OXNARD, CA - I don’t know about you, but winter brings out the berry best in me—pun intended—because as the colder weather swoops in, I look to berries to brighten up my days with lick-my-fingers juicy sweetness. And with Valentine’s Day right around the bend, I find myself wondering how the popularly dished-up strawberries are doing.
Thankfully, California Giant Berry Farm’s Vice President of Marketing Cindy Jewell offers me some insight into how the snacking go-to is managing in Oxnard, CA; Mexico; and Florida this season.
After we touch on Florida and California weather circumstances, where there has been a fire-and-ice-like conundrum, Cindy explains that these conditions have had no effect on quality for strawberries: “Quality is great! Because the weather is cooler, it is keeping the size of the fruit really big. The fruit looks great and tastes great, there just isn’t enough of it. And because of California’s inch and a half of rain in Oxnard that happened all at once, they’re just cleaning off the plants this week, and then we will resume harvesting next week.”
Music to my ears, Cindy assures me of a strong market on the strawberry front.
“The market is strong! It’s just a matter of filling orders. At this point in time we’re getting a lot of inquiries about stems for Valentine’s Day, so the real concern we’re getting asked from customers is, ‘How are you going to cover me on stems?’” Cindy explains, before expanding on how this is a trend January sees. “They’ll start pulling fruit for Valentine’s Day orders at the end of January. At this point, growers are asking how many they will be able to get so they can start filling their ads for Valentine’s Day. It’s all about stems.”
Cindy explains the harvest this Holiday of Love must-have item is on time and looking better than last year because of this year’s lack of incessant rain. This has helped the company’s production to flourish in Oxnard, CA, before it makes its way to Santa Maria.
After delving into the makings of this strong market, Cindy adds, “The price is definitely strong, but you’ve also got limited volume and a finite demand—even though there is good demand and a good price. It’s good demand, but it's not June demand. It’s all relative.”
And while the market is currently looking good, Cindy makes note of the forthcoming season, when she expects some relief to hit.
“I think it’s going to be a good spring. I think everyone is looking forward to having a more normal berry season this year. The growers are super optimistic about the way the fruit looks and tastes. Hopefully that will translate into a good return for them,” she shares with me.
As for promotional opportunities to come, Cindy doesn't disappoint: “This year for Valentine’s Day, we’re doing a Galentine’s Day. We’re doing a Galentine’s Day video shoot," Cindy tells me. I inquire about the address and an invitation when she laughingly adds, "We’re doing a big shoot with a bunch of girls with mimosas, granola, and Galentine’s Day cards. It’s just really fun!”
As we enter Cupid’s favorite time of year, Cal Giant expects a successful season ahead and an even stronger spring, making us fall in love with the industry all over again.
