Honeycrisp
Apple cultivar that transformed the apple industry.
The Honeycrisp is a cultivated apple variety developed at the University of Minnesota’s Horticultural Research Center in Excelsior, Minnesota. First designated as MN1711 in 1974, it was patented in 1988 and released to the public in 1991. Originally nearly discarded, it quickly became a valuable commercial product, prized for its sweetness, firmness, and tartness, making it especially suitable for eating raw, though it can also be used in baking and applesauce. Its introduction marked a significant shift in the apple industry. In 2006, the Honeycrisp was named the official state fruit of Minnesota.
Genetically, early reports suggested the Honeycrisp was a cross between Macoun and Honeygold, but genetic fingerprinting in 2004 disproved this. One parent turned out to be a hybrid of Keepsake (itself a cross of Northern Spy and Malinda), while the other was identified in 2017 as the unreleased variety MN1627, whose grandparents are Duchess of Oldenburg and Golden Delicious. In 2022, botanists at Cornell University sequenced the Honeycrisp’s genome. The variety was bred for taste—specifically a balance of sweetness and tartness, and its signature crispness—rather than for high yield, long shelf life, or ease of transport. Its cells are larger than those of most other apple cultivars, a trait linked to juiciness because larger cells rupture rather than cleave along cell walls, making the apple taste juicier. The Honeycrisp retains its pigment well and has a relatively long shelf life when stored in cool, dry conditions, though its taste fades after extended storage. It is a demanding variety for growers, and breeders have sought hybrids that appeal to consumers while being less costly to cultivate and longer-lasting in storage without losing flavor. By the 2020s, roughly half of new apple varieties sold in the United States and Canada were descendants of the Honeycrisp, including SweeTango (crossed with Zestar), Rave (with MonArk), Cosmic Crisp (with Enterprise), Sunflare (with Cripps Pink), EverCrisp (with Fuji), SugarBee (a chance seedling), SnapDragon and Pink Luster (with Gala), and Orleans (with Empire).
Honeycrisp flowers are self-sterile, requiring another apple variety—most other apple or crabapple varieties work—as a pollenizer to produce fruit.
Lore & Background
The Honeycrisp was developed at the University of Minnesota's Horticultural Research Center. Designated as MN1711 in 1974, it was patented in 1988 and released in 1991. The US patent expired in 2008, though patents in some countries last until 2031. Patent royalties had generated more than $10 million by 2011, split three ways by the University of Minnesota between its inventors, the college and department where the research was conducted, and a fund for other research. The name Honeycrisp was trademarked by the University of Minnesota, but university officials were unsure of its patent status in 2007.
Genetic fingerprinting in 2004 concluded that neither Macoun nor Honeygold is a parent, despite earlier reports.
Reader's Guide
The Honeycrisp's significance lies in its rapid rise from a slated-for-discard cultivar to a prized commercial product that reshaped the apple industry. It became the official state fruit of Minnesota in 2006. Its popularity spurred a five-year Honeycrisp Orchard Renewal Program in Nova Scotia, Canada (2005–2010), which helped revive apple farms there. By the late 2010s, Honeycrisp, Gala, and Ambrosia became Canada's three most popular varieties. In the United States, Honeycrisp overtook Golden Delicious as the fifth most grown variety in 2018, and by 2025 it accounted for 12% of the American apple market, behind only Gala (16%) and Red Delicious (13%). Its price per pound is at least twice that of other popular varieties. By the 2020s, about half of new apple varieties for sale in the US and Canada are progeny of Honeycrisp, including SweeTango, Cosmic Crisp, EverCrisp, and SnapDragon. The Honeycrisp is demanding for growers: it bruises easily, has a thin skin requiring hand-clipped stalks, suffers from bitter pit (affecting 23% of harvest), and yields only 60% good fruit. Despite these challenges, its profitability drove a fivefold increase in production between the early 2010s and mid-2020s. Most American Honeycrisp apples are harvested in Washington state, Michigan, and New York.
More in Fruits & Vegetables
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced