Exports of high-quality late variety Australian cherries are now en-route to Asia after a disastrous start to the season, reports Cherry Growers of Australia.
Shipments to Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan got underway this week once cherry harvesting resumed in key producer regions, some of which lost early fruit to rain at the start of the season.
Growers of early variety cherries in some areas of New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia lost significant tonnage of fruit over the last two weeks due to heavy rains and flooding. However, 8,000 tonnes of high quality late variety cherries were not affected by the rain, and growers expect there will be plenty of volume for the Festive Season, Cherry Growers Australia said.
'Growers in the late production region are not affected at all by the rain,' said Tim Reid, president of Cherry Growers Australia. 'It is mainly growers of the early varieties who suffered the biggest loss.'
Some growers in Eastern Australia lost their entire crop to rain over the last two weeks, while flooding damaged early cherry varieties in western Queensland, New South Wales and north-eastern Victoria. Fruit growers in Victoria estimate cherry losses to rain at around 48 per cent.
'Negative publicity about the recent rain damage to the cherry crop has left many consumers concerned that cherries may have finished for the season. This is certainly not the case,' Mr Reid said.
