Organic apple sales showed a year-on-year rise of nearly 24% both in dollar sales and volume in the U.S. for the fourth quarter of 2011, according to quarterly research by United Fresh Foundation.

Regular apples and avocados both increased in dollars, volume and average retail price in The FreshFacts on Retail report, which measures price and sales trends for the top 10 fruit and vegetables.

Apple weekly dollar sales per store were $3,051 showing a 7.5% increase, plus a 0.9% volume rise and a 6.6% average retail rise.

Avocado weekly dollar sales per store were $782 showing a 7.7% increase with a 6.9% rise in volumes and 0.7% increase in average retail price.

Dollar and volume sales for berries posted a double digit year-on-year rise during the fourth quarter due in part to a 2.6% decrease in average retail price.

Melons maintained a steady average retail price but declined by 25.8% in both dollar and volumes sales attributed to the cantaloupe recall from September 2011.

Weekly volumes per store for apples, citrus and pears remained the most consitent with the fourth quarter of 2010, each showing volume changes of less than 1%.

United Fresh Foundation said this indicated dollar shifts were driven more by average retail price than a change in distribution or customer preference.

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