Latest News From Northwest Cherries

Grower-shippers who market organic cherries agree that the category plays an important role in their cherry programs.

The early season volume out of the Northwest should help cherry-focused retailers transition from this year's California crop.

A new report from the Northwest Cherry Growers indicates the summer heatwave in the Northwest has caused an estimated 20% reduction in volume compared with earlier expectations. 

Sweet cherry harvest is well underway in the Northwest, and soon the shelves will be filled with the sweet 2021 crop. 

With supply from both California and the Northwest, Wenatchee, Wash.-based Stemilt Growers will have cherries to sell from May to August.

Early indications for the 2021 Northwest cherry crop suggest that it will be a more normal year and volume will be up over last season, said Chuck Sinks.

Cherry harvest for Domex Superfresh Growers will start around the first week of June, and gradually ramp up with good volume in mid-June, said Catherine Gipe-Stewart, communications manager for the company.

The cherry crop outlook is good, but The Oppenheimer Group experienced some frost damage in its orchards, said Jon Bailey, director of the cherry category for Vancouver, British Columbia-based Oppy.

CMI Orchards expects an outstanding year for its Northwest cherry crop, said George Harter, vice president of marketing for the company.

Within the broad categories of dark sweet and yellow sweet selections, the quest for improved cherry varieties continues for Northwest growers.

Chelan Fresh expects to peak on rainier cherries July 1, with dark sweet cherries peaking around July 14.

The rise of online grocery ordering has not gone unnoticed by Northwest cherry growers.

Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers expects a larger cherry crop this year, said Dan Davis, director of business development for the Yakima, Wash.-based marketer.

In a survey of Northwest cherry shippers, The Packer asked suppliers for their reasons for optimism for the 2021 Northwest cherry season.

Look for a bigger crop of Northwest cherries in 2021 and a nice-sized promotion window for retailers.

Retailers can promote cherries by maintaining off shelf displays with fresh product in key high-traffic areas to maximize impulse purchases/sales, Harter of CMI said.

Catherine Gipe-Stewart, communications manager for Domex Superfresh Growers, Yakima, Wash., said multiple studies show single-bag cherry sales are over 70% impulse purchases.

The COVID-19 pandemic increased the importance of digital marketing, said Catherine Gipe-Stewart, communications manager for Domex Superfresh Growers, Yakima, Wash.

Catchweight bags are not going away, but Northwest cherry shippers say there is increasing demand from retailers for fixed weight packaging this year.

BC Tree Fruits had a beautiful cherry set this year with a heavy bloom, said Laurel Van Dam, director of media relations for the Kelowna, British Columbia-based company.

The cherry crop for Orondo, Wash.-based Auvil Fruit will be similar but possibly a little larger than a year ago, said Ray Norwood, director of sales and marketing for the company.

The first estimate from Northwest Cherries pegs the 2021 crop at 23.79 million cartons, up 20% from 19.83 million cartons in 2020 and up 2% from 2019.

Northwest produce firms Chelan Fresh, Gebbers Farms and Apple House Warehouse & Storage Inc. are helping support families in Pateros, Wash., where childcare is in short supply.

With more than a month left in cherry harvest season in Washington state, The Packer’s Tom Karst caught up with a busy Kyle Mathison, fourth-generation grower with Stemilt Growers on July 16. 

Wenatchee, Wash.-based Starr Ranch Growers has launched a consumer blog and sweepstakes to support cherry marketing efforts.

The global scope of the ongoing new coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is evident in concerns Northwest cherry grower-shippers were expressing in late April, as their summer deal approached.

The Packer’s Tom Karst visited May 27 with B.J. Thurlby, president of Northwest Cherries, about the soon-starting cherry season.

Northwest cherry suppliers say they are working to overcome two hurdles connected to the coronavirus COVID-19 as they hurtle toward a new season. One is fear; the other, money.

Organics are a relatively tiny part — about 2% — of the Northwest cherry deal, but they play a key role.

Consumers will flock to stores for Northwest cherries, and they will have plenty of choices, marketers say.

Yakima, Wash.-based Domex Superfresh Growers has introduced Super Cherry, a jumbo cherry label.

Wenatchee, Wash.-based Stemilt Growers LLC introduced a new Ultimate cherry line last season, said Brianna Shales, communications manager.

Vancouver, British Columbia-based The Oppenheimer Group is “renewing” orchards, said Jon Bailey, sales manager.

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, video conferencing is the new thing with Yakima-based Northwest Cherry Growers, said B.J. Thurlby, president.

Chelan, Wash.-based Chelan Fresh Marketing is entering its first full season with new cherry packaging, said Tim Evans, general sales manager.

Wenatchee, Wash.-based CMI Orchards has added new tools to its American Dream cherry program, said Danelle Huber, marketing specialist.

The Northwest cherry harvest won’t reach last year’s 23 million 20-pound boxes in 2020, but there will be plenty of fruit for consumers in the U.S. and beyond, suppliers say.

Wenatchee, Wash.-based Stemilt Growers LLC soon will unveil a new Ultimate cherry line with electronic defect sorting and sizing technology, said Brianna Shales, communications manager.

Vancouver, British Columbia-based The Oppenheimer Group in 2019 is marking 10 years of marketing cherries from The Dalles, Ore.-based Orchard View Inc., said David Nelley, category vice president at Oppy.

Oneonta Trading Corp. now is 85 years old and has entered its third generation of ownership.

Organic cherries probably lag a bit behind apples and pears in the Pacific Northwest, but cherries are making some gains, suppliers say.

Northwest cherry grower-shippers are expecting to have plenty of product for their June-August market window this year.

Pouch bags have become the primary delivery method for Northwest cherries, but clamshell containers rapidly are gaining popularity.

Catch up on the latest from grower-shippers that produce and market Northwest cherries, from increased volumes of organic and proprietary varieties of cherries to new optical sorters and personnel.

Retailers and consumers should have no problem finding organic cherries from the Pacific Northwest this season.

Nearly a dozen major varieties of cherries are available from Northwest cherry grower-shippers, and new ones seem to be popping up all the time.

Exports account for a significant amount of Northwest cherry volume.

Probably no one is more thrilled than Northwest retailers when local cherries arrive each June.

Rain and low temperatures lingered longer than usual in the Pacific Northwest this spring, but cherry growers had their fingers crossed for the weather to comer right for a productive and profitable season.

Washington sweet cherry growers have voted to continue their federal marketing order.