When asked how this season’s Washington apple crop was shaping up, Dan Davis, vice president of business development for Yakima, Wash.-based Washington Fruit Growers, said it was a return to normal.
“I’m not sure any of us know what normal is anymore, but this one seems to be an average down the middle — not a very large crop or a very small crop, which is what we faced the two previous crops,” he said.
After a small haul in 2022 and a large crop in 2023, this year’s crop will be more manageable for growers, packers and marketers, said Rochelle Bohm, vice president of marketing for Wenatchee, Wash.-based CMI Orchards.
“The apple industry has seen considerable fluctuations over the past few years, with production swinging from one extreme to the other,” she said. “Two years ago, a short supply challenged the market, leading to tight inventory and increased demand. Last year, we experienced the opposite — a bumper crop that flooded the market with an abundance of fruit.
“This year, we’ve hit a sweet spot with a balanced, mid-size crop,” Bohm continued. “A steady, manageable yield offers the perfect balance between supply and demand and allows us to ensure consistent availability of premium-quality apples.”
“After several seasons in a row of extreme weather swings from heat waves to cold snaps, it’s a relief to be back to something normal,” said Tyler Johnson, sales manager for Selah, Wash.-based Rainier Fruit Co. “The overall crop estimate is down from last year, but it’s no surprise given the 2023-24 Washington crop was a record breaker.”
Brianna Shales, marketing director of Wenatchee-based Stemilt Growers, said this year’s crop will be slightly down.
“The 2024 crop is forecasted at 124 million boxes in Washington state, down 9% from last year,” she said.
Kassi Orozco, sales specialist with Grandview, Wash.-based River Valley Fruit, said the state’s growers experienced a mild winter, but the heat in the late summer has impacted sizing.
“The high temps we have had all July and August affected the overall size of the fruit, not allowing it to size up as it should,” she said. “It has been a struggle to come up with a whole lot of large-sized fruit, so I would expect value on those to stay strong. Expect to peak on 100s to 125s for the majority of the varieties. The fruit quality looks great.”
Bohm said smaller fruit sizes, however, will help retailers deliver on consumers’ interest.
“Smaller fruit sizes in some varieties are ideal for bagged apple sales, aligning perfectly with current consumer trends favoring convenience and portion control,” she said.
With harvest underway, Shales also said results are looking good.
“Color development has been strong, and we are currently picking multiple varieties with a focus on storing fruit for longer terms to ensure year-round supply,” she said.
Variety outlook
Shales attributes some of the 9% drop in overall crop size to an estimated 26% reduction in the state’s Honeycrisp crop this year, which can be biennial bearing. Honeycrisp experienced 30% volume growth year over year in 2023, she said.
“This year, it will be important to shift some of those Honeycrisp buyers to other emerging varieties, like Cosmic Crisp, because Honeycrisp is down significantly in volume,” Shales said.
Don Roper, vice president of sales and marketing for Brewster, Wash.-based Honeybear Brands, said there is a little carryover on certain varieties from the 2023 crop.
“We are expecting good movement, and we are starting to see signals of strong initial pricing compared to last year, which is a good thing,” he said. "[We are] working aggressively with retailers to get consumer-focused programs in place to help turn up the sales velocity of apples, especially here in the fall when apples take center stage at retail.”
Davis of Washington Fruit Growers said he’s seeing some overlap in varieties with Honeycrisp and granny smith. He’s seeing growers being a week behind, which helps his team better manage those carryovers from last year.
“There’s a lot of managing side by side the last of our [controlled atmosphere] holdings [from last year] and the first inbound Honeycrisp, and a lot of that right now is going into storage,” he said.
Davis said with the Honeycrisp crop being down with a slower start to this year’s season is working to marketers’ advantage.
“Since we do anticipate the crop being down significantly on Honeycrisp, playing out the remainder of last year’s crop and not being pushed so much to get into the next year’s crop is, thankfully, what the situation is,” he said.
Kaci Komstadius, vice president of marketing for Yakima-based Sage Fruit Co., said she expects to see large increases in volume for gala and Cosmic Crisp this year.
“We anticipate Honeycrisp being down as an industry, but Sage Fruit should have similar volumes compared to 2023,” she said.
Roper said he expects a big jump in Cosmic Crisp volume — about a 40% increase — after 8 million boxes last year to an expected 11 million this year.
“This will require strong efforts from our Washington marketers to properly move all of the Cosmic Crisp,” he said.
