Thread

1. legitster · 1790630747 · focus · HN ↗

   My parents live in a massive fruit growing region of the country. Just this year, 2 of the major packing firms in the county both declared bankruptcy. It's not just the trade war, but years of shrinking seasonal workers that fell off to a trickle as well.

   The knock on effect is massive. The seasonal workers supported a large permanent workforce - and more importantly tax revenues in the county are collapsing.

   But the really important thing to understand is that once the industry is gone, it's gone for a long time. The other markets competing with the US are already expanding their industries to fill the void. Once those trees are planted, they produce fruit for several decades to come.

   1. TheJoeMan · 1790646146 · focus · HN ↗

      From a layman perspective, American fruit growers refused to change with the times. How long are they still trying to make the “Red Delicious” apple work? Another ex-major packer I know of made the peach fruit cups, which people have been catching on are just filled with corn syrup. But these have been long term purchasing trends, yet the growers seemed blindsided by the packers ceasing operations.

      1. jimbob45 · 1790646898 · focus · HN ↗

         I guess I’m out of the loop. What’s with the Red Delicious hate?

         1. chihuahua · 1790647202 · focus · HN ↗

            It's mealy, bitter, and has a thick unpleasant skin. Many articles call it "the worst apple in the world." Decades of engineering it for transportability at the cost of taste and edibility are to blame.

            But the U.S. has created new, much better apples, like Cosmic Crisp (2020)

            1. phoghed · 1790647438 · focus · HN ↗

               Honeycrisp is still the king, and afaik farmers hate growing it.

               1. FpUser · 1790649275 · focus · HN ↗

                  >"Honeycrisp " - it was my love until it was not. over the years the taste and texture have completely changed

                  1. mandevil · 1790656599 · focus · HN ↗

                     My understanding is that demand killed the Honeycrisp. When it first came out, it was very delicate and could only be grown in certain places. But it was a perfect apple- crisp and sweet and bursting with flavor. So everyone who tasted one loved it and wanted more.

                     And so the food scientists went to work, and figured out how to cross-breed in the ability to grow in a wider variety of places. And adding in the capability to grow in large numbers like the Red Delicious turned the Honeycrisp into an apple that tasted more like the Red Delicious.

                     The US is really amazingly good at growing food, but it is because the physical reality- not just transportation but growing conditions- trumps taste in the main.

                     1. Dylan16807 · 1790658357 · focus · HN ↗

                        Are there any rules about labeling that can distinguish the old and new Honeycrisps?

                        Edit: <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.seriouseats.com&#x2F;how-honeycrisp-apples-went-from-marvel-to-mediocre-8753117" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.seriouseats.com&#x2F;how-honeycrisp-apples-went-from-...

                        Based on this a big problem is overlong storage, which could be avoided with some effort into local purchasing.

                        1. mandevil · 1790661501 · focus · HN ↗

                           My advice, as someone who grew up regularly apple-picking, for going local is to prefer the types that are local versus the names that you recognize from the supermarket. Unless you are in exactly the right area (upper Midwest), you will be much better off with the best apples for your region then with a locally grown Honeycrisp.

                           In upstate New York, I would recommend Autumn Crisp, Blondee, Macoun and Shizuka. I haven&#x27;t picked apples in Virginia in about a decade, so I&#x27;m probably out of date on the right types to get there, but I remember loving Stayman apples.

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