Why Is Organic Apple Certification Slower?

A fair portion of Washington’s apple crop has been harvested, and at an estimated 124 million boxes, 2024 looks to be a solid year.  Jon DeVaney, president of the Washington State Tree Fruit Association, said organic certification, which takes additional time, has slowed the past couple of years.  He said demand is just one of the factors.

“Many of the certifiers have been challenged with additional organic enforcement requirements that the federal government has put forth," DeVaney said.  "And so, going through that process and dealing with organic certification while all of the certification programs are stretched thin right now has slowed some of that additional conversion that might otherwise take place.” 

All that, DeVaney noted, as producers work to keep up with consumer demand.

“That can be challenging because we do hope for and need a higher premium price on organics for all the complexities of organic production and certification and making sure you’re meeting all of those regulatory requirements," he stated.  "But in an environment where consumers are under a lot of financial pressure, sometimes there are concerns that that will dampen the growth of that sector.”

Again, the expectation of this year’s apple crop in Washington is 124 million boxes.

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