Coast to Coast Grower's Tim Byrne Talks Increased Production for KORU® Apples
GLENMONT, NY – Springtime means more than blooming flowers, warm weather, and backyard barbecues. With this new season comes a premium crop of KORU® apples to round out consumers’ favorite dishes and new seasonal recipes. In light of heightened consumer demand, the Coast to Coast Growers team has increased its KORU® program at large for the year.
As Tim Byrne, of the team’s Special Projects division, recently told me, the company has seen increased production on both the East and West Coast of the U.S. Currently, the company is harvesting out of New Zealand with eyes set on its U.S. harvest later this year.
“Domestic production will really ramp up in 2017 as more trees are being planted throughout the United States,” Tim tells me. “Harvest should start in late September and continue for several weeks.”
Retailers should see a rapid increase to domestic volumes in the beginning of 2018, with those numbers climbing even further through 2021 as Coast to Coast members continue to plant KORU® trees. For this year, the first containers of KORU® are expected to arrive at the end of this month at both East and West Coast ports.
“The sales representative from Coast to Coast Growers, Borton Fruit, Oneonta Starr Ranch, and New York Apple Sales expect to receive over 110,000 bushels of New Zealand-grown KORU®’s this year,” Tim continues. “This volume is a 60 percent increase over last year.”
With highly colored, well-sized, and high brix fruit rounding out this year’s selections, the company expects its New Zealand crop to run into August of this year.
Coast to Coast is looking forward to increased sales of its tray-packed fruit and promotable 2 lb bags through extended retail support. The company will offer high-visibility POS cards, new recipes, and recently upgraded website. The refreshed site will feature grower profiles and a messaging page to enable its customers to communicate directly with the KORU® team.
“Sales volume jumped over 202 percent during a 26-week period ending October 1, 2016, when compared to the same time the year previous,” Tim says. “The variety is embraced time and again by retailers and consumers due to its great taste, crunchy texture, and vibrant packaging."
As KORU® apples continue to pick up steam with U.S. consumers, AndNowUKnow will have all the latest updates.
