This week’s episode of TVW’s show “The Impact” looks at Washington’s agricultural economy. It starts by visiting the Yakima Valley to see the hops and apple harvests in action. As host Anita Kissée notes, apples are picked by hand. Dan Plath of Washington Fruit and Produce Co. says, “There’s no replacement for people and ladders. It’s still the most efficient way to pick.” But there’s a lot of technology utilized in processing (including robots), as the episode shows.

If the part about the hops harvest piques your interest, see also this 2008 episode of Dirty Jobs, which visited a Moxee hops ranch (from about 1:12 – 19:55).

TVW gets one thing very wrong: Kissée calls Granny Smith apples the “perfect pie fillers.” In fact, the best pie apple is the Golden Delicious. Watch the episode of “The Impact” below: