Aomori Apples in Taiwan

Japan exported ¥20.1 billion of apples in 2024, and Taiwan bought ¥15.6 billion of them, or 77.5%. Most of those apples come from Aomori. They are among the most expensive apples on Taiwanese shelves, yet they keep their place, mainly as gifts for the Lunar New Year.

Aomori’s Apple Economy

Aomori, at the northern tip of Honshu, grows about 61% of Japan’s apples. Nagano grows 17% and Iwate 6%. Japan harvested 609,200 tonnes in the 2023 crop year, and Fuji makes up about half of it.

Exports are a small share of the harvest but an important one for prices. The main export varieties are Fuji, the very large Sekaiichi, Mutsu and the yellow Orin. Large, unblemished fruit sells as gifts, and that grade is what Taiwanese buyers want most.

Taiwan Pays the Most

Taiwan produces very few apples of its own. After it joined the WTO in 2002 and opened its market, imports took almost all of the demand. Japan now competes with the United States, New Zealand and Chile, and it is the most expensive of the four.

Source: Taiwan import data compiled by JETRO from Global Trade Atlas (HS 0808.10). Average price is value divided by volume.

Japanese apples cost nearly twice as much per kilo as US apples at the import stage. Buyers pay for size, colour and sweetness balanced with acidity. Taiwanese consumers tend to reject fruit that is only sweet, and Aomori Fuji and Sekaiichi fit that taste.

Built on Gift Demand

Most Japanese apples arrive in Taiwan in the weeks before the Lunar New Year, packed in boxes for gifts. Japan’s agriculture ministry lists this dependence on festival gifts as a weak point in its export plan. One bad season or late shipment can cut a year’s sales.

That happened in 2025. Taiwan’s imports of Japanese apples fell from 24,112 tonnes and US$74.4 million in 2024 to 19,200 tonnes and US$54.4 million. Heat and snow damage in Japan left too few large gift-grade apples, and shipping did not line up well with the holiday peak. New Zealand moved into first place with 45,568 tonnes. Japan’s apple exports fell by about ¥5.8 billion from the year before.

Aomori has recovered from worse. After the 2011 earthquake and nuclear accident, exports stopped for months and the year’s total fell to 9,800 tonnes.

Competition and Rules

• Tariffs — New Zealand apples have entered Taiwan duty-free since the 2013 economic cooperation agreement removed a 20% tariff. Japanese apples still pay it
• Quarantine — Orchards and packing houses that ship to Taiwan must be registered in advance, and fruit is inspected for pests
• Residue limits — Growers have to follow Taiwan’s pesticide limits, which differ from Japan’s
• Retail feedback — Taiwanese retailers have asked for more mid-priced Japanese apples so that shelf space is not lost in years with few gift-size fruit

Japan’s government wants apple exports to reach ¥27.9 billion by 2030, including ¥17.2 billion to Taiwan and ¥5.1 billion to Hong Kong. Aomori and Yamagata growers have been named “flagship” export producers to lead that effort.

Why It Matters for Overseas Buyers

• Importers in Taiwan and Hong Kong — Contracts signed before the harvest help secure gift-grade fruit in short years
• Retailers in Southeast Asia — Singapore was the only top-five market to grow in 2023, and the region cannot grow apples itself
• Buyers looking for value lines — Smaller Fuji and Orin can sell outside the gift season at lower prices
• Logistics partners — Cold storage and controlled-atmosphere storage let Aomori ship into spring, beyond the New Year peak

Conclusion

Aomori sells Taiwan the most expensive apples in the market, and Taiwan buys three-quarters of everything Japan exports. That works well in a good year and badly in a short one. The 2025 drop showed the cost of relying on one holiday and one grade. Growth now depends on adding mid-priced lines and selling across more of the year.