Good Fruit Grower

December 2012

Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/95311

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 54 of 79

Blueberries are bigger and tastier than they used to be, thanks to the work by plant breeders. Berries are also versatile, available fresh, frozen, canned, and dried. "The industry had a lot of cohesiveness from the start." —John Shelford MBG Marketing, but today there are a lot of sellers, he said. "MBG's market share is only half what it once was," he said. A new addition to the picture is the International Blue- ones are in muffins and yogurt. Dried ones are in nutrition bars and trail mixes. Ocean Spray has mixed them with other fruits and put them in juices. Forces have been at work on the marketing side. One is MBG Marketing. Back in 1976 when Shelford joined, the name was Michigan Blueberry Growers. "People thought we were a trade asso- ciation," he said, "so, we changed the name to MBG Marketing." People also thought the company mostly marketed Michigan-grown blue- berries, but it expanded into new territory as production spread. It was, and is, a driv- ing force in blueberry marketing, and is now a part of Naturipe, a huge marketer of berries of all sorts. In 2000, Shelford became president of Naturipe Farms, a partnership between MBG Marketing and Hortifrut SA, Santi- ago, Chile. MBG Marketing is the largest marketer of blueberries. He is now part of FreshXperts, a group of consultants serv- ing clients in the fresh fruit and vegetable industry. Little Blue Dynamos Two other things have helped blueber- Berries, in general, have fared well during the last decade of fascination with health and wellness. Both blue and red fruits are touted for their high levels of antioxidants. can be harvested by hand or by machine, either for fresh or processing. It's people friendly to harvest. Packaging has changed from the old paper containers to clear plastic clamshells. "Blueberries are convenient and easy to eat," he said. "Preparation is easy," Shelford adds. "There's no peeling or cutting." The flavor of blueberries is not intense, Shelford said. "It's a flavor most people like, mild enough for everybody." Blueberries seem to be everywhere, Shelford said. Fresh ones are eaten like candy or added to cereal. Frozen www.goodfruit.com ries grow. One is a federal promotion and research order, established in 2001, which set up the National High Bush Blueberry Council. "There are no marketing aspects and no supply controls," Shelford said. "What it does is collect $12 a ton to fund research and promotion." The assessment is made on both domestic production and imports, paid by producers and importers. It raises about $4 million a year to spend on generic promotion and market development. In May this year, the council launched its Little Blue Dynamos campaign. Promotion was once done through the Table 1 World production, now and ahead 2010 North American highbush North American lowbush South America Europe Africa Asia Australia/New Zealand TOTAL *John Shelford forecast Table 2 Highbush blueberry growth in acreage West Midwest Northeast South 2005 acres 2008 acres (percent) 22,600 20,400 9,730 18,165 Total North America 71,075 South America Total SOURCE: North American Blueberry Council North American Blueberry Council, located in Folsom, California, which was created in 1965 and used voluntary contributions to pro- mote the industry. Today, NABC provides its members with market information and support services—monthly cold-storage reports, statistical analysis, trade leads. "The industry had a lot of cohesiveness from the start," Shelford said. At one time, much of that came from GOOD FRUIT GROWER DECEMBER 2012 55 18,039 89,114 35,000 23,400 10,560 25,500 95,607 39,703 135,310 17 5 3 13 12 73 17 Annual rate of growth (million pounds) (million pounds) 475 150 155 83 5 7 2016* 700 11 887 250 300 150 13 25 15 1,453 berry Organization, created last year and bringing in charter members from Mexico, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, British Columbia, Chile, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and, of course, the United States through the North American Blueberry Council. • Photo by Scott bauer, uSDa agricultural reSearch Service. uSDa arS Photo by StePhen auSmuS

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of Good Fruit Grower - December 2012