Large drop in European apple production as Interpoma 2018 approaches

Europe’s harvest in the 2017/2018 apple-growing season will be smaller than in recent years: EU estimates put production at 9.343 million tonnes, down 21% on the 2016 harvest. These figures were announced on 10 August in Lleida (Spain), at Prognosfruit, the annual conference held by WAPA (the World Apple and Pear Association) to present apple and pear production forecasts.
The commercial season ending just prior to the next Interpoma, the world’s only event organized exclusively for the apple sector, scheduled for 15 to 17 November 2018 at Fiera Bolzano, will be different from previous seasons.

In more detail, Germany has experienced the largest drop in production, down by almost a half at 555,000 tonnes (-46%). There has also been a sharp decrease in production in Poland which, following the last few years’ growth, is back to 2012 levels at 2,870,000 tonnes (-29%), while Italy is reporting a 23% reduction, with a predicted harvest of 1,757,000 tonnes. The drop in production in France is less marked; a harvest of 1,396,000 tonnes is expected (down 8%). Belgium’s production is forecast to drop by more than two thirds to 74,000 tonnes, while the Netherlands is expected to see production fall from 317,000 tonnes to 234,000 tonnes. Bucking the trend are Hungary, which is increasing production to 628,000 tonnes (+26%) and Portugal with an increase from 263,000 tonnes to 314,000 tonnes. Apple production in Spain should remain more or less stable at 474,000 tonnes compared to 495,000 tonnes in the previous season.

Production is also forecast to decrease elsewhere in the Northern Hemisphere, falling by 37% in Russia, 30% in Mexico, 21% in Switzerland, 19% in Belarus, 10% in Ukraine and 6% in Canada. Production in the United States should remain stable at 4.8 million tonnes, while Chinese production continues to grow, up by 3%.

There will therefore be much to talk about at the next Interpoma, which takes place at Fiera Bolzano (Italy) from 15 to 17 November 2018. The ‘Apple in the World’ international congress – a key event for taking stock of the apple sector as a whole – will be held as part of Interpoma.

The second edition of Interpoma China, the meeting point for the apple industry in Asia, will run from 27 to 29 June 2018 at the Weihai International Exhibition & Conference Center on the Shandong Peninsula.

Press materials: Elena Vincenzi, Cristina Pucher

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