Washington apple exports topped 35 million cartons last year.
Despite a 5 percent decline in agriculture values from 2007 to 2008, Washington state’s exporting ability could help it pull out of the recession earlier than other states, state Department of Agriculture Director Dan Newhouse said this week. Three-quarters of agricultural products in the state are exported, he explained. Another topic mentioned was the Port of Prince Rupert in Canada, which is being developed to bring products from British Columbia to the American Midwest quickly. … If the Port of Prince Rupert obtained the market share of agricultural products, it would make the state’s ability to be competitive that much more difficult, Newhouse said.