Apple and pear crops

First figures concerning the volume of apples harvested in Spain confirm expectations made earlier whereas the ones for pears show the change of variety between the Blanquilla and the Conference. On November 1st, apples in Catalonia were estimated at 250 495 tons, that is to say 5% more than in 2000. Reasons to this light increase are the production entry of new Gala' s superficies, a good colour and grade for red apples and the nearly complete disappearance of the Starking, a variety already considered as old one. Other factor is the Fuji integration, which, step by step, gains ground in the Catalan production. In Lleida, the apple volume rose 7% to 216 110 tons, with Golden ahead (163 761 tons). As for pears, Conference has a hopeful future due to good prices on the market, which encourages growers to prioritise this variety instead of the Blanquilla pear when planting. The volume harvested in Lleida is 180 351 tons, that is to say 5% up than last year. In this context, the Conference stock is estimated at 86 522 tons, 72% more than in 2000, which remains a very bad season for this variety.