However, if you were on Cornell’s Ithaca campus last fall, you might have found a few cafés with wooden crates full of fruit simply labeled “Apple A.” These apples have distinctive red, russetted skin dotted with white spots. Take a bite and you’ll get a complex, nutty sweetness that’s not quite like any apple you’ve ever tasted.
So why does it have such an unremarkable name? The short answer is that Apple A isn’t ready for the broader market yet. Breeding, licensing and retailing new produce are all complicated processes, and convincing consumers to trade their favorites for something new isn’t any easier.