit of spiciness to it. It’s also edible right off the trees whereas some of the winter pears, you need to wait,” says Marboe. “We have very limited volume this year and we’re trying to get some feedback from the consumers. After all, it takes roughly seven years to get a pear variety up and running.”
For more information:
Scott Marboe
Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers
Tel: +1 509-888-5120
scottm@starranch.com
www.oneonta.com