Shales agrees, noting with fewer red and golden delicious apples and more club apples, the industry needs to work to promote more consumption of the fruit.
“It’s a crowded category and consumption of apples has been on a downward trend, so we need to do a better job of helping consumers make apples part of their regular purchases,” she said.
Challenges
Shales said transportation costs are a major challenge for growers in the state.
“Regional crops often have a logistics advantage over us because of their proximity to major markets,” she said.
Roper also said last year’s large crop and ample supply impacted grower returns.
“The overall pricing in Washington state was down significantly, and this directly impacted profitability both at the farm gate and at our production/warehouses,” he said. “While the cost of goods was down, we didn’t necessarily see an offsetting increase in volume to make up those sales dollars.”
Komstadius said labor continues to be a major challenge for the state’s growers, both in cost and availability.
“Labor costs have increased significantly over the last several years, as have many other costs of doing business,” she said.
Davis agrees, noting the impact of the state’s overtime laws has compounded an already challenging situation for growers.
“One of the most trying things, being apple growers in the state of Washington, is just the economic viability of making it all work with coming off of crops that have not exactly been profitable, wages continuing to index up and our overtime laws have changed,” he said.
Komstadius says growers seek some relief in looking at ways to maximize efficiency through investments in automation and technology.
Davis said while growers in the state can largely control the inputs used thanks to the state’s arid climate, rising costs of those inputs have changed the dynamics of the business.
“We’re blessed that we can utilize a whole healthy array of inputs, but all of those costs have increased dramatically,” he said. “The key concern is just how do we continue to [farm] in an environment where the costs are going up and the farmgate returns are not.”
Trends
Davis said the rapid growth of organic apple sales is a major trend. He said he’s seen a little slowing down the past two or so seasons in the organic category, but there’s still continual growth.
“There still is a healthy core of organic produce buyers,” he said. “I think consumers are making choices with more scarce dollars, and as most things have inflated [in price], some [consumers] have traded back out of organic.”
Another major trend is the rapid rise in popularity and volume of Cosmic Crisp, which Davis said is disruptive on the shelf.
“It’s causing the retail offerings to change somewhat, and people are depending on the retail outlet they’re choosing to display less of some other varieties,” he said. “It is certainly starting to cannibalize a few things and change the world.”
Johnson of Rainier Fruit Co. agrees, noting that shift in consumer demand will impact future variety plantings for the company, with more acres planned in Honeycrisp, Envy, Cosmic Crisp and WildTwist.
“There’s been a rapid shift in consumer demand towards high-flavor, crunchy apples that eat well straight out of hand or sliced for snacking,” he said.
Davis said this move toward the new-age varieties will hopefully impact consumers’ spending dollars for the apple category in the future.
“We’re providing a new [and], in many instances, better variety that’s catching the consumer’s eye and hopefully helping increase throughput and consumption,” he said.
Komstadius said that shift in consumers favoring high-flavor varieties includes growth in SugarBee, Envy, Cosmic Crisp and Honeycrisp.
“The 2023 crop was the first season that more pounds of Honeycrisp were consumed than gala,” she said.
Bohm said these new varieties provide marketers with ample opportunity to drive sales with these newer varieties.
“While some shoppers stick to familiar favorites, our April 2024 study with Category Partners shows that over half of consumers would try new varieties with better flavor descriptions or recommendations,” she said.
Organic production
As Davis noted, the organic category continues to be a major player for Washington apple growers.
Komstadius estimates organic varieties make up 20% to 25% of Sage Fruit Co.'s volume. She said she expects organics to continue to be strong and sees growth this year in volume and dollars.
“Roughly 52% of organic consumers are millennials, and they account for 30% of the U.S. population,” she said. “The majority of millennials who are purchasing organic items are also parents.”
Komstadius said organic Honeycrisp is the category driver, but organic gala and fuji are also popular among consumers.
“Organic Honeycrisp is a high-end consumer favorite, which has an excellent ring at the register,” she said. “On the opposite side of that though, organic gala and fuji are an excellent option for the everyday organic consumer because they are more price friendly.”
Shales said she expects Stemilt to see organic volume increases in Cosmic Crisp this year, and this variety will meet consumer demand for flavor and texture as well as shelf appeal for retailers. She estimated organic production makes up about 25% of Stemilt’s crop.
