10/24/05 Sizing up the world competition

Dr. Desmond O'Rourke has long been regarded as one of the leading fruit industry economists. And in his regular World Apple Report, and in his presentation Tuesday at the annual Central Washington Economic Outlook Conference in Ellensburg, O'Rourke will point out that Washington State agriculture, and the fruit industry, needs to be more competitive globally & very flexible and market oriented & if for no other reason than more nations are becoming more aggressive. O"ROURKE: For example, China has increased its production by more than one-hundred per cent in the last ten years in apples, grapes, pears, strawberries, asparagus, carrots, and onions & all of which are products very relevant to the Pacific Northwest. India also fits that same category, although it serves dually as potential competitor as well as an increasingly developing market for our fruit. But O'Rourke adds there are other countries to watch out for; ones that aren't necessarily world players but can take away market share from U.S. producers by offering goods on a regional scale. O'ROURKE: Turkey is becoming a major player of many kinds of fruit & apples, pears, sweet cherries, grapes and so on. Has always been but has become very large recently. Poland now that it is in the European Union is going to be a much bigger player, in the apple market particularly. And O'Rourke adds Brazil, potentially Argentina, and Latin America as nations and blocs that could take global market share away from U.S. fruit producers.