Last year, the average American ate 19 pounds of fresh apples. With the amount of apples coming out of the Columbia Basin, it’s safe to say you and everyone you know ate some Washington grown produce.
It’s an exciting time here in Seattle and throughout the rest of the state. It’s harvest time for Washington’s largest export, apples. The Washington State Tree Fruit Association is expecting more than 131 million bushels of apples to come out of the Columbia Basin.
That number is down from 134 million last year but the commission is confident Washington’s apple output will more than meet demand.
Washington state is world-renowned for its apples. Alongside the WSTFA, the Washington Apple Commission oversees the international apple trade.
Some apples are available to us throughout the year namely Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, and Gala. Other apples varieties like Braeburn and Honeycrisp are less widely available.
Much of this is simply because a third of Washington’s apple crop is dedicated to the Red Delicious variety. Some of the more popular varieties we deliver (Braeburn, Pink Lady and Honeycrisp) combine to make up a tenth of the crop.
Coincidentally, the only apple native to North America is the Crabapple. All other 2,500+ varieties were exported stateside from overseas.
Don’t worry, you won’t be seeing crabapples in your deliveries but starting Monday, Aug. 27, we will be sending out a fresh crop of Gala apples. Earlier this week we taste-tested the first box we saw and they are crisp, fresh and delectable. Honeycrisp apples will be coming to your office beginning Sept. 13!
We say it more than we should but Washington state is a truly unique place. Seattle is frequently feeding on upward momentum in the tech field but on the other side of the Cascades, the driving force behind the state truly comes into view.
If one were to line up all of the apples exported by Washington farms, the line would circumnavigate the globe 29 times. It’s an astonishing number and only illuminated by the fact that all of the apples selected for export are hand-picked. No machines are used in the harvesting process.
We at ThirdLeaf NW further this standard by hand-selecting the apples and fruit which get delivered to your offices. We can bring those apples (and other delicious snacks) for a free tasting if you’d like an example. Click here to see how!