RICHMOND, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Sept. 27, 2016) -
Editors Note: Four photos for this release will be available on the Canadian Press picture wire via Marketwired.
Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc., a Grower-Owned cooperative officially kicked off the iconic cranberry harvest this week in British Columbia. Over the next six to eight weeks more than 80 farm families will harvest about one million barrels of cranberries, up slightly over last year's crop of about 990,000 barrels. A barrel is the standard measure for cranberries and is equal to 100lbs or 45Kg. Most of the province's cranberries go into Ocean Spray® products, which are sold in more than 100 countries.
Ocean Spray recently announced its latest global crop estimate for the 2016 cranberry harvest. If conditions remain as expected, Ocean Spray predicts the industry will produce approximately 13 million barrels of cranberries. Ocean Spray anticipates its Grower-Owners will deliver around 8 million barrels of cranberries to the Cooperative's receiving and processing facilities this year. A barrel is the standard measure for cranberries and is equal to 100lbs or 45Kg.
"Our Cooperative of family farms and the cranberry industry as a whole continues to grow by consistently delivering a high quality crop," shared Dan Crocker, VP of Cooperative Development and Global Ingredients. "As a cooperative, Ocean Spray is focused on selling that crop by growing demand for our Grower-Owner's fruit through both new product innovation and continuing to introduce the cranberry to new markets, geographies, and consumers worldwide."
In addition to the 80 British Columbia farms, Ocean Spray Grower-Owners are located throughout all cranberry growing regions including Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin in the United States, as well as Eastern Canada (Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia) and Chile. Regionally, Ocean Spray expects Wisconsin, New Jersey, and Quebec to experience significantly larger crops than 2015 with all other growing regions remaining steady. The Cooperative wrapped up the South American harvest in June with Ocean Spray receiving just under half a million barrels of fruit in Chile.
Regional Estimates for the 2016 North American Cranberry Harvest are as follows:
| British Columbia 1 million barrels |
| Eastern Canada 2.6 million barrels |
| Total Canada: 3.6 million barrels |
| Massachusetts 2.1 million barrels |
| New Jersey 540,000 barrels |
| Oregon 480,000 barrels |
| Washington 170,000 barrels |
| Wisconsin 5.8 million barrels |
| Total USA: 9.1 million barrels |
About Ocean Spray
Ocean Spray is the world's leading producer of cranberry products, but it's not your typical company. Founded in 1930, we are proud to be an agricultural cooperative owned by more than 700 cranberry farmers who receive the net proceeds derived from every berry sold. Our 2,000 employees are united with these family farms in a shared purpose to ignite a passion for our cranberries around the world. For more information visit: www.oceanspray.ca or www.oceanspray.coop.
To view the photos associated with this press release, please visit the following links:
http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/OcSp1.jpg
http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/OcSp2.jpg
Contact Information:
Mobile: 617.803.3444
kdignan@oceanspray.com
