It is not uncommon for a California strawberry shipper to have production in as many as three districts — most commonly Oxnard, Santa Maria and Salinas-Watsonville. But not many grow strawberries in five different districts throughout the state. Naturipe Berry Growers in Salinas, CA, does, however, and as of the first week of February was actually harvesting berries from four of the five districts — Coachella, Irvine, Oxnard and Santa Maria, said Craig Moriyama, director of berry operations.

Irvine in Orange County was once a major producing area for California strawberries, but acreage has been reduced dramatically over the past decade or so due to urban development. That decline got a bit of a reprieve during the economic downturn of the last few years but with the economy improving, the development has started up again “Like crazy,” Moriyama said Feb. 8. Because of that, Naturipe has reduced acreage in Orange County this year. “It is the only place where we have lost some acreage,” he said. Overall, the company’s acreage is up a little for the year.

A Naturipe strawberry field planted to the company’s proprietary 1975 variety. (Photo courtesy of Naturipe Farms LLC)The company first started growing in the Coachella Valley about 10 years ago but then abandoned the district for a time. “About three or four years ago, we went back there again,” Moriyama said. The timing of the crop in Coachella is similar to what it is in Orange County, “maybe a touch earlier. It is all part of Southern California.”

In its Irvine and Oxnard operations, Naturipe is growing primarily proprietary varieties, particularly the 1975 variety which has been a mainstay for the company for the last 10 years. In addition to the 1975, “we have a new proprietary variety called 324 that is actually a little bit earlier,” Moriyama said. The company is also growing the San Andreas variety on about 20 percent of its acreage in those districts.

“In Coachella, we are actually using a Florida variety, Radiance,” he said.

The 1975 and 324 varieties are both short-day varieties, he said. Their main characteristics are “excellent flavor,” size and a conical shape.

The San Andreas, a university variety that many companies are growing, is a day-neutral variety. Growers who do not have a good proprietary short-day variety are pretty much “forced to” grow San Andreas, Moriyama said, “because it is the best thing out there” in a non-proprietary variety for the southern districts.

Further north, in Santa Maria, since “there is no longer any Albion,” San Andreas is now the main variety, “followed by Monterey,” he said. The company is also growing some 1975s in Santa Maria, accounting for about 20 percent of the acreage. That percentage used to be higher for the company, but “we kind of backed away from 1975 there because it wasn’t producing early enough and long enough, where these other two varieties seem to do a lot better in that area.”

Naturipe is running several promotions during the season, according to Kyla Garnett, marketing manager for Naturipe Farms LLC which handles sales for Naturipe Berry Growers. The first was a Valentine’s Day sweepstakes promotion on Pinterest called Big Hearts and Sweet Bites. The promotion reminded consumers “that berries are the perfect Valentine’s Day gift,” she said.

“Moving forward, we are focusing on the month of March being National Nutrition Month, reminding our customers that berries are ideal for nutrition,” not only strawberries but blueberries as well, Garnett said. Both “can be incorporated in both sweet and savory meals in all day parts.”

In addition to strawberries, Naturipe was currently at peak season with blueberries from Chile. “Quality and availability are wonderful,” and organic blueberries are “very big right now,” Garnett said.

With the coming of spring, “we are entering the peak of the season for many of the berries,” she said, adding the berry category is “definitely … not to be missed especially for National Nutrition Month.”

For Mother’s Day and Easter, Naturipe will be “promoting our new Strawberry Bouquet pack for long-stem berries,” Garnett said. “It is available in limited quantity but has been very well received through Valentine’s Day, and we are talking to our customers about promoting it for Mother’s Day, and for Easter, of course.”