The Associated Press | January 14, 1999 WENATCHEE, Wash.-- Washington apple growers are facing some brutal competition in Hong Kong, their third-largest export market. Cheaper Fuji apples from China are taking a bite out of Washington Red Delicious sales in a traditionally busy period. "The Chinese Fuji is the buy right now," Dave Mathison, president of Stemilt Management Inc. of Wenatchee, told the Wenatchee World newspaper. Mathison is on a tour of Hong Kong. Asians buy lots of apples to give as gifts and serve during New Year celebrations. Washington Reds sell very well in Asia because red is a symbol of good luck. But competition is changing that this year. "It's very crispy and very sweet," said Humphrey Shi, holding up a large Chinese Fuji apple in a Hong Kong market. "It's very competitive to the Washington apple. And the price is right." Shi is an official at Hong Kong's Western Wholesale Food Market. He was a guide for a group of Washington growers touring Asia this week to follow Washington apples into important export markets. Wholesalers can buy a box of good quality Chinese Fuji for about $ 5.50. Washington growers would be losing money if they could deliver a box of their Fuji for twice that much. Attractive Washington Reds were selling for $ 13 to $ 14 a box. Chinese Fujis, said wholesaler David Tse, have been outselling the Washington Reds five to one at his stand, one of many in the huge warehouses on the dock of Victoria Harbor. "This year is not good for Washington apples," said Tse, a senior buyer at the market. Washington Fuji apples cost about $ 30 a box. Growers didn't find any Washington Fujis at the market. Just two years ago, Washington growers were getting $ 60 to $ 70 a box for top grade Fujis, said Jim Baird, a Columbia Basin apple grower on the tour. Jim Thomas, spokesman for the Washington Apple Commission, said Hong Kong is one of the few Asian markets where the Red Delicious apples continue to be popular. The state's growers sell 2 million to 3 million boxes a year to Hong Kong. "This is the battleground," Thomas said. "This is one area where people still favor the Red Delicious. If we lose them to the Chinese Fuji, it will be hard to win them back."The Associated Press:
