Spring Demand For U.S. Apples Remains Strong
Movement of 6.5 million bushels of processing apples in March was 1 percent below 2006 movement and 4 percent lower than the five-year average. Total movement of fresh and processing apples, 19.3 million bushels, was down 3 percent from 2006 but 1 percent above the five-year average. Movement of fresh-market apples from controlled atmosphere (CA) storage was 11.4 million bushels, 10 percent lower than last year and down 2 percent from the five-year average.
April 1 U.S. holdings
Total U.S. holdings of fresh and processing apples on April 1 were 56.5 million bushels, a 2 percent decrease from 2006 but 1 percent higher than the five-year average of 56.2 million bushels. U.S. fresh holdings of 36.4 million bushels were 4 percent below last year and 1 percent under the five-year average. Holdings of fresh-market and processing apples in CA storage were 51.7 million bushels, a 1 percent decrease from April 1, 2006, but 1 percent higher than the five-year average. Fresh CA holdings were 2 percent lower than 2006, but nearly the same as the five-year average. Total processing apple holdings were 20.1 million bushels, nearly the same as 2006 but 3 percent above the five-year average.
Regional fresh apple holdings
On a regional basis, fresh holdings on April 1 in the Northeast were 3.2 million bushels, a 21 percent increase from 2006 holdings and 7 percent higher than the five-year average. Southeast fresh holdings were 12 percent lower than 2006 and 48 percent below the five-year average.
In the Midwest, fresh holdings were 2 million bushels, up 73 percent compared to 2006 holdings and 31 percent higher than the five-year average. In the Southwest, there were no fresh-market apples in storage on April 1, compared to almost 26,000 bushels a year ago and a five-year average of 48,000.
Northwest fresh holdings were 31 million bushels, 8 percent lower than 2006 and 3 percent below the five-year average.
Fresh holdings by variety
Fresh-market Red Delicious holdings on April 1 were 16.5 million bushels, a 9 percent increase from 2006 but 1 percent less than the five-year average. Fresh Granny Smith holdings of 5.3 million bushels were up 9 percent from 2006 and 31 percent above the five-year average.
Fresh Golden Delicious holdings of 4 million bushels were down 41 percent from 2006 and 33 percent lower than the five-year average. Fresh Fuji holdings of 3.4 million bushels were down 7 percent compared to last year’s holdings and down1 percent compared to the five-year average.
Fresh Gala holdings were 2.4 million bushels, down 8 percent from 2006 levels but 36 percent greater than the five-year average. Fresh Empire holdings were 836,000 bushels, a 36 percent increase from 2006 levels, but nearly the same as the five-year average. McIntosh holdings were almost 625,000 bushels, up 41 percent from 2006 holdings but down 9 percent from the five-year average.