Blueberry sales are exploding in both the domestic and export markets. Analysts expect the value of global blueberry exports to hit $3 billion by 2025 as growth continues to swell each year. There has been no recession in production since at least 2010 and consumers can’t seem to get enough of these little super fruits.
This popularity is good for more than just maintaining export numbers. Comparatively speaking blueberries have a lower carbon footprint than many other popular fruits, coming in at .32kg/CO2 per kilo harvested which helps offset the carbon footprint of shipping the blues from Peru, Chile, Canada, and the United States to other parts of the world where the little berries don’t or won’t grow.
Because the growth of Blueberries is spread well around the North American continent there is solid calendar coverage to provide more than half of the year with fresh, albeit shipped, blueberries. With the popularity of blueberries riding high, we expect to see containers for them to increase steadily over the next three years. Our cool chain abilities include controlled atmosphere containers that can prevent over-ripening while in transit.
As we’ve discussed before, “Controlled atmosphere is the storage method in which the concentrations of gases (oxygen, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen), as well as the temperature and humidity, are regulated to prevent early ripening, bruising, wilting, and spoilage. Fresh fruit and vegetables can be stored in controlled atmospheres to prolong their freshness and prevent ripening during extended cross-oceanic trips that would have been too long for the fruit to survive, let alone thrive.”
Don’t trust your crop to a forwarder who doesn’t understand the needs of blueberry shippers. CFI is on hand to advocate, guide, explain and advise wherever needed on perishables shipments. As more people start to jump on the blueberry bandwagon, you can trust CFI’s experience to work hard for you. Reach out to your CFI representative for more information.
