Okanagan orchardists are switching to new apple varieties as this means larger crops and better quality of fruit for the orchardists.
Norm Letnick, B.C's minister of agriculture announced on Thursday that "The older trees have less crop and quality-wise they are really down. The new ones produce almost double the crop and the quality is 100 per cent better. Also, the old varieties have no value these days. We have no other choice but to knock those trees down" as once trees are 50 or 60 years old, they generally stop producing as much fruit.
Brands such as Macintosh, Red Delicious and Spartan have gone out of style and can only bring in around 10 to 15 cents a pound, whilst newer brands such as Honey Crisp and Ambrosia can bring in 40 to 50 cents a pound.
The majority of orchards in Okanagan have been replanted over the last 20 years but the current program is looking to replace the remainder. The current program has already been successful as the apple industry has grown over the last year.
In general there are around 6,000 acres of apple orchards in Okanagan and apple sales in B.C are around $200 million a year.
