The first cherries from Katco Packing, the new partnership that brings the popular Brookside and Katicich brands under the same roof in Stockton, CA, are shipping now from Oppy.

Stemilt’s cherry season kicks off this week in California and all eyes are on the crop’s upcoming promotional window and the fast-approaching Memorial Day holiday. The 2021 California crop projects more promotable volume compared to last year’s smaller crop, with good sizing and flavors predicted between now and mid-June.

Stemilt and its company-owned-and-managed orchards earned their Bee Friendly Farming certification earlier this month through Pollinator Partnership located in California. Pollinator Partnership and its Bee Friendly Farming program was created to help ensure the future of both pollinators and sustainable agriculture as it expands across North America and around the globe.

Harvest of the year’s first fresh cherries has begun in California’s southern-most growing areas and will soon be moving its way up the state.  

“We’re looking forward to 2021 being an excellent year for California cherries in terms of both volume and quality,”  said Chris Zanobini, executive director of the California Cherry Board.  “Statewide estimates are predicting a crop of 9.47 million 18-pound boxes, which is near the record produced in 2017.

Cherry season is fast approaching and Stemilt is prepping retailers with a special edition of Fast Facts: The Cast. Brianna Shales, Stemilt marketing director, sits down with Katie Harmon, communications manager, to give an overview of Nielsen’s cherry performance data from May 9 to Sept. 12, 2020, compared to the same timeframe in 2019 and what opportunities retailers can look for in 2021.

Malling Cherry Ventures is moving forward to promote new cherry varieties developed at the renown breeding program located in East Malling, Kent, UK.  The company is a joint venture between NIAB EMR, Berry Gardens Growers, and the Associated International Group of Nurseries.