Watsonville, CA – January 3, 2011 — California Giant Berry Farms looks toward the New Year with an expansion in their bush berry operations. Last Spring the company launched a state of the art cooling and packing facility in Aurora, Oregon in time for the fresh blueberry harvest season. The 40,000 square foot facility with forced air tunnels resulted in improved post harvest handling and overall fruit quality for the retailer and consumer. The company is furthering that commitment in 2011 with a search for a General Manager for California Giant blueberry packing operations. This new staff addition will direct and coordinate company-wide blueberry packing operations and work with a variety of managers/supervisors on a daily basis expanding the company’s position in the blueberry industry.
This staff position will also work closely with the Board of Directors to develop any other opportunities in the west that would benefit California Giant such as acquiring additional growers, relocating to another facility, or adding other products to the existing facility to maximize overhead. This continued expansion and increase in staffing further deepens the company’s long term roots in the blueberry industry.
The 2011 blueberry harvest season is well under way with multiple growing regions contributing to a year-round berry program making it hard to say when one season ends and another begins. The California Giant blueberry season started months ago in South America with high quality product and promotable volume currently coming from Chile for the next few months. When the season shifts north to California and the Pacific Northwest this Spring, the company will have the new General Manager in place maximizing California Giant’s position in the marketplace.
The 2011 California Giant strawberry season is getting off to a slow start due to the extreme cold snap in Florida and significant rain southern California. However, the Mexico production is ramping up proving to be valuable during the weather disruptions in the other districts during December. All three growing regions are expected to shift quickly as the weather warms with increased volume in January. The current long term forecast for both California and Florida growing regions shows clear conditions returning with warmer daytime and nighttime temperatures. The company growers are pleased with the strong plants in the ground and excellent quality is anticipated for the 2011 harvest season.
To round out the early berry season, California Giant is also harvesting fresh blackberries in Mexico with volume expected to increase over the next few weeks and remain strong through the Spring until the season shifts to California.
The array of berries available and the increase in volume throughout the berry category from California Giant in 2011 is sure to provide color and excitement to produce departments throughout the year. With consumers making tough decisions about how to spend their food dollars, California Giant is positioning their berries as essential, delicious and an easy fruit to add to any meal throughout the day for the whole family.
The company will shift much of its marketing efforts to social media, mobile marketing and consumer focused programs to help generate excitement for the brand and build loyalty.
Source: California Giant Berry Farms
