Name: ‘I regret that.’ Gov. Inslee apologizes for apple gift mistake; agent tracks down maggot-laden fruit
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‘I regret that.’ Gov. Inslee apologizes for apple gift mistake; agent tracks down maggot-laden fruit

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In The NewsYour browser does not support the audio element.Gov. Jay Inslee’s well-intentioned gesture of Western Washington apples sent a detective hunting down the fruit in three counties this week.THANKS TO OUR SPONSOR:The apples from the executive residence in Olympia were intended for Eastern Washington residents who had lost their homes in fires. But the fruit was infected with maggot larvae.In Washington, . There are road signs and posters all across the state alerting people to the rules. The penalty for breaking the rule? Up to 90 days in jail. But the Washington Department of Agriculture has never enforced the law. Sources at the department say it’s more about education.Betsy Beers is a professor of entomology at Washington State University in Wenatchee. She said apple maggots are dangerous pests because they feed directly on the fruit.“It burrows through the fruit and leaves sort of a brown, yucky mess,” Beers said.KUOW and that some about the governor's post-fire visit.THANKS TO OUR SPONSOR:By Monday Will Carpenter was searching for the accidental Trojan horse fruit. Carpenter is the chief agent with the Chelan-Douglas County Horticultural Pest and Disease Board.“This is the most significant case I’ve seen in seven years,” Carpenter said. “And that’s how long I’ve been with the department.”Carpenter said the governor pretty much broke records for the quantity of infected fruit he brought into quarantine counties – more than a box full. And the mistake could have had big economic impacts for apple growers in Washington state.“And the pest is so bad that if we were to become quarantined in any of our counties, that our growers wouldn’t be able to ship to certain export markets,” Carpenter said.Carpenter said he was able to track down 37 apples in Bridgeport, seven in Omak and some fruit in Malden. He said every apple he cut open was infested with apple maggots.“We’re missing maybe two apples,” Carpenter told the Northwest News Network Thursday afternoon. “One a kid had eaten onsite on Saturday and two that were cut open for a photo op for social media.”Throwing away the apples doesn’t fix the problem. The larvae can survive and turn into a fly for the next year. The apples have to be cooked to kill the larvae.In a press conference Thursday, Inslee said he was sorry for the apple mistake.“I was thinking about the people who lost their homes, and we went too fast,” he said. “And I regret that.”Inslee said that he and his wife would make donations to food banks in the affected areas. Though presumably, the donations won’t be of home-grown apples from Western Washington.Editor’s note: This story has been updated to call the quantity of apples brought by Gov. Jay Inslee a “box"; a previous version of this story made informal use of a term with a specific technical meaning within the apple industry. THANKS TO OUR SPONSOR:THANKS TO OUR SPONSOR:Sign up to get important news and culture from around the Northwest, delivered to your inbox six days a week.Washington’s apple crop will be up to 10% smaller than expected because wildfires and extreme windstorms have battered orchards in recent weeks.Historians say the multibillion dollar fruit industry in the region began with the 194-year-old tree, which died surrounded by its offshoots.Washington Gov. Jay Inslee thought it would be a nice gesture to bring some apples from his own tree when he visited eastern Washington communities ravaged by wildfire last week.Tags:&nbsp;, , , Streaming NowAll Things ConsideredOPB NewsopbmusicKMHD

In The NewsYour browser does not support the audio element.Gov. Jay Inslee’s well-intentioned gesture of Western Washington apples sent a detective hunting down the fruit in three counties this week.THANKS TO OUR SPONSOR:The apples from the executive residence in Olympia were intended for Eastern Washington residents who had lost their homes in fires. But the fruit was infected with maggot larvae.In Washington, . There are road signs and posters all across the state alerting people to the rules. The penalty for breaking the rule? Up to 90 days in jail. But the Washington Department of...

‘I regret that.’ Gov. Inslee apologizes for apple gift mistake; agent tracks down maggot-laden fruit

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