Apples, apples, apples! We are a nation of apple-loving people and their juicy crunchiness. But what makes these guys so tasty and popular? And how many varieties are there beyond red delicious, golden delicious, gala, fuji, and granny smiths; some of our personal favorites.

I was wondering about the wonderful world of apples after listening to a radio podcast on WNYC called the Leonard Lopate show the other day.

This year’s apples are expecting a significant rise due to the incredible weather according to Jim Allen, president of the New York Apple Association. This year we are expected to produce 32 million bushels of apples, compared to an average of 29 million bushels per year!

Some fun facts about apples is that there are over 7500 varieties of apples across the globe. The most famous of them all home just to be the red delicious as it accounts for 30% of apples grown in Washington State and 48% of apple exports to other countries.  But let's not stop there; the largest apple producing state in America is (fanfare please), Washington State with New York state at a close second! The reason why Washington state apples are the best in the business is because of their crispiness and juiciness.

Farmers in Washington continually work to try and work with natural pest enemies and cultural practices to reduce the need for chemical pesticides, which is really awesome for the environment and those handling today's pesticides.

The reason why many apples have such a nice shiny coat is simply because a shiny coat is applied to freshly harvested apples as a way of keeping them from shriveling and losing any excess ounces since, we all crave some nice chunky apples.

 Another fun fact is the majority of apples grown in the United States come from orchards and Washington State. Even though this sounds awesome, we Americans need to get our 'apple on' as we eat approximately 19 pounds of fresh apples annually while Europeans eat approximately 46 pounds on an annual basis.

So let's all go to our local farmers markets and pick up some nice crispy, juicy, shiny apples to fuel our hunger especially since, we all know that an apple a day keeps the doctor away. So, my last question for you is how do you like your apples?