Oppy starts summer with B.C. blues
Oppy starts summer with B.C. blues
The first week of summer brings one of the season’s favorite flavors — British Columbia-grown blueberries — into the market earlier than ever from The Oppenheimer Group.
Grown just down the road from the company headquarters, B.C. blueberries have become a signature item for the marketer in recent years. This season, the fruit is 10-14 days earlier than usual, according to Jason Fung, Oppy’s director of category development.
“The B.C. blueberry crop is enjoying the benefits of the mild winter and warm spring experienced in the Pacific Northwest and Lower Mainland,” Fung said in a press release. “We’re expecting consistent volumes of large berries through July and August.”
Fung noted that blueberry production in California, Oregon and Washington are ahead of schedule as well, making room for B.C. blueberries to dovetail seamlessly into promotional calendars at retail, especially in July.
“While our early and mid-season varieties are very prolific, we’re confident in a consistent supply through early September from our three strong grower partners,” Fung said. “Things will tighten up a little toward the end of the season, but we expect to have good volumes of fruit for the next few months.”
Oppy is offering B.C. blueberries in varied pack styles, including six-ounce, pint, 18-ounce and two-pound clamshells sporting "Sesame Street" characters, the “Oppy” brand or both.
For customers in the eastern United States and Canada, Oppy is featuring New Jersey blueberries simultaneously.
“It’s rare to have the B.C. blueberry season sync up with the New Jersey supply, but the weather in both places has changed things up this year,” Fung added in the press release. “For us, it means delivering the freshest possible blues to customers in any region virtually all summer.”
In season, Oppy also offers blueberries from Argentina, Chile, Peru and Uruguay.
