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Not as many apples are coming from Washington this year

caption: Apples at the Federal Way Farmers Market.
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Apples at the Federal Way Farmers Market.


This may not be a big apple year in Washington, a state renowned for its apples.

Washington's apple crop is expected to be smaller than average this year, thanks to a cool and wet spring, and a slow start to the summer.

The Washington State Tree Fruit Association announced this week that is is projecting a total of 108 million apple boxes for 2022. That's down 11% from 2021 (122.3 million boxes).

Keep in mind that those boxes weigh 40 pounds each.

Washington's top apples, by production, are Gala, Red Delicious, Honeycrisp, Granny Smith, and Fuji.

Oregon Public Broadcasting reports that this year's harvest will be 20% Gala; 14% Red Delicious; 14% Honeycrisp; 13.4% Granny Smith; 12.7% Fuji.

The one apple bucking this trend is Washington's own Cosmic Crisp, according to the Yakima Herald, which is in a unique spot. Cosmic Crisp is expected to be 4.6% of the harvest this year. Last year it was 3.2%. As a newer apple on the scene, it's been growing over the past years.

This is not the only crop that the extended spring and cooler summer has affected. In June, cherry growers were noting that their harvest would likely be delayed this year. In mid-April, snow was falling on many of Washington's cherry orchards — 40% had not even bloomed at that time.

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