The British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture and Food has released its updated 2025 Tree Fruit Acreage and Production Report. Two trends stand out: insured cherry acreage has now grown to roughly 7,250 acres, compared with about 5,700 acres of apples, and Ambrosia and Gala now account for roughly two-thirds of insured apple acreage.

Executive summary: 

•   The insured area devoted to tree fruits in British Columbia has increased around 1,600 acres in the past decade, reaching 14,250 acres in 2026.

•   Over that time, B.C. tree fruit acreage has shifted decisively from apples toward cherries, with cherries becoming the largest tree fruit planted by about 2023.

•   While the South Okanagan remains an important production region, the Central Okanagan has emerged as the primary growth region in the province, and the Similkameen Valley has stayed relatively stable.

•   The industry is consolidating around a smaller number of commercially successful varieties, particularly Staccato and Sentennial cherries, Ambrosia and Gala apples.

•   Despite production losses in 2024 due to extreme weather, 2025 shows a strong recovery, especially for cherries.

The tree fruit industry is a well-known contributor to British Columbia’s agriculture sector with annual farmgate receipts of $163 million in 2025.

The report also breaks acreage down by region and variety, providing useful context on where production is shifting and how harvest windows and labour demand are changing across the sector.

For full report, link here: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/farming-natural-resources-and-industry/agriculture-and-seafood/animal-and-crops/crop-production/2025_tree_fruit_acreage_and_production_report.pdf

Source: BC Fruit Growers’ Association October 16, 2026 newsletter