Gem pear variety on horizon for Oneonta
WENATCHEE, Wash. — Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers will soon give some of its retail partners and even a few consumers a taste of its new variety Gem.
The trees are still about five years from full production, but the small volume this season will let Oneonta start gathering some feedback on the fruit.
“It’s a really nice pear,” said Scott Marboe, director of marketing for the Wenatchee-based company. “It’s sweet, beautiful color to it and everything. We’ll be doing some select demos in certain markets this year to figure out the taste demographic with it.”
The pear is expected to be a relatively convenient offering compared to other options in the category.
“You can eat it out of hand, which is nice because a lot of times on pears you have wait for it to change color or check the neck or you can’t really tell the ripeness,” Marboe said. “This will be much more consistent with that. It’s got a flavor kind of like a bartlett but a little spicier type taste to it.”
Oneonta markets fruit from Hood River, Ore.-based Diamond Fruit Growers, and Diamond president David Garcia is also excited about Gem.
Early indicators are that the variety will have a number of desirable attributes.
“The flavor is very good from the tests that we’ve done, and it has longer storage life for us,” Garcia said.
Another appealing trait of Gem is that it does not instantly brown when cut, which could mean value-added opportunities down the line.
While it is still very early, that possibility is an intriguing one, particularly in light of the success apple slices have seen.
“You look at the fast-food restaurants and apples, what they’ve done with those,” Garcia said. “We’ve worked with companies of how to get sliced pears out into the market without turning brown. We haven’t been successful with it, unfortunately, so over the years that idea has kind of slid by and no one’s really come up with it.
“So if we can start with a pear that has a natural tendency to fight that, then I think more doors, more value-added processes can be added to this, most definitely,” Garcia said.
