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The older varieties of pears are also fussier to grow than apples, since they are susceptible to fire blight, a disease that can cripple production. Planting trees further apart can curb the disease, but Brandle notes that is not a cost-effective solution for farmers.

Cold Snap’s origins long predate the superfruit craze of the past decade and the more recent push to eat locally grown produce instead of foreign-grown imports.

A cross between the Bartlett and a fire-blight-resistant pear known as “US56112-146,” Cold Snap was first developed in 1972 by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Scientists continued to test and tweak it for another 30 years.

“It got trapped in the hamster wheel of research and took 20 years longer than it should have taken (to get the pears to market),” said Brandle, a food scientist who has made promoting Vineland’s specialized produce to farmers, backed by a solid business case, one of its key mandates. “We are not successful until that pear is out in the field.”

Vineland acquired the rights for Cold Snap from Agriculture Canada in 2009, and launched the pear in Ontario grocery stores in 2015. Much hardier than other pears, researchers hope it will be grown in multiple regions across Canada over the next few years.

Cold Snap trees are less broad than standard pear trees and denser with fruit, which gives them a significantly higher yield: farmers can plant 1,000 Cold Snap trees per acre where only 200 Bartlett trees could fit. The pear is also adaptable to the country’s varied climate zones, even those with tough winters.