Two main types of cherries are produced in the United States: sweet cherries and tart or “sour” cherries, the latter being used primarily for processing. Sweet cherries are produced mainly in the Pacific Northwest and California while Michigan is the leader in tart cherry production. New York grows just less than 900 acres of cherries, 150 of which are located in eastern NY. The United States is the third-largest producer of cherries in the world. The European Union-27 is the leading cherry producer, followed by Turkey.

Cherry consumption has always been good but recent information about the antioxidant health benefits has improved domestic consumption. Per person consumption is approximately 2 pounds per year.

Over the last 20 years, Cornell research and extension projects have helped growers increase yields and fruit quality by increasing tree densities and improving labor efficiency. We estimate that profitability of new high density orchards is 100 to 300% greater than the traditional low-density orchards. For more information about tree fruit production, please visit the Cornell Tree Fruit website at http://www.fruit.cornell.edu/tree_fruit/index.htm.


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