4/20/12, "Welch’s Says Freeze Damages Grapes Used to in U.S. Juice," Bloomberg
"An April freeze damaged grape crops from Michigan to New York that last year supplied about two- thirds of the U.S. fruit used to make non-alcoholic grape juice, government and industry officials said.
About 90 percent of juice-grape crops were damaged in Michigan, the third-largest U.S. grower, and as much as 50 percent were hurt in New York, the No. 2 producer, and in Pennsylvania and Ohio, said Rich Erdle, the director of member relations for the National Grape Cooperative Inc., the owners of Welch’s juices and jellies. Cold weather destroyed the primary buds on plants, and secondary buds will produce 35 percent of normal output, Erdle said.
Apples, grapes and cherries were the hardest hit when temperatures fell below 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 Celsius) from April 6 to April 14 across the Midwest, especially in Michigan, said Dennis Todey, South Dakota’s climatologist, who lead a media briefing by telephone yesterday for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The cold spell followed unusually warm weather in March that led to an early start to growing season." via Tom Nelson
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