ORANGE’s fruit growing industry is a long way from the halcyon days when 400 orchards were scattered on the outskirts of the city and around The Pinnacle.
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Now there are only 40 - with many forced out over the years by market forces that made it impossible to remain viable.
Some orchardists years ago opted to pull out trees and plant out to grapes for the burgeoning wine industry which had sprung up in Orange.
So for the remaining orchardists it has been tough.
They have been subject to the forces of nature which includes hail storms, and more recently the invasion of flying foxes which decimated some orchards over the last couple of seasons.
They’ve also had to contend with the falling dollar and the realisation talk by politicians that Australia would become Asia’s food basket, didn’t come to fruition.
But there has been a growing level of consciousness in the last couple of years among residents determined to support Orange growers by shopping at the monthly farmers’ market, or taking that extra effort to check out fruit in retail outlets to ensure they are supporting Australian growers.
People are also more than ever supporting the boutique sellers of the region’s fresh fruit and vegetables.
So the latest predictions the boom in cider sales could have spin-offs for the fruit industry is welcome news indeed.
Although the cider industry is recording big growth from a low base in Australia the growth has given heart to Orange producers.
Let’s hope things are finally turning around for our fruit growers who have hung in there during the very tough times.
The growth in cider consumption and the location of a cider production operation near Orange could even result in some growers returning to planting pear trees again for cider.
Most growers ripped out their pear trees when it became too expensive to grade the fruit using the latest industry standards machinery.
