Purchasing a mechanical harvesting machine in a big decision for any blueberry farm. In this episode, we have a discussion with two harvesting experts about the latest trends in mechanical harvesting technology. 

“The goal is to match hand-quality fruit.”  - Brian Foote

Hosts Kasey Cronquist (President of the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council and the North American Blueberry Council) and Rod Cook (industry veteran and the Chair of the Blueberry Technology and Innovation Committee) are joined by Brian Foote, Berry Sales Manager for Oxbo Corp and Noel Sakuma, Director of Field Operations for Oregon Berry Packing.

With labor and food safety issues on the rise, there is a demand among blueberry growers for more advanced mechanical harvesting technology. Both Brian and Noel are veterans in the industry and have been leading Oregon blueberry growers in developing and implementing new harvesting technology. 

This episode talks about the development of the mechanical harvesting technology, including: 

• Importance of fruit quality 
• Consistency in the field when implementing machinery 
• Results of field trials
• Packer relationship
• Evolution of harvest tech
• Future of blueberry harvesting technology 

Crop Report - July 29, 2020 

The Blueberry Crop Report is an update on crop conditions and markets around North America. Today you’ll hear from Rex Schultz in Michigan, Pat Goin in Indiana, Denny Doyle in New Jersey, Doug Krahmer in Oregon, Bryan Sakuma in Washington, and Jose Luis Bustamante in Mexico. This report was recorded on July 29th, 2020. 

July is National Blueberry Month! USHBC is rolling out a National Blueberry Month Toolkit, complete with 10 mouth-watering summer recipes, 5 ready-to-go social media posts, one for each week of Blueberry Month, plus a brand new National Blueberry Month seal that you can share with retailers and use on your websites and in your marketing materials. We hope to see all of you participating and sharing in spreading positive blueberry messages during our month! You can find the National Blueberry Month Toolkit on our website: www.USHBC.org/resoures.