Please eat more apples! - it's the moment to do it
There is an oversupply of apples for the moment, which is having an impact on the price. Apple growers hope that more people will eat apples, as one way to reduce the gap between supply and demand.
There are two reasons for the oversupply: last year's big harvest in Belgium (and Europe), combined with the fact that Poland, one of the biggest apple producers, seeks new markets as the trade with Belarus and Ukraine has come to a standstill due to the war in Ukraine.
Poland accounts for one third of the European apple harvest. Luc Vanoirbeek of the Belgian association of fruit farmers says it's becoming a complicated issue for our fruit farmers as they are confronted with low selling prices combined with elevated production costs.
The gap between (the massive) supply and demand can be tackled in various ways. The Flemish Agricultural and Fish Marketing Board (VLAM) is working on a campaign to have more people eat fresh apples. At the same time, Belgium is diversifying its export markets, heading towards Mexico. Vanoirbeek thinks that apples will be taken off the market as well to relieve the pressure. Those apples can be used in animal feed, as biomass or for apple juice.