Apple Production to Increase by 10% This Year: "Strengthening Disaster Response and Supporting Small and Medium Apple Consumption"

The government has decided to strengthen disaster response measures and support the expansion of small and medium-sized apple consumption in order to ensure stable apple production. Through these efforts, the goal is to increase apple production by 10% this year.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced on April 2 that it has established the "2026 Apple Stable Production Promotion Plan" to address the instability in apple production caused by recent abnormal weather conditions.

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A ministry official stated, "Due to abnormal weather patterns such as spring frost during the flowering period, apple production over the past five years has fluctuated greatly, ranging from a maximum of 566,000 tons to a minimum of 394,000 tons," and explained, "Therefore, the ministry has established detailed implementation plans to stabilize supply and demand by expanding production of apples for the 2026 harvest."

The ministry has set the production target for apples in 2026 at 493,000 tons, which is more than 10% higher than the previous year's 448,000 tons. To achieve this, five key tasks have been established: securing an appropriate fruit set rate, strengthening year-round growth management, improving the supply and demand management system, promoting the consumption of small and medium-sized apples, and establishing a task force (Apple Stable Production Task Force).

◆Increasing Annual Production by Securing Proper Fruit Set Rate: For apples, it is standard practice to carry out thinning and fruit thinning (removing flowers or fruits not intended for fruit set) to achieve a final fruit set rate (the percentage of flowers that develop into fruit) of about 6-8% relative to the number of blossoms. However, this year, the ministry plans to increase this ratio to over 10% for the 2026 harvest by providing guidance to farmers.

In order to prevent biennial bearing (the phenomenon where heavy fruiting one year leads to reduced fruiting the next year) caused by excessive fruit setting, the ministry will raise the fruit set rate to about 10% for half of the total orchard area and maintain the existing rate for the other half. The focus will be on increasing the fruit set rate for storage-friendly varieties such as Fuji apples, while also providing technical guidance on overall growth management, including managing tree vigor, ensuring the optimal leaf-to-fruit ratio, and nutritional management.

Each major apple-producing region (Gyeongbuk, Gyeongnam, Chungbuk, and Jeonbuk provinces) will set its own production target to boost output. To achieve these goals, a joint on-site support team consisting of local governments, the Rural Development Administration, and the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation will be formed. This team will offer tailored technical guidance to farmers, supply fruit enlargement agents at discounted rates, provide thinning agents and agricultural materials, and support the processing of lower-quality fruits.

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◆Strengthening Growth Management and Disaster Response… Expanding Contract Farming: The ministry will manage risk factors throughout the apple growth cycle, including spring frost during blooming, summer heat waves, and pest and disease outbreaks. The joint on-site support team will operate a year-round growth management system focused on preventing spring frost and conducting pre-emptive pest and disease control. In addition, facilities to prevent the three major disasters-frost, typhoons, and heat waves-will be distributed early, and the supply of chemicals and nutrients will be pre-checked. Technical guidance and disaster response capabilities will be strengthened through on-site support.

Along with expanding production, the government will increase the volume of apples supplied under contract farming and designated shipment programs to ensure a stable, year-round supply. The contract farming volume will be increased from 38,000 tons for the 2025 harvest to 43,000 tons for the 2026 harvest. Policy funds for contract farming will be used to expand the supply of chemicals and agricultural materials for disaster response and growth management. Furthermore, based on the supply and demand situation during harvest, the government will secure as much designated shipment volume as possible to minimize supply disruptions.

◆Expanding Support for Purchase and Distribution of Small and Medium-Sized Apples: Whereas apple consumption in the past was centered on large apples for holidays, there has recently been a shift toward everyday consumption of small and medium-sized apples. Accordingly, the ministry will support the purchase and distribution of small and medium-sized apples to improve supply and distribution efficiency through regional fruit distribution centers (APCs) and a joint fruit brand (Sunplus).

Incentives will be provided based on the volume of small and medium-sized apples shipped by each APC supplying to the joint brand, and it will be mandatory to purchase small and medium-sized apples from contract farming and designated shipment volumes.

To ensure the effectiveness of these measures, the ministry will operate an Apple Stable Production Task Force involving local governments in major producing regions, the Rural Development Administration, and the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation. The first meeting will be held on April 3 to finalize detailed action plans for each organization, and the growth and implementation status of apples will be checked every one to two weeks.

Additionally, to stabilize the production base over the medium to long term, the ministry will establish fruit production complexes equipped with mechanization, automation, and disaster prevention systems, focusing on new production areas to increase productivity and reduce labor requirements. The ministry will also focus on supplying disaster prevention facilities to cover 30% of the total cultivation area by 2030 and will expand the supply of high-quality materials such as virus-free seedlings with strong pest and disease resistance.

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