Organic Apples, Pears Seeing Increased Acreage

A grower, packer and shipper of Washington tree fruit, Sage Fruit Company, is bracing for new crop apple and pear season. This is happening as the end of the harvest has brought rather mixed results for the Ardèche blueberry in France. Thanks to these high altitude blueberries, the production reached a hundred tons, but is still nearly 5 times lower than last year.

For the producers below 1,000 m of altitude, the harvests are very small due to the April frost. “The blueberries were early at lower altitudes,” explains  President of the Ardèche Blueberry Association, François Blache, which is drawing up its first report.

“They did not withstand the frost and the harvest was destroyed. Above 1,000m however, the planting was delayed and the fruit formed after the frost, hence the better harvest.”

The report was confirmed by blueberry producer Baptiste Teyssier, located in Mézilhac, who is hoping to harvest about 15 tons this year.

However, as consumer demands have warranted, Sage Fruit Company  has added considerable acreage of organic orchards and this season, the company is excited about the growth it has experienced in its overall volume across all commodities and varieties.

Sage Fruit has also put emphasis on sourcing sustainable packaging solutions for its retail partners. The organic consumer has shown significant interest in leading a more sustainable lifestyle. With increased concerns over single-use plastic, Sage Fruit has been actively seeking alternative solutions to traditional packaging.

With a focus on both organics and sustainability, exhibiting at the Organic Produce Summit is a natural fit for the company and it’s excited to share its new developments.

One example of how it is accomplishing its sustainability goals is its continued partnership with Apeel Sciences. During the 2021-2022 season, Sage Fruit will treat numerous mainstream organic apple varieties including Gala, Fuji, Honeycrisp, Granny Smith and Pink Lady.

Apples treated with Apeel retain more moisture on the supermarket shelf than non-treated organic apples. The shelf life can reach up to 40 days. Apeel creates a barrier on the fruit that helps prevent moisture loss and keeps product fresher longer.

The goal is to provide retailers, and their consumers, with increased availability of premium organic apples throughout the year, while also providing a more crisp and flavorful experience to the purchaser and encourage repeat sales. Through its partnership with Apeel, Sage Fruit is bringing new, innovative options to its retail partners.

Additionally, as retail specific initiatives regarding sustainable packaging becomes more prevalent, Sage Fruit has begun trialing new bag solutions for its products. Its goal is to get ahead of retail timelines and bring more sustainable options to its customers.

Its initial trial of a sustainable bag option was an organic cherry pouch which hit store shelves this past summer. The bag uses Sev-Rend’s patent-pending Bio-Able solutions. Bio-Able Solutions directly addresses plastic and food packaging sustainability.

Enabled with bio-assimilation technology, these new bags are 100 percent recyclable and formulated to fully degrade in both marine and terrestrial environments, leaving behind zero micro-plastic waste.

Bio-Able Solutions are: ASTM 5526 certified, ASTM 6954 Tier 1 certified, 100 percent recyclable, and FDA approved, proven to completely bio-assimilate, resulting in zero micro-plastic waste.

Sage Fruit hopes to offer this technology for apple and pear packaging soon.

 

Subscribe to our newsletter for latest news and updates. You can disable anytime.