“We are in our final push of the season here in Michigan.”
So says Julia Willer of BelleHarvest Sales in Belding, MI of the state’s apple season. “A lot of packing facilities throughout the entire state will be winding down in April with a few having light volumes in May. While we had a shorter crop this year and are wrapping up our season sometime soon, we should have a bountiful harvest for next season."
Currently, BelleHarvest is largely shipping Galas and a small amount of Fuji and Red Delicious apples as well.
Steady apple demand
At the same time, demand for apples is fairly consistent right now. “We have a lot of customers who support our local apple growers throughout the Midwest, and demand has been pretty good in the Southeast as well,” Willer says, noting demand had been particularly strong for Honeycrisp and SweeTango apples this past fall.
As the season makes its way to the end, pricing continues to firm up. "Every season has a unique personality and challenges, but we did go far into this year and expect to go just as far next year," adds Willer.
Looking ahead at the 2022-2023 crop, Willer notes many of its growers foresee a larger crop. “So we’re getting ready to move a lot of apples next year,” she says. “We’re in a crucial time period for weather right now. Last year it got too warm too quickly and then our temperatures dropped which resulted in a late frost."
She notes that this year the weather is more normal and BelleHarvest is looking to having a more normal season compared to this last year. "The weather is ideal and it’s a bit colder this year and it probably won’t start warming up until next week or the week after that," Willer says. "Our bloom should be around May, which is a vulnerable time of year for apples--so fingers crossed!”
For more information:
Julia Willer
BelleHarvest Sales
Tel: +1 (616) 208-9577
jwiller@belleharvest.com
http://www.belleharvest.com/