Jul 31, 2019

Georgia farm leads in apple orchard contest

Folks across the country are voting online for their favorite apple orchards in a contest organized by USA Today’s 10Best.com.

Twenty orchards are involved in the online contest, featuring orchards in California, Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Vermont and Wisconsin.

Ironically, the country’s top state for commercial apple production is not represented in the competition, which seems to focus mostly on farm markets and pick-your-own operations rather than commercial orchards.

Washington state grows about 2.5 million tons of apples per year, according to bestapples.com.

As of July 31, with 26 days left in the contest, the Best10.com leaderboard was topped by R&A Orchards of Ellijay, Georgia, followed by Beak & Skiff Apple Orchard of LaFayette, New York, and Spicer Orchards of Fenton, Mich.

Online voters must be at least 18 years of age and not be residents of a European Union member state, according to the Best10.com contest rules. There is a limit of one vote per person, per category, per day.

“At the end of the 28 day voting period, the nominated businesses that have received the most eligible votes will be designated as the Readers’ Choice for their respective categories and be awarded a badge of recognition as the 10Best Readers’ Choice,” according to the contest rules.