Long-lasting EverCrisp® apple variety is available now

According to a release from the Michigan Apple Committee, a new apple variety EverCrisp®, a cross between Honeycrisp and Fuji, has begun its peak season, as it is most widely available after the New Year, when it comes out of storage with a lovely flavor and a crispy juicy crunch.

With the sweet and crisp qualities of its parent varieties, this late-season apple stores well and for a long time (several weeks without refrigeration), and can boast even better quality coming out of storage. It can be found in major grocery stores in the Midwest and the eastern and southern parts of the United States.

Diane Smith, executive director of the Michigan Apple Committee, shares: "This rosy-colored, crisp apple is a fairly new variety grown across the Midwest, including right here in Michigan. Many Michigan growers have invested in EverCrisp® tree plantings that have now come into bearing."

EverCrisp®, also known as MAIA-1. In 1998, Mitch Lind of Lynd Fruit Farms in Pataxal, Ohio, co-founded the Midwest Apple Improvement Association (MAIA), an apple-breeding project that allowed growers of all sizes to participate in developing of new varieties. MAIA-1 variety arose from a cross when Lind collected apple blossoms from the Fuji tree, removed the pollen and used it to pollinate the flowers of the Honeycrisp tree.

Smith noted that this variety was developed to grow apples in Midwest climate and Michigan has the ideal climate and geography for this.

The Michigan Apple Committee is a grower-funded not-for-profit organization dedicated to marketing, education and research activities to distinguish and promote the Michigan apples in state and around the world.

Find more information on its website.