The supply of apples from New York state is still very good, however, its volume on the Honeycrisp variety is tightening up. "This is close to the usual time for how long we hang onto Honeycrisp," says United Apple Sales' Brett Baker, adding that reports indicate that Washington State is further along in its Honeycrisp supply than they have been compared to last year.
© United Apple Sales
He also notes that United Apple Sales' core varieties, including Galas, Fujis, and McIntosh, will wrap around until the fall 2025 crop comes on. "As far as overall volume compared to last year, we are down, but we have very good quality on what we have in storage," says Baker.
As for demand for New York apples, it's up on core varieties, and what is helping are the industry efforts around boosting apple consumption, improving apple quality, and more.
© United Apple Sales
Lower 2024-2025 exports
However, exports look very different this year. "Our export volumes on the varieties that we generally export are down," says Baker, adding that historically, it exports to Israel, the Dominican Republic, Colombia, and Vietnam. "We did bring in less fruit for export this season."
This comes at a time when exporting around the world is being challenged amidst a difficult political and economic climate. "There's a good part of me that's grateful that I'm not sitting here with a cold storage full of apples to be exported this year," he says.
© United Apple Sales
As for pricing, it is stronger than last year at this time. "We're stronger than we were a year ago, but we're not all the way recovered from the losses that we had last year," he says.
In the meantime, pricing ahead could be influenced by the potential tariffs being announced by the current administration on April 2nd. "If they come into effect, two of the largest export destinations for apples from the United States are Mexico and Canada. If they are taken out of play, I anticipate seeing a downward push on domestic pricing," says Baker.
For more information:
Brett Baker
United Apple Sales
Tel: +1 (585) 765-2460 ext. 116
Brett@unitedapplesales.com
https://unitedapplesales.com/