New Zealand apple production has been pegged at 561,000 tonnes for the 2017/18 season, according to a USDA Gain report released this month.
If realised, this would represent an increase of 7 per cent on the 523,000 tonnes produced in 2016/17, the result of good weather in most growing areas.
Apple exports are expected to come in at 373,500 tonnes, 8 per cent higher than in 2016/17 and a result that would surpass the previous record export volume of 358,327 tonnes in 2004.
The proportions of the crop heading to export markets is likely to be 'broadly similar' to 2017, when Asia took 30 per cent of the volume, followed by the EU (23 per cent), the UK (14 per cent) and North America (13 per cent).
Pear production, meanwhile, is forecast to grow 5 per cent to 13,200 tonnes, with exports expected to rebound 10 per cent to 4,150 tonnes.
