Economic Importance of the World Apple Industry

Abstract

The apple industry is a global economic powerhouse whose tentacles reach into every aspect of the world economy. Therefore, it is important to explore these inherent links and assess objective measures of the industry’s relative economic importance. Among major fruits, the apple is second in volume to the banana. However, it far outdistances the banana in total revenue and revenue per hectare. While major apple exporting countries have remained relatively stable over time, imports have grown more rapidly in many developing countries than in traditional markets. Understanding the apple system is complicated due to the fact that vestiges of the industry’s agrarian past and legacy distribution systems co-exist with the most progressive segments of the industry. Thus, it is critical to consider those major factors that underlie the industry’s evolution, including land, capital, labor, water, and purchased inputs. The latter have become crucial to advances in the industry’s productivity. Governments around the world have played changing roles in the industry, as arbiters of grades and standards, sources of capital, providers of emergency relief, and, for many years, central planners for the entire national industry in communist countries. The apple product is also changing from relatively stable open access commodities to exclusive club cultivars with unique names, brands, and labels. Fresh apple marketers now employ marketing services long used by major consumer packaged goods manufacturers. Extrinsic factors, such as the environmental credentials of the producer or marketer, have become as important as intrinsic factors such as fruit size and color. The firms, districts, and countries that can most rapidly adapt to future changes will become increasingly important to the industry. Those who fail to adapt will continue to face shrinking opportunities.