In W20 in the cherry landscape, the cherry season in the Northern Hemisphere is off to a positive start, depending on the country, whilst in other markets it has just come to a close. In the Netherlands, the cherry season kicked off with high-quality Spanish cherries, while the supply and demand remain balanced. The German market fears a lack of supply from Spanish growing regions, but reports from Spain indicate that the recent warm weather should accelerate the process. Italy faces challenges with persistent rainfall causing significant fruit cracking, leading to limited supply and higher prices for early cherries. Northern Italy, especially Emilia Romagna, has been impacted by adverse weather events, affecting the start of the campaign. Greece foresees significant volumes of cherries in 2023, exceeding 2022 production, but faces tough competition in the EU market. South Africa had a fruitful season, while North American cherry-growing regions are gearing up for the upcoming season.
In the US, cherries typically kick off the stone-fruit season with peak volumes heading into the Memorial Day holiday. But longer periods of cool weather in 2023 spring have slowed the development of US cherries, delaying harvest by about two weeks. Cherry farmers in Lodi, California indicate that they are likely not to begin harvesting until W21, noting that most of their fruits will miss the Memorial Day push. Even though Bing cherries from California probably won’t hit grocery stores until June, some farmers are optimistic that they will have cherries for Memorial Day. For earlier varieties such as Coral, yields have been good, not too heavy and not too light, since the trees benefited from the wet year, which provided plenty of winter chilling hours but not damaging frost. A sunny forecast for the start of picking means no rained-on cherries, which are prone to splitting. Farmers indicate that early-season cherries typically command a higher price, which levels off as harvest ramps up and more supply hits the market. The Northwest cherry growers from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, and Montana in the US expect 2023 cherry production to reach 19.9M 20lb boxes, an increase of 50% YoY in volume. This is attributed to the favorable weather across the region which has generally been in the 80-degree F (26.67-degree Celsius) range in the past two weeks. This is a clear indication that the region is seeing optimal weather for cell division for size and sugar development in cherries. In 2023, the first cherry bloom in the earliest orchards began on April 8th, with full bloom coming on April 15th. The earliest cherry harvest is expected to fall on or near June 15th.
Incessant rains are worrying Italian cherry growers about the damage from cracking that could jeopardize the harvest or a part of it. However, the situation remains positive on the Italian commercial front, with prices holding steady for the first supplies of early cherries because there is a shortage of supply. According to Apulian businessmen, prices at producers range from USD 4.83-6.97/kg, up compared to 2022. At the end of W19, the first sweet cherry appeared on the shelves of supermarkets and boutique retailers in Chisinau in Moldova, mainly sourced from Spain and Greece. The freshness of the products is not the best, but the diameter of the berries is average and higher, which sharply distinguishes it from the extra-early cherries of Moldovan farmers. There are no offers of this sweet cherry product in the Moldovan city wholesale and retail markets yet, and network retail offers imported sweet cherries at USD 16.85-19.66/kg. The situation is curious in that for the Moldovan market, imported cherries, even extra-early ones, are an uncharacteristic product that does not appear every year. In 2023, apparently, this became possible due to the cool spring and, presumably, the later arrival of domestic extra-early cherries from households and small farms to the Moldovan market. Lastly, in Ukraine, there is an expectation of a shortage of early sweet cherry supplies in the summer of 2023 due to the effects of unfavorable weather. The growth process of the fruit was delayed due to the windy, cold, and rainy weather at the beginning of May. Also, the Ukrainian summer cherry harvest is uncertain as it depends on the weather in the second half of May. The high prices of sweet cherries can be explained by the shortage and the consequent higher prices of imported sweet cherries from Spain, which can cost up to USD 26.81/kg.
