APPLE GROWERS SEEK FLAVORFUL NEW VARIETIES
TO SATISFY CONSUMERS, INCREASE PROFITS
05:54 PM PDT on Tuesday, October 24, 2006
By SHANNON DININNY - The Associated Press

UNION GAP, WASH. - On a crisp, sunny autumn day, two farm workers wound their way through 50 acres of young JAZZ™ apple trees, deftly picking mature apples from a new orchard.

Thousands of acres of apples -- Fuji, Granny Smith, Braeburn, among the many varieties -- await the same delicate touch across central Washington, home to half the U.S. apple crop. But at Allan Bros. Fruit, one of the larger growers and packers in the Yakima Valley, what isn't being picked may be more telling.

Orchard manager Travis Allan calls it a "Red-free zone."

"Our goal was to be free of Red Delicious trees in spring 2006. We put one in Dad's backyard to remember," he said with a smile, "but that one ended up getting pulled, too."

The shift highlights an upheaval in the apple world. The Red Delicious -- around which the industry was built -- has lost favor to newer varieties that farmers say give them more control over labor costs, quality, supply and, ultimately, price.

Though increasingly disdained as flavorless by consumers, Red Delicious has long been preferred among pickers because it is quick and easy to harvest. And growers like Reds for their durability: They can be kept in cold storage for months and distributed throughout the year.

But too many growers may be the problem. In 1990, Red Delicious made up almost 70 percent of the U.S. crop. That oversupply, along with consumer demand for better-tasting fruit, depressed prices.

"Everyone started looking for something else," said Dave Carlson, president of the Washington Apple Commission. "We needed to replace at least some of the Red Delicious production with something that was more profitable."

The result is even more variety for consumers: Jonagold, Braeburn, Fuji and Gala apples are becoming commonplace. Red Delicious will make up just 26 percent of the U.S. crop in 2006.

This demand also has fueled extensive breeding programs.

Allan Bros., which has grown and packaged tree fruit since the 1920s, planted two so-called club varieties in 2003. Club varieties are apples whose growth is tightly regulated by the patent holder, thereby ensuring limited supply, higher quality and better prices. Companies pay for the right to grow them and a single sales group oversees marketing for the crop.

Thirty growers in the United States have planted JAZZ™, a tart but sweet red club apple created in New Zealand by crossing Royal Gala and Braeburn varieties, with additional plantings in the United Kingdom, France and New Zealand. Acreage is fairly evenly split between the northern and southern hemispheres to ensure a supply of apples nearly year-round.

The developer of the variety, ENZA, formerly the New Zealand Apple and Pear Marketing Board, aims to have about 6,800 acres producing JAZZ™ apples by 2010. Allan Bros. has 84 acres of them, about 10 percent of its crop.

"It's an exciting opportunity to be with a group of people you know are at the top of their game and the quality is going to be the best," said Tom Allan, another Allan Bros. orchard manager. "The problem now is, we may grow the best Grannys but if someone floods the market with bad Grannys, it hurts everyone."

Crop diversity also gives growers flexibility, allowing them to avoid investing all of their money in one variety that could be damaged by weather or pests or lose favor with consumers. In planting new trees, they also can space rows and trellis branches in a manner that makes picking easier.

More varieties also can mean better control over harvest costs and labor. By planting varieties that ripen at different times, farmers may be able to use fewer workers but employ them longer.

Jorge Rodriguez, 40, of Wapato, Wash., has worked for Allan Bros. for 18 years. He sees the push toward new varieties as helping workers who want full-time employment.

"It's a lot easier picking, better production for the workers," Rodriguez said, pointing to the new trellised trees with widely spaced rows, unlike the older, bushy trees at the neighboring orchard. "It all depends on the crop, but with these new varieties I think we'll be able to produce more."

Newer varieties certainly come with challenges. Many must be color-picked, which means workers must be trained to recognize when the fruit is ripe.

Growers find that not all apples fare well in months of cold storage.

Others, such as the new Cripps Pink variety, also known as Pink Lady, gain flavor in short-term storage, said Alan Taylor, marketing director for Pink Lady America.

"There's been an explosion in the product department in the last 10 years. The world is becoming a much smaller place -- you can see what varieties are grown everywhere," Taylor said. "It's a lot more selection for consumers, and it makes our efforts that much more important to market that particular product."

Limited supplies of new varieties also likely mean higher prices. Depending on size and grade, a box of JAZZ™ apples can garner $48, while some Reds can go as low as $10 per box.

"Consumers are going to see better quality. They're willing to pay more for that, but not everybody will," said Shannon Schaffer, spokesman for the U.S. Apple Association. "There's still going to be markets for these economical apples."

After all, Red Delicious remains the dominant crop.

"Reds were such a big portion of the industry, it will never go away entirely," he said. "But clearly consumers wanted variety, and that's what the industry is giving them."

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