Processors are turning to a number of newly available and adaptable fruit choices. While standards such as apples, blueberries, pears, and mangoes are more popular than ever, the choices within these fruit types are expanding. Butterscotch pears, Green Dragon apples, Christmas Crunch grapes, and a myriad of new varietals are nudging out Anjou pears, Granny Smith apples, and other old favorites.
Exotic tropical fruits also are generating enormous interest. “Trendy tropical fruits such as passionfruit, dragon fruit, and jackfruit are really taking off,” says Robert Schueller, of Melissa’s World Variety Produce Inc. He also points to a big increase in popularity of persimmons, especially the firm and reliably sweet Sharon variety, as well as cactus pears.