It's been a good season for top fruit according to Steve Reinholt, director of export sales for Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers. Oneonta grows top fruit, stone fruit in Washington and Oregon, citrus and grapes in California and the company ships their fruit to over 46 countries around the world."The season so far has been excellent," said Reinholt. "Because of the later than normal harvest we have enjoyed really good demand right from the beginning." That later fruit was met with strong prices in addition to good demand, and Reinholt believes those prices should stick around for the remainder of the marketing season.
Stone fruit harvesting in the area usually starts in May, and with that season still a month away, it's not clear exactly how that fruit will turn out. But Reinholt sees positive signs.
"We do know that we have a good bud set and the trees came through the winter ready to produce a nice crop," he said. But, he added, a month is a long time to predict how the weather might affect the fruit.
"It's still early here in Washington," he said, "and we have a long way to go before we will know what kind of a crop we will have."
For more information:
Jill Morrison
Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers
Tel: 509.663.2191 office
Mob: 509.630.4082
[email protected]
www.starranch.com