Exports account for a significant amount of Northwest cherry volume.
B.J. Thurlby, president of Northwest Cherry Growers, Yakima, Wash., estimates more than 30% of the region’s cherries are exported.
Canada recently was overtaken by China as the Northwest’s No. 1 export destination.
Both countries receive about 3 million 20-pound cartons of Northwest cherries annually, but recent customs inspection delays of produce in China have caused some export uncertainty for growers, Thurlby said.
South Korea and Taiwan, followed by Australia and Japan, are other major importers of Northwest cherries.
“We’re seeing some really nice growth into Southeast Asia,” Thurlby said.
Shipments to Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam are on the rise, he said.
With the exception of cherries destined for Canada, about 90% of cherry exports are transported by air.
Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers, Wenatchee, Wash., probably has been exporting cherries longer than any company in Washington, said Scott Marboe, director of marketing.
The firm actually was established as an export company in 1934. It was Dalton Thomas, son of founder Paul Thomas, who opened the Asian market for exports, Marboe said.
Today, the company exports about 30% of its dark sweet and rainier cherries to places like Asia, Australia, China, New Zealand, Europe and South America.
It’s not difficult to sell Northwest cherries to export buyers.
“Northwest cherries are recognized and demanded and requested around the world,” said Mike Preacher, director of marketing for Domex Superfresh Growers, Yakima, Wash.
The Northwest has been identified as a great growing region, he added.
Besides the quality and size of the cherries, the region’s favorable climate, blue skies, ample sunshine and clean water “are tied into the brand that is Northwest cherries,” he said.
Domex Superfresh Growers ships about 35% of its cherry crop to all the countries that take Northwest cherries, Preacher said, and the company plans to keep developing global markets as it continues to develop its crop.
Cherries typically are chosen for export based on their size, freshness and firmness rather than by variety, he said.
The company ships 5-kilogram and 20-pound loose packs that may be repacked on arrival, he said.
The firm also ships some gift boxes.
Cherries are popular in the U.S., but they’re considered a delicacy in many export markets and can be a profitable item, said Matt Nowak, export and domestic salesman for Grower Direct Marketing LLC, Stockton, Calif.
“You tend to get better pricing in some export markets than you can in the States,” he said.
Cherries can be profitable when demand exceeds supply, said Mac Riggan, director of marketing for Chelan Fresh Marketing, Chelan, Wash.
“Last year was the largest crop ever, and we didn’t necessarily make money exporting them,” he said.
Some of the crop was sold at or below cost.
“It’s not always a guaranteed profitable deal,” he said.
Chelan Fresh Marketing exports 30% of its crop to 55 markets, Riggan said.
Foreign markets are “very selective on what they buy,” said Roger Pepperl, marketing director for Stemilt Growers Inc., Wenatchee.
The company exports about 25% of its cherries to places like the Pacific Rim, China and some to Europe and Japan.
