Sorry, millennials: Apple picking is probably going to be more expensive this year

• Apple crops will be smaller in some parts of the country this year due to frost in late spring.
• Those shortages, combined with a labor crunch, could raise prices at orchards and cider mills.
• Some orchards are canceling u-pick apple altogether due to light apple crops.

Sorry, millennials: Your annual fall pilgrimage to an apple orchard may cost you a few dollars more this year.

A combination of climate change and worker shortages is causing prices to rise at apple orchards and cider mills in many parts of the country, including Michigan and Wisconsin, and leading to smaller crops in regions like the Southeast.

The US Apple Association, a trade group for the apple industry, warned in its Apple Outlook Report in August that the industry is facing a severe labor shortage, which began even before the pandemic.

"We are losing domestic workers faster than we can replace them," Chris Gerlach, the group's director of industry analytics, wrote in the report. While employment in the agriculture sector has been dropping overall, it's even worse at apple orchards: Between 2014 to 2020, the average annual crop production employment dropped by 3% - in apple orchards, it dipped by 20%, according to Gerlach.

In Wisconsin, a freeze in the late spring is leading to lighter apple crops this year, according to FDL Reporter, a daily newspaper in Wisconsin. It's led to at least one orchard and cider mill, The Little Farmer, canceling u-pick apples this season and prioritizing items like caramel apples and baked goods over apple cider. In a Facebook post, the business also cited the labor shortage as the reason it's unable to offer frozen apple pies at the moment.

In Michigan, a similar heavy frost in late April damaged crops for many growers, the Detroit Free Press reported. It's led to some orchards opting not to offer pick-your-own apples this year and many cider mills needing to source their apples from growers elsewhere. On top of that, costs are up and some apple varieties just aren't available.

"Across the board, it's nothing like I've ever seen before," Nancy Steinhauer, the owner of Dexter Cider Mill, told the Free Press. "Shipping is up, products are up, apples are way up."

Another Michigan business, Diehl's Orchard Cider and Mill, told the Free Press that it raised its cider prices from $8.50 per gallon to $10 this year to help offset costs.

Overall, Michigan apple growers are expected to produce 18.25 million bushels this year, compared to 22 million bushels in 2020, the Free Press reported, citing data from the US Apple Association.

In North Carolina, freezing spring weather led to "widespread and significant crop damage/loss," Thomas Kon, a professor at North Carolina State's Mountain Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Center, told the American Cider Association, a trade group for the hard cider industry.

"Unfortunately, 2021 will be a difficult year for much of the southeastern apple industry," Kon said.

An extreme heat wave in Washington earlier this summer could impact crops there as well, Tim Kovis, a spokesman for the Washington State Tree Fruit Association told The Wenatchee World.

"What our members have kind of reported back to us, is that the early heat we saw in late June and early July was problematic," Kovis said. "Trees are similar to humans. When temperatures get a little high, they get a little lethargic and the growth slows for the fruit."

Other parts of the country, including Massachusetts and New York, have struggled with insect infestations or a destructive disease known as fire blight during this year's growing season, according to the ACA, though Northeast growers are still reporting healthy apple crops.

Overall, US apple production is expected to reach over 265 million bushels this year, a 2.7% increase over the 2020-2021 growing season, according to US Apple Association data.

In the mid-2010s, apple picking became a quintessential millennial activity, fueled by the rise of Instagram and the popularity of all things fall - including, of course, pumpkin spice lattes.

It initially led to confusion among some growers who said they felt like zoo exhibits and led others to adapt their business models to accommodate casual weekend pickers in search of a photo opp instead of the bulk buyers of years past, The Atlantic reported in 2015.

In 2020, apple picking, along with other summer and fall activities like visiting pumpkin patches or sunflower fields, became safe, outdoor options for people looking to get out of their homes. U-pick farms told The New York Times last October that they were particularly busy, with some even needing to close down their fields to let new fruit ripen.