HAVANA, Cuba (AP) --A rush of cold air and a sweet fruity smell poured into
the muggy tropical air as Cuban workers jerked open the metal container. The
first direct shipment of American apples to this communist island in 40 years had arrived.

The 17 tons of Washington-grown Red Delicious apples, about 100,000 pieces of
fruit in all, arrived Thursday, the latest import of American food since shipments
began in December.

"Cuba represents a new market with a lot of potential," said Rebecca J. Baerveldt,
international marketing manager for the Washington Apple Commission as the
shipment arrived.

The nonprofit commission has a license from the U.S. government to sell up to 15
loads to Cuba in the coming months and years, she said.

Communist officials first agreed to buy American food last November after
Hurricane Michelle battered Cuba. They previously had refused to buy U.S.
agricultural goods despite a 2000 U.S. law allowing them to do so.

The law was an exception to the U.S. trade embargo in place for more than 40
years, prohibiting most trade with Cuba. The measure was heavily backed by
members of Congress from farm states seeking new markets for their constituents.

This first apple shipment, which arrived Thursday morning was sold to Cuba's food
import organization, Alimport, by the Northern Fruit Company of Wenatchee,
Wash. The sweet smelling cargo was worth about $20,000, Northern Fruit
marketing spokesman Jorge Sanchez said.

"It's time that we gave American farmers access to this market," said Doug Pauly,
Northern Fruit's operations manager.

U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash, lobbied for the sale of her state's apples to Cuba
after she visited the Caribbean island and met with President Fidel Castro.
Washington farm leaders hope pears, cherries and other crops will follow.

Food purchased from other American states in recent months has included corn,
rice, wheat, soy, poultry, vegetable oil, eggs and pork lard. Thursday's cargo also
included the first shipments of American dried beans and onions.

Since December, Cuba has bought, contracted or confirmed plans to buy about
650,000 tons of U.S. agricultural products worth about $102 million, according to
the U.S. Cuba Trade and Economic Council of New York.

  Copyright 2002 The Associated Press.