NORTH AMERICA - Spring is here and as we move into the warmer months, the demand for flavor-packed fruit continues to grow. With the spring holidays underway and Mother’s Day on the horizon, growers are reporting ideal opportunities for promotional programs and adding a splash of color to produce departments.
Jim Grabowski, Well•Pict Berries’ Director of Marketing, tells me that the company has been experiencing a surge in strawberry production in recent weeks, which is a big change from earlier in the year.
“Supplies were quite tight in the beginning of the season due to weather issues, but have increased in the last few weeks. Right now we have heavy production in Oxnard and Southern California fields along with increasing production out of Santa Maria,” Jim says. “Well•Pict’s proprietary varieties are experiencing excellent flavor and quality. Berry size is running large with full red color and good shaping.”
Moving forward, Well•Pict expects demand to increase to match supply as some of the Midwestern and Eastern markets’ weather warms. Well•Pict Berries produces year-round strawberries, as well as seasonal raspberries, through the natural process of cross-pollination with non-GMO proprietary varieties, and is gearing up for the spring promotion season.
With Florida strawberries wrapping up at the end of the month for some companies, Driscoll’s is looking to its operations in Central Mexico, as well as California’s Oxnard, Watsonville, and Salinas areas to fill orders for its retail partners.
“Its been a really good year so far for berries, and where we saw some soft markets in early March, the market seems to be rebounding nicely and we will have good, solid demand as we get further into spring,” Chase Renois, Director of Strawberries, tells me.
Throughout March, Chase saw periodic rain throughout the company’s Northern California growing regions which has had more of an impact on Driscoll’s Watsonville and Salinas operations, than Oxnard.
“Weather has helped to temper volume and our program growth will be dependent on what weather California brings over the next couple months,” he adds. “As of now, the rains have really helped enhance the plant health and strength and created great quality strawberries with full flavor.”
Driscoll’s is anticipating good volumes through April and May, and supply to continue to pick up into June if the weather holds.
“May is a great time of year for strawberries. With Mother’s day and peak volumes slated, the month is perfect for promoting a berry spread, front and center, at retail,” Chase says.
Driscoll’s offers its proprietary genetics to retail partners as the company continues to share its flavor-forward messaging and consistent quality and supply.
As the demand for berries as a healthy snacking item and household staple continues to grow, stay tuned to AndNowUKnow for the latest updates.
