This season’s initial projection for the Pacific Northwest (PNW) pear crop came in at 16.5 million boxes, but the final volume is well above that number. “The forecast was underestimated pretty significantly, and the industry is expecting a total packout about two million boxes over,” says Jeff Correa with USA Pears. The fruit sized up more than expected and Correa explained how one size larger could result in an additional volume of 1.6 million boxes. In addition, high quality fruit resulted in a favorable pack-out rate. About 82-83 percent of the Green Anjou pears are U.S. #1, which is considered top grade.

© USA Pears

Export opportunities
In general, the sentiment is positive as the industry hasn’t had a crop this size since the 2017/2018 season. “It’s the first time in many years we have more volume available to ship to offshore export markets,” commented Correa. In recent years, USA pears were exported to Mexico and Canada, but not to offshore markets like India, Israel, the UAE, Colombia, and Brazil. “We used to have a very viable export market into these countries as they used to take over 50,000 to 150,000 boxes individually, but due to the pandemic, short crops, shipping challenges, and other issues, our export presence in those markets have shrunk considerably in the past 5-8 seasons.”

Correa is aware that market dynamics have shifted during this time and other suppliers have started filling the supply gaps, including South Africa, Argentina, Chile, and Turkey. It will take time to rebuild a presence in these markets. “Once competition steps in, it becomes tough to regain market share. However, by working hard and aggressively promoting our pears in these markets, we are hopeful to maximize opportunities.” It is a process, but a crop this size will support the USA in getting foot in the door again and trade shows at the beginning of the season certainly helped with making connections.

Exports are off to a good start. Due to the holiday season, demand is currently high from many markets. For the majority of Latin American markets, most sales happen in December and January. “Our pears start exiting South American markets late January or early February due to the start of the southern hemisphere season.

© USA Pears

Green Anjou
Green Anjou is the largest pear variety in the Pacific Northwest and because of its shelf-life, it’s most suitable for exports. The variety ships into offshore markets until March or April and is exported to Canada until early June. “If the fruit holds up, we ship into Mexico until the end of July, sometimes early August, generating almost 11 months of supply,” Correa commented. Mexico is the largest export market for pears from the USA and a good season back stop. In addition to Green Anjou, Bartlett is also a significant variety but mainly stays in the USA and Canada because it is more delicate and susceptible to breaks in the cold chain. “This variety doesn’t hold up as well during long transit times.”

For more information:
Jeff Correa
Pear Bureau Northwest
Tel: (+1) 503-652-9720
[email protected]
www.usapears.com