MILWAUKIE, OREGON – With harvest underway throughout the four growing regions, Pear Bureau Northwest (PBNW) announces the first estimate of the 2024-25 fresh pear crop for Washington and Oregon. The industry’s fresh pear estimate is 10.6 million standard box equivalents, which is down 31 percent from the five-year average.
Bosc pears see the steepest decline, down 62% from last year. Cumulative effects of intense freezes the past couple of years are the driver of this year’s drop. Green Anjou (down 36% from the five-year average) is the other most impacted variety.
The organic pear estimate is expected to come in at 1.4 million standard boxes equivalents, or 13% of the total projected Northwest crop.
Across all regions, harvest started in early August for Starkrimson and Bartlett pears, with growers beginning to pick Bosc, green and red Anjou by late August. Harvest for specialty varieties such as Comice, Seckel, Forelle and Concorde will be completed by late September.
“Despite this year’s shorter crop and some regional differences in overall appearance,” says CarrieAnn Arias, President and CEO, “this years’ harvest will continue to deliver a great eating experience for the consumer.”
DOMESTIC PROMOTIONS
The 2024-25 season will feature an evolution of last year’s consumer advertising campaign with a deeper dive into the personalities of different varieties, while continuing to educate and inspire consumers with bold and approachable recipes that celebrate the versatility of pears.
Early season promotions will include a partnership with Tajin in October, to observe National Pizza Month. For National Diabetes Month in November, PBNW is collaborating with a team of accomplished dietitians who will be sharing a diverse spread of new diabetes-friendly recipes across social media, including PBNW’s Instagram account @USApears. December, which is National Pear Month, will showcase more versatility on the ninth annual World Pear Day, December 7. This global event will feature a new partnership with the online community of culinary creators, Kittch, during which chefs will compete in four rounds to include appetizers, main courses, desserts, and a free round.
INTERNATIONAL PROMOTIONS
Outside the U.S., “The export team stands at the ready to promote USA Pears to whichever export markets they are shipped to for the upcoming season,” says Jeff Correa, Director of International Marketing. “The expectation, due to the size of the crop, is that Mexico and Canada will receive the bulk of the export volume this season,” he added.
PBNW will have full promotion programs that will focus on in-store activities as well as larger-scale activities such as movie tie-ins and TV advertising in Mexico. Digital marketing efforts have become a bigger part of the promotional toolbox during the past few years, and PBNW has plans to continue to be very active in this space with the leading retailers in Mexico, Canada and Central America. Finally, PBNW will also develop an in-store and social media campaign to promote and establish the red Anjou pear in more of the export markets this season.
ABOUT FRESH PEAR COMMITTEE OF FEDERAL MARKETING ORDER 927
Established in 1939, the marketing order provides the authority to set regulations and provides the authority to set and collect promotion and research assessments. Crop reports and size and grade reports are also compiled and distributed through the authority of the marketing order. All growers of commercially grown pears in the US sates of Oregon and Washington are part of Oregon the marketing order. USDA requires the Marketing Order to hold a referendum every six years, giving the growers a chance to vote to continue the order or not. The last referendum, held in 2023, resulted in overwhelming approval with 99% of the votes being cast in favor of continuation.
ABOUT PEAR BUREAU NORTHWEST
Pear Bureau Northwest is a non-profit marketing organization established in 1931 to promote the fresh pears grown in Washington and Oregon, home to 84% of the US commercial fresh pear crop. The Bureau represents over 700 grower families and partners with outlets throughout the world in an effort to increase overall success with the pear category. The organization provides marketing and merchandising expertise that is customized specifically for each retail organization, using its pear consumer research findings as well as individual store analysis using an in-house data system that measures pear category performance nationwide and third-party research to show retailers how they perform versus their competition. Retailers who are interested in partnering with Pear Bureau Northwest should contact them at info@usapears.com or 1 (800) 547-4610, as well as visit the retail trade site, Trade.USAPears.org, or consumer site, USAPears.org.
