Pacific NW cherry crop breaks shipment record
YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) - The five states that make up the Northwest Cherry Growers have broken their shipment record this year and the season isn't over yet.
The Yakima Herald-Republic reports 22.7 million boxes of cherries have been shipped this year so far. Washington state leads with 18 million boxes.
The old record was 20.3 million boxes, set in 2009.
Producers say they still have until about Labor Day to continue shipping cherries.
B.J. Thurlby, president of the Washington State Fruit Commission and Northwest Cherry Growers, says the final season total should reach 23 million boxes.
Washington state is the largest of the five-state production area that also includes Oregon, Idaho, Utah and Montana.
Total production is estimated to have a value approaching $800 million.
The Yakima Herald-Republic reports 22.7 million boxes of cherries have been shipped this year so far. Washington state leads with 18 million boxes.
The old record was 20.3 million boxes, set in 2009.
Producers say they still have until about Labor Day to continue shipping cherries.
B.J. Thurlby, president of the Washington State Fruit Commission and Northwest Cherry Growers, says the final season total should reach 23 million boxes.
Washington state is the largest of the five-state production area that also includes Oregon, Idaho, Utah and Montana.
Total production is estimated to have a value approaching $800 million.
So with the bumper crops of apples and cherries, we can expect dirt cheap prices, right? Right.
@jelisized Yeah right! I have a great deal of respect for those that support local farmers, too bad itâs not reciprocal by the farmers!!!!
The math is quite simple.
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More illegal immigrants = More cherries picked.
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Our Governor realized that and stated so in a news article last year about the apples crops,
desperately needing the migrants to harvest them.
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That's why the Border Patrol has a limited patrol area.
Those orchards and farms are in a safety zone.... And they know it!
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I thought everyone knew that!
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Global warming?
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You would think maybe the prices would drop....
To whom are they shipping all those cherries?
 @Alikelystorey It costs the same to ship a bad cherry as a good cherry. Good cherries command a better price. Bad cherries remain at home good cherries get shipped. Try to buy a decent apple in Washington, same thing.
 @Alikelystorey Japan and China