Taiwanese Apple Usage Little Changed

WASHINGTON - Dec 11/07 - SNS -- Apple consumption levels in Taiwan have been flat in recent years, something which is unlikely to quickly change, cautioned the U.S. agricultural attache for the country, because of interest in trying new products.

Taiwan produces little of what it consumes. Even prior to accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2002, Taiwan's annual apple crop, grown in orchards set in Taiwan's temperate central mountain range, was not significant, less than 10,000 metric tons (MT) per year.

Since WTO accession and market liberalization, cropland has been steadily taken out of production, so that in 2006 less than 6,000 MT of fresh apples were harvested. At its best, local production is currently able to supply only some 5% of domestic demand, making the impact of annual fluctuations in local crop yields on imports insignificant. The industry is likely to continue slowly contracting due to high production costs and labor retention problems. The area harvested is not expected to change significantly over the next 1-2 years.

Local production is principally the Star King variety. Eighty-percent of commercially-grown local apples are estimated as sold for fresh consumption, with the remainder being used in prepared foods -- processed typically not very far from the orchard.

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