Chilean apple volume may coincide with U.S. finish
Chilean apple volume may coincide with U.S. finish
Philadelphia-area importers of Chilean apples said that while the Chilean deal is behind schedule, the storage apple deal of Washington state is also running behind. So it is expected that the Chilean apple imports will begin to increase as Washington cold storages clean up.
Tim Davis, apple and pear coordinator for Dole Deciduous, said in late March that the Chilean apple season "is a little behind, and Washington has plenty of fruit, so most of us are holding off. There is not a lot happening now. In three or four weeks, you will see volume start hitting the water. In the third week of April, volume will start on Galas. Grannies will come in bits and pieces until the end of April."
Jim DeMalo, president of U.S. Produce Exchange in Gloucester City, NJ, concurred. "There is still a lot of domestic fruit around. Chilean apples are a little slow right now," he said March 20. "[Chilean] Grannies are not mature enough, but they're close to harvest. There have been a few Royal Galas around for two or three weeks."
Mr. DeMalo added, "The apple deal is just beginning. At the end of this month, we'll have a little better volume and Grannies will start in April."
Mr. DeMalo noted that the U.S. Department of Agriculture grape marketing order doesn't allow Chilean grapes into the United States after April 20, so exporters are pushing to get their grapes into the United States before then. When the April 20 deadline is reached, there will be more ship space for apples, which is another reason apple volume will be building in late April.
Mr. Davis said that while the crop is a little late, "color and size are good. Quality is not an issue. Washington winding down is a perfect fit, and we'll go right into a new crop. We hope it will be a smooth transition."
Mr. DeMalo said of Chilean apple quality, "While I've not seen many, they're looking pretty good."
In mid-March "Galas [were] being shipped, taking a little space now with Thompsons and Crimsons," Mr. DeMalo said. Shipping statistics from a Chilean data company indicated that Royal Gala is by a wide margin the largest-volume apple variety exported from Chile. In the 2004-05 season, over 12.1 million cases were exported. That was down from 12.5 million cases in 2003-04. Chile exported 9.3 million cases of Royal Galas in 2002-03.
Granny Smith is the second-largest volume apple exported from Chile. In 2004-05, 7.3 million cases were shipped, which was the same volume as the previous year. In 2002-03, Chile exported 6.3 million cases of Granny Smiths.
Red Delicious ranked third last season, with a total export volume of 5.9 million cases. Fuji ranked fourth at 2.6 million cases.
The same statistical source indicated that the United States received 1.6 million cases of Chilean Royal Galas last year. Latin American countries imported 3.3 million cases of Chilean Royal Gala apples in 2004-05 and Europe imported 4.1 million cases.
Europe was a larger receiver of Chilean Granny Smiths at a level of 4.9 million cases in 2004-05, while the United States received just 726,000 cases. Latin America imported 1.2 million cases of Granny Smith apples from Chile last year.
Chile exported a total of 35 different apple varieties last year. The smallest of these was Cox Orange, with a total volume of 200 cases.
Mr. DeMalo said that the Chilean grape deal "has been a very, very mixed year. Right now we're having a very difficult time with the last Flames. It's taken much too long to finish harvest. It was longer than anyone anticipated, and people want to switch to Crimsons."
Chilean Thompsons, which saw peak arrivals in early to mid- March, "have mixed quality and they're not holding as well as we'd like, so we have to move them quicker than normal. Very few Thompsons will be available for late storage this year, so Thompson will be done by the April 20 marketing order" deadline, Mr DeMalo said.
Tim Davis, apple and pear coordinator for Dole Deciduous, said in late March that the Chilean apple season "is a little behind, and Washington has plenty of fruit, so most of us are holding off. There is not a lot happening now. In three or four weeks, you will see volume start hitting the water. In the third week of April, volume will start on Galas. Grannies will come in bits and pieces until the end of April."
Jim DeMalo, president of U.S. Produce Exchange in Gloucester City, NJ, concurred. "There is still a lot of domestic fruit around. Chilean apples are a little slow right now," he said March 20. "[Chilean] Grannies are not mature enough, but they're close to harvest. There have been a few Royal Galas around for two or three weeks."
Mr. DeMalo added, "The apple deal is just beginning. At the end of this month, we'll have a little better volume and Grannies will start in April."
Mr. DeMalo noted that the U.S. Department of Agriculture grape marketing order doesn't allow Chilean grapes into the United States after April 20, so exporters are pushing to get their grapes into the United States before then. When the April 20 deadline is reached, there will be more ship space for apples, which is another reason apple volume will be building in late April.
Mr. Davis said that while the crop is a little late, "color and size are good. Quality is not an issue. Washington winding down is a perfect fit, and we'll go right into a new crop. We hope it will be a smooth transition."
Mr. DeMalo said of Chilean apple quality, "While I've not seen many, they're looking pretty good."
In mid-March "Galas [were] being shipped, taking a little space now with Thompsons and Crimsons," Mr. DeMalo said. Shipping statistics from a Chilean data company indicated that Royal Gala is by a wide margin the largest-volume apple variety exported from Chile. In the 2004-05 season, over 12.1 million cases were exported. That was down from 12.5 million cases in 2003-04. Chile exported 9.3 million cases of Royal Galas in 2002-03.
Granny Smith is the second-largest volume apple exported from Chile. In 2004-05, 7.3 million cases were shipped, which was the same volume as the previous year. In 2002-03, Chile exported 6.3 million cases of Granny Smiths.
Red Delicious ranked third last season, with a total export volume of 5.9 million cases. Fuji ranked fourth at 2.6 million cases.
The same statistical source indicated that the United States received 1.6 million cases of Chilean Royal Galas last year. Latin American countries imported 3.3 million cases of Chilean Royal Gala apples in 2004-05 and Europe imported 4.1 million cases.
Europe was a larger receiver of Chilean Granny Smiths at a level of 4.9 million cases in 2004-05, while the United States received just 726,000 cases. Latin America imported 1.2 million cases of Granny Smith apples from Chile last year.
Chile exported a total of 35 different apple varieties last year. The smallest of these was Cox Orange, with a total volume of 200 cases.
Mr. DeMalo said that the Chilean grape deal "has been a very, very mixed year. Right now we're having a very difficult time with the last Flames. It's taken much too long to finish harvest. It was longer than anyone anticipated, and people want to switch to Crimsons."
Chilean Thompsons, which saw peak arrivals in early to mid- March, "have mixed quality and they're not holding as well as we'd like, so we have to move them quicker than normal. Very few Thompsons will be available for late storage this year, so Thompson will be done by the April 20 marketing order" deadline, Mr DeMalo said.
