Tasmania Apple is Welcomed in Asia
The Huon Valley in Tasmania has long been known for its apple growing with many growers having been there for generations. One such grower is B W Griggs & Sons who have been growing apples for six generations, the last three on the current farm in the Huon Valley.
Griggs do all the mainstream apple varieties, but also have their own variety, RubiGold.
"We discovered it around 20 years ago, it was just one limb on a tree, a genetic sport which you get every year. This one just stood out because of its high colour, so we took a graft and after about five years of trials it looked like a good variety to grow," explains Dane Griggs. "It had all the good qualities such as uniform colour, it thins naturally without chemicals, meaning less labour and the quality of the fruit was just what we were looking for juicy, high colour and of course the flavour which is very balanced between acid and sugar."
As time has gone on Dane has had lots of customer feedback, for example people who couldn't eat an apple without getting an upset stomach, have said that they had no problems with the RubiGold.
Dane said that the colour and size are perfect for the Asian market, but they would traditionally prefer a sweeter apple, but Asian tastes are now becoming a bit more Europeanised so it is catching on.
The apple is currently being marketed in Hong Kong, Taiwan and China and it was selling really well in Vietnam before that market was closed to Australian apples. Production is not large at 1500 bins.
