Farm to Table Berries building variety portfolio

Selma, Calif.-based Farm to Table Berries is integrating blueberry breeding into the company's blueberry marketing efforts.

Greg Willems, co-owner of Farm to Table Berries, Selma, Calif., said the company’s California Berry Genetics division tests and breeds varieties in conjunction with the University of Georgia.

In addition to selling its own blueberries, Farm to Table Berries sells blueberry plants through its nursery to growers throughout the U.S. and Mexico.

Willems said firmness, flavor and size represent the trifecta of desired blueberry traits.

“[Our varieties] have larger size, better flavor and the biggest thing is that [the varieties] are mechanically harvestable so the growers can save on labor," he said.

California Berry Genetics offers blueberry varieties to growers that are exclusive to the Farm to Table Berries brand and other varieties that are not exclusive to the brand, he said.

Willems, a Fresno State University graduate, has been growing blueberries for about 20 years and formed the Farm to Table Berries brand about eight years ago, he said. Willems and his wife started with about 5 acres of blueberries and now farm more than 500 acres, he said.

The company grows blueberries in the Kingsburg/Reedley region in the San Joaquin Valley.

The company’s California blueberry season starts April 24 and will continue through about July 5. Its blackberry harvest runs from mid-June through about mid-July.

Willems thinks blueberry demand will continue to grow. The ease of consuming blueberries is much like an item like a cherry tomato, he said.

In that way, blueberries are an easy item for both moms and chefs to use, he said. That convenience, combined with its health benefits, makes it a continuing winner.

“As we get these newer generations to eat blueberries, [consumption] is going to continue to grow," he said.