Riveridge’s Armock comments on changing apple trade
Riveridge’s Armock comments on changing apple trade
SPARTA, MI — When growers pay $30,000 per acre to plant a new apple variety, “that is a lot of money if that variety doesn’t make it commercially,” said Don Armock, the owner of Riveridge Produce Marketing Inc. “That is a pretty significant cost. You’ve got to be in the game” when choosing what varieties to plant. A modern orchard will yield about 1,500 bushels per acre in a normal production year.
Adding to the interest of the apple business is “that there are all different kinds of consumers,” he said.
Two-tiered pricing may be coming in the apple category, Armock said. There are standard varieties, such as Gala, Fuji and Red Delicious. Soon, new high-flavored varieties “will be the norm. It’s often quoted that there are too many varieties, and who will the winners be? But retailers are adapting to various varieties. Maybe they will be handled seasonally instead of all-year. They will promote two or three varieties for a period and then move on to other taste profiles. I think that makes apple eating more exciting for growers, retailers and consumers. To change all the time and have something new to look at draws the shipper community more into being marketers. This allows increased margins on the grower-shipper side to invest in marketing opportunities. Along with this comes a lot of risk.”
Armock continued, “There are plenty of opportunities. It is a matter of having more winners than losers. Consumer and retailer education takes a whole branding approaching.”
Armock said that Riveridge is producing a new proprietary apple, EverCrisp. The EverCrisp is three or four years from heavy volume production. “It looks like a Fuji, but it is unlike a Fuji because it is super hard and has a great storage life. It has real character when you eat it.”
The firm is also a longtime producer of the popular, high-taste apple varieties Honeycrisp and Fuji.
