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🚜 Industry

Apple production varies from country to country. Here are the typical steps to go from tree to fruit:

Before planting, selected apple varieties are grafted onto rootstocks perfectly suited to local climatic and cultural conditions.
Then, it takes 4 to 5 years for the orchard to come into production. To promote good fruit growth, the producer fertilizes the soil.
In winter, the apple trees are pruned to select the fruit-bearing branches. (from November to the end of February in France)
In spring, bees ensure the pollination of flowers to allow fruiting. The apple producer then performs a first thinning to optimize the quantity of fruits per branch. (from March to September in France)
During the formation of the fruits, the producer carries out a second thinning and removes small and misshapen fruits from the tree.
Depending on their degree of maturity (determined by their starch content), apples are harvested at consumption maturity for immediate consumption or at harvest maturity to be stored first. (September to October in France)
Harvesting is done by detaching the fruit from the branch with its stem. It is then placed in palloxes (large wooden or plastic crates).

At the end of its life (on average 20 years), the orchard is uprooted, and the trees are most often burned in the field, and the soil is prepared for the next crop.

📈 Production & Consumption

🇪🇺 Europe

Europe is a major fruit-growing continent with a production of approximately 12.2 million tons of apples in 2022, with the top 3 producing countries being:

Poland with 4.75 million tons, representing 40% of total production