Here in the Northwest we have been graced with mild growing weather the past 10 days. A cool weather system pushed hot weather out of the region on June 7th. Growers are reporting that the mild temperatures (70-75 Fahrenheit) during the day and at night (mid 40’s F) have produced large, firm fruit that is loaded with sugars!
This recent run of cooler temperatures has resulted in later varieties being pushed back – some growers are expecting to harvest their Canadian varieties 4 to 5 days later than they did last year. The Bing Harvest continues at mid-elevation levels throughout Washington, Oregon, Utah and Idaho. Montana is looking at a June 25th start date this year. With plenty of Bings left to harvest in the later districts, the earlier growing regions are starting on Skeena and Lapins this weekend. Significantly, most all of our later growers expect most of their crop in July this year.
Through June 15th the industry has shipped 5,581,665 million 20 lb. equivalent boxes. Included within that total are 453,909 fifteen-pound boxes of Rainiers. This will certainly be one of the largest Junes on record for a variety of statistics, and retailers who took an early lead with strong promotions are sharing stories of correlating records as well.
With cherry volume shipping at a full but not yet peak rate, displays and circular ads should be geared to pull in the occasional and impulse-cherry buyers who are more likely to repeat-purchase cherries with earlier exposure.
Consumer media efforts accelerated in conjunction with our season, and the initial results are hitting shelves & inboxes around the world. Nielsen research indicates that heralding the start of the cherry season is an impactful boost to consumer awareness, even in today's headline-saturated and social media-driven world.
While our first press release has earned 912 online placements and an additional 34 US printings for a total impressions estimation of over 112 million people in the last week alone, the features in periodicals like US News & World Report, PopSugar!, and even the MSN homepage can arguably do more to spur consumer engagement through their social media (re)distribution. Either way, with both going strong and lots more to come, consumers will be thinking of cherries when they're making their lists and looking through ads.
Source: Northwest Cherry Growers