“Organics are a bright spot in the apple category, achieving both dollar and volume growth last year, yet still have opportunities to grow this segment of the category,” she said
Johnson said while organic production can be a bit more challenging, Rainier Fruit Co. believes in growing as many organic apples as possible as demand continues to grow.
“The organic consumer isn’t seasonal, so we’ve developed the ability to supply numerous varieties of Washington-grown organic apples 12 months of the year,” he said.
Roper estimated organic production makes up about 10% to 15% of Honeybear Brands’ production.
“With nearly every mainstream variety being grown organically today, the new growth to the organic category is coming from some of the new varieties that have been introduced,” he said.
Bohm said while there are economic challenges, CMI sees organic apples continuing to outperform expectations and continues to expand organic production for its high-flavor branded organic varieties.
“Consumers remain willing to pay a premium for the best-tasting, freshest fruit, and organic apples have secured a strong, resilient position in the marketplace,” she said. “The demand for these organic apples isn’t just about health-conscious choices — it’s about delivering bold, exciting flavors that elevate the shopping experience.
Why Washington?
Davis said growers in eastern Washington have the advantage of an arid, inland desert on the east side of the Cascade Mountains, allowing growers to control applications.
“We have just a lot of control over how the apples are grown,” he said. “We control the water application and irrigation, the soil amendments. It’s kind of a unique spot in that we have such control over what the trees get, the inputs they get, and we can be much more manipulative than others and a little less reliant on Mother Nature.”
Shales said the dry climate, low humidity and lack of precipitation make organic production less of a challenge with lower pest and disease pressure.
“This provides a welcome environment for growing apples,” she said. “Organics are possible because of our climate conditions and something that Washington can do at scale more than other growing regions.”
Johnson said the snow melt from the Cascade Mountains aids in irrigation and relatively aligns with the conditions found in Kazakhstan in central Asia.
“Our climate closely resembles the region where apples originated — cold winters and warm summers,” he said.
Bohm said the growing region’s proximity to the Columbia River also provides ample water availability.
“The Columbia River serves as a lifeline for Washington’s orchards, providing consistent and reliable irrigation that supports optimal growth conditions throughout the season,” she said. “Adding to this, the state’s soil is enriched with minerals from ancient glacial deposits, creating the perfect foundation for apple trees to thrive.”
Roper said Washington growers stay ahead of the curve when it comes to growing practices.
“Washington state growers and packers also tend to lead innovation in horticultural practices helping state apple producers stay at the forefront of product quality, condition and yields,” he said.
What retailers need to know
While this year’s crop volume may be more manageable, marketers say it’s still important for retailers to highlight the Washington apple season with vibrant displays.
Davis encourages retailers to build big displays and “do grand things,” though he acknowledges retailers may struggle with produce department turnover, which makes executing larger displays more of a challenge.
“Retailers that really focus on display, merchandising and methodology of getting awareness and turning shelves at high velocity are the most successful at giving their consumers the best piece of fruit and having them come back again and again,” he said.
Roper said Honeybear Brands works with retailers to create targeted merchandising programs to help promote new varieties and packaging trends.
“These efforts at retail have kept us laser focused on retail consumers and the trends occurring around them, as well as key products they are asking for,” he said.
Orozco of River Valley Fruit said it’s important for marketers to tout the health benefits of apple consumption, especially as consumption wanes in the U.S. and apples face stiff competition from other fruit commodities.
“Given the competitive landscape, it is more important than ever that we remain proactive in promoting all the benefits of our fresh produce items,” she said.
Komstadius suggests retailers use colors, such as yellow and green apples, to break up bulk displays. She also suggests retailers pair cider and fall-themed items in retail displays to create excitement for the new crop season.
“Effective merchandising not only drives sales, but also educates consumers about different apple varieties,” she said. “By creating visually appealing displays and emphasizing variety, retailers can enhance the overall shopping experience and boost apple sales.”
Shales encourages retailers to use the four P’s — price, promotion, placement and the right product — in retail displays.
“Assortment is important in apples with so many varieties available, and it’s important to ensure you have the right mix for your retail strategy and customers,” she said.
Shales said retailers should think about an assortment of offerings such as kid-sized fruit or large 5-pound bags as well as bulk displays that help entice the customer.
“Regular promotion is the key to success on a year-round offering like apples, and focusing on multiple varieties at one time in a promotion helps lift the category compared to focusing singularly on one variety,” she said.
