I have been slacking as of late when it comes to updating this blog. Considering that a colleague and I have been asked to give a presentation at the Mid Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention for producers on the subject using social networking tools such as blogs for marketing I figured it was time for a post. Yesterday I attended a meeting of a task force which is dedicated to researching organic apple production in Pennsylvania. A great deal of progress has been made by this group in determining the best methods to grow fruit organically in Pennsylvania. It is much harder to grow organically in the east coast compared to out west in Washington due to higher humidity levels resulting in greater disease pressure.
However, even with all of the progress that has been made on the organic production side, marketing still remains the million dollar question. The unpredictable twists and turns of consumer demand become extremely difficult for apple growers who may decide to plant a certain variety to grow organically based on today’s market research only to see demand swing a different way in a few years when it’s time to harvest that variety. However, the organic apple market has shown a consistent upward trend in the last 10 years. Even in the midst of a recession during the last year, sales of organic fruit and the price premium it entails continued to rise. And, even though organic only makes up 3-5 % of apple sales nationally, that is still a big chunk of the population, especially when considering 1/3 of the U.S. population resides on the east coast. I don’t know how big organic apple production will become in Adams County or the east coast in general, but, currently we only have one organic apple grower in the county so it seems like there is room for more before the niche is completely filled. Please feel free to weigh in if you have any opinions on this issue.
