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Michigan apples headed to Mexico

The head of the Michigan Apple Committee says exporting into Mexico will provide growers additional markets for 2022’s record crop.

Diane Smith tells Brownfield exports have slowed since the pandemic, but additional phytosanitary certificates are creating new opportunities.

“That’s a market we used to have a good footprint in and had walked away due to the phytosanitary requirements,” she says.  “This week our inspector is here from Mexico to certify all the rooms that were approved so we’re pretty excited about that.”

Phytosanitary certificates certify products have been officially inspected and meet regulations of the importing country.

Also serving on the U.S. Apple Export Council, Smith says good prices in the U.S. rely on about a third of Washington state apples being exported but that’s been challenging since the pandemic.

“Their markets have diminished greatly, and they’ve been really challenged in terms of getting those apples into those different important markets for them so that’s something that will probably take years for us to work on,” she shares.

Smith says apple bins and storage space were in short supply during Michigan’s harvest and this winter many growers are also preparing for future large crops.