The US department of agriculture (USDA) has forecast that sweet and tart cherry production will drop in US following cold, wet spring and frost damage.
US sweet and sour cherry volumes are expected to fall substantially this year, as a result of a cool, wet spring and some frost damage in key production areas.
According to a USDA report, tart cherry production is forecast to drop by 46 per cent this campaign to 88,450 tonnes compared with 2009, while sweet cherry volumes are expected to decrease by 27 per cent to 315,400t.
Michigan, the largest sour cherry producing state, expects a crop of 63,502t, down 47 per cent from the total 2009 harvest.
In terms of the sweet cherry crop, the USDA said the forecast in Washington state, where the majority of production is concentrated, was down by 35 per cent from 2009 to an estimated 160,000t, reports Fruitnet.com.
According to the government agency, a cool, wet spring in major production areas has been primarily to blame for the expected harvest shortfall, with crop potential also “reduced markedly” by frosts during bloom.
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