3500 tons of apples are harvested in Tyrol every year. The customer’s taste, but also the shelf life, determine the assortment in the shops. There are few different apple varieties represented there. But there are around 300 documented varieties in Tyrol. Your genetic material has been secured.
Gala, Elstar or Topaz – these are currently three of the most popular apple varieties in Tyrol. Preferences change. “Today our consumers prefer red apples. They can also be a bit more sour than before, ”confirmed Regina Norz and Georg Pfurtscheller from Obst Tirol, the association of commercial fruit farmers. The producers have adjusted to the tastes of the consumers. That is one reason why only certain varieties are represented in the trade. Lost diversity is lamented, but Tyrol has much more to offer. 300 apple types that have been documented in the course of history between Lienz and Landeck. Those who are nostalgic complain about the lost diversity. Regina Norz argues against this: “Not every old variety is as robust against pests as one might think. Some can hardly be stored and transported. Others do not meet the taste of the times. ”EU project on genetic makeupBut the old varieties are not lost. Tyrol and South Tyrol have preserved the genetic material for posterity in a joint EU project. “There is at least one tree for each variety,” explains Klemens Böck, fruit growing advisor in the Chamber of Agriculture. Some old varieties are still popular today. Like the Boskoop, which is one of the most popular cooking apples in this country.
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