May 19, 2017
CapitalPress.com
5
Washington Ecology moves to
increase air-monitoring fees
Dan Wheat/Capital Press
Kanzi apple trees in bloom May 2 at Mt. View Orchard in East
Wenatchee, Wash. The industry expects another large crop this year
as it struggles with low prices in finishing up sales of the 2016 crop.
Kanzi is one of the new managed varieties that sell at strong prices.
Second-largest crop pushes
many apple prices lower
By DAN WHEAT
Capital Press
CHELAN, Wash. — It’s
been a tough sales season for
the Washington apple industry.
Not as tough as 2014, when a
record crop tanked prices, but
still bad enough that it’s “not
sustainable,” a leading market-
er says.
Red Delicious apples, sell-
ing below break-even prices,
are still 29 percent of the 2016
crop and need to be more like
15 to 18 percent, says Tim Ev-
ans, general sales manager of
Chelan Fresh Marketing.
Reds and Gala make up
more than 50 percent of the
crop. Prices of both have fall-
en to less than profitable levels
because it’s the second-largest
crop in history.
The crop was forecast in
early August at 132.9 million,
40-pound boxes. The estimate
peaked at 137.9 million box-
es on Dec. 1 and now is back
down to 132.8 million as of
May 1. The number is adjust-
ed from the start of packing in
August through the year-long
sales season, primarily for
storage cullage.
National fresh apple stocks
were 16 percent larger on
May 1 than they were a year
ago, according to the U.S. Ap-
ple Association.
Red prices dropped in Jan-
uary and Gala prices fell in
February and have remained
low enough that they’ve been
a significant hit for growers
and packer-shippers, Evans
said.
“Unless you are diversified
and into new genetics, you’re
probably not going to sur-
vive,” he said.
New genetics are new
strains of old varieties and
new varieties exclusive to
individual companies and
limited in volume to maintain
strong prices.
Red Delicious was initially
forecast at 33 million boxes
for the year but is ending up
at 39.5 million boxes, which
was enough to “tip it over on
price,” Evans said.
Certain sizes and grades
went to processing into juice,
sauce and baking ingredients,
he said, adding he doesn’t
know if there has been any
dumping on fields, as occurred
two springs ago after the re-
cord 2014 crop.
The average asking price of
extra fancy (standard) grade,
medium size (80 to 88 apples
per 40-pound box) Red Deli-
cious in Wenatchee and Yaki-
ma was $11 to $14.90 on May
5, down from $12.90 to $16.90
on March 7 and down $5 on
the low end and $4 on the high
end since January, according
to USDA tracking.
Two years ago, Reds hit $8
per box. Break-even is gener-
ally higher than $15 per box.
USDA tracking showed
Gala at $15 to $20.90 on May 5
compared to $15.90 to $18.90
on March 7. The March prices
were down $3 on the low end
and $4 on the high end from
Feb. 8.
Fuji was $21.90 to $26.90
on May 5, down slightly from
March and from $25 to $28.90
in January and February.
Granny Smith was $20.75
to $27.90 on May 5 versus
$21.90 to $24.90 on March
7 but improved from $19 to
$23.90 in January and Febru-
ary because of short supply.
Prices for Honeycrisp were
not given because they are
nearly sold out.
Shippers kept Honeycrisp
moving because of the poten-
tial for bitter pit and soft scald
problems in storage, Evans
said.
Initially this year’s Honey-
crisp crop was estimated at 10
million boxes but it will end up
about 8.3 million. As of May 1
there were about 800,000 box-
es left to sell.
“We planned to take them
out longer initially but the way
a majority of the fruit was act-
ing it took more bins to pack
and demand was there so we
ended up being out sooner,”
Evans said.
As of May 1, 96 million
boxes of apples had been
shipped with 36.8 million re-
maining, according to industry
reports.
That’s 72.5 percent shipped
versus 71 percent at the same
point last year and 76 percent
two years ago during the re-
cord 143.6 million-box crop.
“We’re at a very manage-
able level. With a cooler spring
and later bloom, it will give us
a couple of extra weeks (of old
crop sales) going into the new
crop,” Evans said.
The Gala harvest normally
starts around Aug. 1 but will
likely be delayed until Aug. 15
this year, he said.
By DON JENKINS
Capital Press
The Washington Depart-
ment of Ecology plans to raise
air-monitoring fees on more
than 500 businesses, including
such agricultural operations as
hay processors, fertilizer man-
ufacturers and cattle feedlots.
Ecology has yet to make a
specific proposal. But based
on Ecology’s goals, the higher
fees would approximately dou-
ble the amount the department
collects and fall most heavily
on businesses with the lowest
releases of contaminants.
For example, nine distill-
ers of mint oil that operate
about six weeks a year and
have mostly converted from
diesel to cleaner-burning pro-
pane and natural gas would
no longer be exempt from the
fees.
“If I had my way, we
would stay in the exempt cat-
egory, but I don’t know how
likely that is at this point,”
Washington State Mint Com-
missioner Shane Johnson said.
The fees fund Ecology’s
air-quality program in coun-
ties without local clean-air
agencies. That includes most
Matthew Weaver/Capital Press
Cattle feedlots and more than 500 other businesses that must report air emissions to the state Depart-
ment of Ecology face higher fees to fund the program.
of Central and Eastern Wash-
ington, and San Juan County
in Western Washington. The
program tracks emissions from
a wide range of industries be-
sides agricultural operations.
About 130 businesses,
such as the mint oil stills, that
must report their emissions to
Ecology are exempt from fees.
Most businesses pay a flat an-
nual fee ranging from $450 to
$1,000.
About 30 of the largest
emitters have a more compli-
cated fee structure. They pay
a base fee of $1,057, plus $16
per ton of emissions and an
additional fee based on how
much time Ecology spends
monitoring them.
Ecology says the current
emissions-based fee structure
doesn’t fairly distribute costs.
It also doesn’t raise enough
money, according to Ecology.
The Washington Clean Air
Act calls for the program to be
self-supporting, but the fees,
last raised five years ago, cov-
er only 45 percent of the costs,
according to Ecology.
The department has so far
met twice with industry rep-
resentatives to discuss how to
erase a projected annual short-
fall of about $352,000.
An Ecology spokeswom-
an said in an email Thursday
the department will meet with
industries again May 24 in
Moses Lake to continue dis-
cussions, but does not plan to
present specific numbers.
Ecology has said it plans to
make a formal rule proposal in
August and have new fees in
place by next March.
Washington Cattle Feeders
Association Executive Director
Jack Field, who’s involved in
the discussions, credited Ecol-
ogy for seeking advice. But
businesses won’t have much to
respond to until they know how
much they would pay under a
new fee schedule.
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