With initial blueberry shipments from Washington this week, Berry People has positioned itself to cover a key market window between the California and Peruvian blueberry seasons.
“We’ll ship out of British Columbia around July 10 and out of the Willamette Valley around Aug. 20, market pending,” said Jerald Downs, president of Berry People, based in Hollister, CA. The company will continue to ship berries out of the Willamette Valley through October.
Berry People shareholders and a late season Oregon blueberry grower.
“We work with growers from eastern Washington for the early deal, with Langley, BC for mid-season and the Willamette Valley for our late-season supply, which goes well into October,” said Downs. “Our late-season deal is important, both from a tight market coverage perspective, and because of the long-standing relationship between Berry People shareholders and the family that supplies this product.”
The company is anticipating its Northwest blueberry volume to be up three-fold over last season with better supplies in the shoulder periods allowing no break in continuity between the California, Northwest and Peruvian seasons.
“This year we’re offering six-ounce pint and 18-ounce packs in traditional clamshells, as well as some 4.4-ounce organic packs for those weeks with a pronounced national supply deficit, allowing us to better cover customer demand.” said Downs, who expected to ship larger packs primarily during peak volume for ads breaking July 17 through Aug. 14.
As ever, Berry People’s mission to bring together an inclusive berry community is on full display in the Northwest blueberry deal, touching close to the heart, particularly in their late-season supply out of the Willamette Valley.
“There is a back-story on the relationship between our shareholders and our supplier partner in that region,” said Downs. “Moreover, our relationships in Willamette display the diversity and inclusivity of our supplier base out of the Northwest and Peru, two regions coming together in mutual understanding to cover a key market window.”
