Giumarra expanding blackberry production
Giumarra expanding blackberry production
The Giumarra Cos., headquartered in Los Angeles, primarily handles blueberries and blackberries. But Tom Richardson, vice president of global development for the company, said it is also growing in the raspberry category, and it now handles a few strawberries.
“We are currently marketing blueberries and blackberries,” Richardson said.
Tom RichardsonRichardson explained that every region in North America typically runs a four- to six-week season. On the East Coast, the company begins moving berries in Florida in March and finishes in late April or early May.
The company, he pointed out, has blueberries virtually every week of the year, and it also covers nearly the entire calendar with blackberries.
The Giumarra Cos. engages in state and regional locally grown programs when one is offered in its growing areas.
The Giumarra Cos., Richardson shared, is excited about the high-quality blackberries coming out of its trellis-grown production.
“Both quality and condition of the fruit is excellent, and we see this niche expanding for us in the future,” he said. “We are now even working with growers of blackberries in states like Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio, where new farm management techniques are allowing us to grow fruit in areas not known in the past for blackberries.”
The additional growing regions enable the company to extend its season into late summer.
“And it keeps our customers supplied on a more consistent basic,” Richardson added.
The Giumarra Cos. markets its berries under the “Nature’s Partner” label. It ships across North America and exports its berries to Asia.
