Holovousy (Jičínsko) – This year’s apple harvest in the European Union is expected to be the lowest in the last eight years, amounting to about 10.455 million tons. Year-on-year, it is expected to be lower by one-tenth of a percent. This is according to the estimate from the World Apple and Pear Producers Association (WAPA), which is available to ČTK. Czech fruit growers have previously stated that after last year’s extraordinary drop caused by frosts, they expect, according to the June estimate, an increase in apple harvest to more than 107,000 tons from last year’s 36,040 tons. According to the Fruit Growers Union, Czech apples will again be price-competitive with imported apples, which could lead to a decrease in prices.
The highest apple yield is again expected in Poland, where, according to estimates, it will increase year-on-year by 3.4 percent to 3.3 million tons. Polish apples make up the main part of apple imports to the Czech Republic. The apple harvest in Italy is estimated to decrease this year by 3.5 percent to 2.25 million tons. In France, an increase of 3.6 percent to 1.48 million tons is expected. German growers estimated an increase in harvest of 14.7 percent to one million tons.
According to the chairman of the Fruit Growers Union of the Czech Republic Martin Ludvík, the apple harvest in the Czech Republic could ultimately be higher than the June estimate. “The rainy July helped, and if some moisture comes in, the harvest could be better than estimated,” Ludvík told ČTK. A higher yield of Czech apples, according to Ludvík, should also become a price competition for imported apples. “After last year’s poor harvest, Czech apples were almost absent from the market in the first half of this year. Retail chains thus had prices in their hands, resulting in high prices,” Ludvík stated.
According to data from the Czech Statistical Office, the average price of a kilogram of apples in stores in May was 40.21 crowns, which represented a year-on-year increase of 22.6 percent. In July, the price of apples increased year-on-year by 23 percent to more than 45 crowns per kilogram. Growers are trying to create competition for stores primarily by selling apples directly from farms. Currently, according to Ludvík, prices for apples directly from farmers range from 25 to 35 crowns per kilogram, depending on quality.
Last year, strong spring frosts caused the lowest harvest for fruit growers in the last 100 years, with exceptionally large damages amounting to about 1.3 billion crowns. The European Union and the Czech Republic allocated 445 million crowns for compensation for damages to fruit growers, with 539 growers applying for support. This year’s spring frosts caused only local damages to fruit growers. (August 14)