World apple production increased by about 30 % in the past ten years

FAO statistics show: Global average apple yields rose from 11 t/ha in 2002 to more than 15 t/ha in 2012

Source: FAOSTAT 2014

Apples rank third in global fruit production with about 76 million tonnes in 2012, only bananas and water melons exceed this production quantity, with approx. 103 million tonnes each (FAOSTAT 2014).

Since 2002, global apple production has significantly increased by a total of 29 %. However, production trends in the top 15 producing countries have been diverse. As an example, China and India increased their apple production by 75 % to nearly 100 %, while statistics show significant reduction in apple output for Iran, France, Russia and Germany. Southern Hemisphere countries such as Chile, Brazil and South Africa with large apple exports to Europe and the US have increased their production, too. Apple production in Poland and Turkey has increased as well, contributing to the overall supply to the European market. Other countries have maintained their production at a stable level, e.g. USA, Italy and Argentina.

Apart from the big players, also countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia like Croatia, Albania as well as Armenia, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan reported a steep increase of more than 50 % in apple production during the same period.

The reason for growing apple production has been an increase in average yields while global production areas have remained approximately stable. Innovations in production systems have contributed to this rise: higher planting densities of apple trees, the adoption of dwarf rootstocks allowing first yields already in the second year after planting and new higher yielding varieties.

These developments in production technology are also analysed in the agri benchmark Horticulture Network, which now includes 11 typical apple farms from 5 countries in three continents. In the major production areas, apple yields are much higher than the global average, ranging between 35 to 80 t/ha, depending on climate conditions, varieties and orchard design.

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