As of June 1, 2024, cherry production for the current season is estimated at 37,000 tons, marking a 10% increase compared to 2023, despite the adverse weather in May. All regions will experience this increase. The start of the marketing campaign is in line with last year, with the bad weather having reduced market supply and keeping prices high, above the five-year average.
As of June 1, cherry production for 2024 was estimated at 37,000 tons, a 10% increase compared to the previous year and a 21% increase compared to the average harvest from 2019 to 2023.
Image 1: French national cherry production from 2019 to 2023 (in thousands of tons)
In Occitania, the deterioration in fruit quality following the bad weather in May has sometimes led to a halt in the harvesting of early varieties, which were the most affected. However, a production increase of 12% compared to last year is expected.
In Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, the bad weather in May also damaged cherries (split fruits, lack of firmness), forcing growers to conduct significant sorting to market the fruits. Since the load on the trees is satisfactory, especially for late firm-fleshed varieties, a total production increase of 10% compared to the previous year is expected.
In Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, despite losses due to the bad weather in May, a volume increase of 9% year-on-year is expected.
| Estimates as of June 1, 2024 | Occitania | Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes | Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur | France | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Production Area | Total area (thousands of hectares) | 1.4 | 2.4 | 2.3 | 7.3 |
| 1-year change (in %) | 1 | -4 | -1 | -2 | |
| 5-year change (in %) | -2 | -6 | -2 | -3 | |
| Production | Total production (thousands of tons) | 7.2 | 11.5 | 13.7 | 37.0 |
| Cherries | 5.9 | 10.9 | 8.0 | 28.6 | |
| Produced for industry | 1.4 | 0.6 | 5.7 | 8.4 | |
| 1-year change* | 12 | 10 | 9 | 10 | |
| 5-year change** | 14 | 11 | 40 | 21 | |
| Previous year (annual agricultural statistics) ** variation compared to the average for the period 2019-2023 (annual agricultural statistics). | |||||
In May 2024, cherry prices remained stable compared to the previous year, with a level 6% higher than the five-year average. This level was reached in a context of limited market supply at the beginning of the season. The bad weather slowed down the start of the season and forced sorting, reducing the marketed volumes of early varieties. Demand was also affected by the cool weather and high retail prices of early cherries.
According to market data from St Charles (66), volumes from Spain halved compared to the previous year and are in line with the average of the last 5 campaigns.
Image 2: Index of agricultural producer prices.
Cherry production forecasts are estimated from regional samples of quantitative and qualitative observations from multiple sources. They are published assuming no further significant events will affect the final harvest. The latest forecasts were made on June 1, based on data collected at the end of May.
The conjunctural survey on cherries covers 3 regions, representing 81% of national production in 2023:
Not all departments in a surveyed region are necessarily surveyed. The results for the surveyed departments are extrapolated from last year’s Annual Agricultural Statistics (SAA) data to represent the region as a whole. For unlisted regions, extrapolations are also made to estimate the entire national territory.
Changes in cherry production prices paid to producers are measured by the agricultural producer price index (Ippap).
Source: Laurent Bernadette, Maurine Lousteau, Cerise. En 2024, une production de cerises en hausse de 10%, Commercialisation, surface et production pour la campagne 2024, Agreste, Fruits, N° 2024-69, https://agreste.agriculture.gouv.fr/agreste-web/download/publication/publie/IraFru2469/2024_69inforapCerise.pdf.
Images: Agreste
27 Nov 2024
According to information provided by ANA Chile®, the keys to achieving an optimal harvest with the required quality standards are: avoiding soft fruits due to tree overload, preventing softening in the peduncular zone or "lizard skin" by harvesting with a color above 3.8.
21 May 2024
‘In the south it will be remembered as a very good season. The flowering was very good in 90 per cent of the orchards, reaching production levels not seen in a long time,' says Sebastián Navarro, agronomist and cherry grower in the south of Chile.
22 Jan 2025
'Arrivals of Chilean cherries by sea have grown significantly this season. More than 40 ships of Chilean cherries have arrived since November and some will continue after the Spring Festival,' reports Zhu, director of Shenzhen Changhong Logistics Co.
22 Jan 2025
‘This season will not be bad for Argentinian exporters. Prices were maintained thanks to the quality of the cherries. We lacked volume, which unfortunately affected producers in Chubut,' said CAPCI Director General Aníbal Caminiti.
