Malibu Grange

The “U-PICK BLUEBERRIES” sign appeared like a mirage to Matt Bardas on a recent Monday afternoon.  Unlike the June gloom that blanketed Los Angeles that day, the Santa Ynez Valley was glowing in summer sunshine and Bardas was hot and thirsty.  He had biked 60 miles that day from Carpinteria along the California central coast and the final uphill stretch from the Gaviota Tunnel on the 101 highway had kicked his you-know-what for the last five miles.  It’s the kind of steep that cars struggle breathing up.  Relief hit when Bardas saw the open gate at the Santa Barbara Blueberries farm where he reenergized with a pint of fresh blueberries and a can of cold soda in the shade.

Matt Bardas happy after eating fresh-picked blueberries.

Researchers have been touting blueberries as a superfood for a few years now because of its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory health benefits.  Consumers have responded by reaching for all the blueberries they can get their hands on.  Over the course of 25 years, North American blueberry production has increased from 90 million pounds in 1980 to more than 330 million pounds in 2006, according to U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council statistics.  Today, Michigan, the leader in blueberry production in the U.S. produces 99 million pounds alone.  “The boom in blueberry consumption comes from the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical value the fruit carries,” University of California Extension Small Farm and Specialty Crop advisor Mark Gaskell said.

This nourishing news is anything but surprising to cultures that have been regularly consuming blueberries for centuries.  Blueberries are one of the few native fruits to North America that botanists have traced back 13,000 years.  Native Americans used blueberries in all forms – fresh, dried, juiced, powdered, leaves, roots, and all to cure a number illnesses, not to mention simply because they’re delicious.  Plus, they are one of the only naturally blue foods around, something kids can get a kick out.  “The entire fruit is 100% edible and easy to eat, sweet, often sweeter than strawberries, and the world is crazy for strawberries,” Gaskell said.  “You can pop them in your mouth and kids love them.”

Santa Barbara Blueberries has proven to be a blueberry-lovers dream as a steadily growing stream of U-Pickers young and old eagerly anticipate the opening salvo each year to hand-harvest these baby blue powerhouses.  The farm’s 22.5 acres are planted in 14 different blueberry varieties amidst a 1,000-acre ranch cozy-up against the Santa Ynez Valley Mountain range.  It’s hard to beat the view and once inside the highway seems miles away.  “Having all the people here in the field is a joy as everyone is remarkably well behaved and respectful of the plants,” said ranch foreman Tom Lemkuil.  “And since there are no thorns on blueberry bushes even little kids can come and pick blueberries.”

Seven years ago when ranch owner Rolland Jacks bought the property, he was interested in a potential secondary cash crop.  He consulted Gaskell who recommended blueberries, which were just starting to be grown commercially in California.  For those first few years, blueberries proved quite profitable for Jacks in the wholesale arena, but once the large swaths of San Joaquin Valley blueberry plantings began to produce, smaller growers like Jacks couldn’t compete.  Thankfully, Jacks had a niece who suggested from the beginning that he start a U-Pick operation because of the farms proximity to the 101-highway easily accessible to tourists and locals who regularly traverse the road.  When the California wholesale market began to glut, Santa Barbara Blueberries shifted to target smaller local markets and the increasing consumer demand for grower-direct produce.

Blueberries are a relatively novel crop for California as blueberries traditionally require cooler climates with ample chilling hours for superior production, as large producers such as Michigan, Washington and Maine can attest to.  But rocketing consumer demand for blueberries propelled plant breeders to create newer varieties able to grow successfully in warmer environments targeting earlier harvest schedules.  Today states such as Florida, Mississippi and Georgia are also large blueberry producers bringing the total number of blueberry growing states in the U.S. to 36.  Once you add Canada into the mix, North America currently produces 90% of the world’s blueberries, according to the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council.  Five hundred metric tons is exported to Japan alone.

In our current global market, when the northern hemisphere is dormant, Chile is the leading blueberry producer, along with Argentina, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa, that capture the international blueberry market from mid-October to mid-March.   A number of years back, just as the last South American shipments were reaching worldwide markets in mid-April, there was an international fresh blueberry void for a month or so before the North American season began.  To fill this four to six week inefficiency, warmer areas began planting newer blueberry varieties that produced much earlier.  Morocco has also recently joined the blueberry brigade, according to Gaskell who is consulting with farmers there.  Because its climate characteristics are similar to Central California’s, growers are filling the European market void as California has fed the American one.

Margaret, Margarita and Suzanna from Santa Barbara after a hot day of picking blueberries

Blueberries are one of the few fruits that can sustain long distance travel.  By the time South American blueberries reach U.S. and European markets, for instance, if not flown by plane, they have already been at sea in temperature-controlled cold storage containers for weeks.  Add in harvest and processing time and in some instances buyers are eating “fresh” blueberries 30 to 60 days old.  As such, consumers have responded favorably to having fresh blueberries that may be a bit more expensive at times but only have to travel a few days by truck as opposed to months.  Of course, the freshest blueberries come from harvesting them yourself and U-Pick operations like Santa Barbara Blueberries are gaining a larger customer share as people are also seeking to reconnect one-on-one with growers.  In this scenario farmer’s benefit by receiving favorable market prices and everyone benefits from maintaining agricultural lands in their environment.

In less than a decade of production, California is already ranked among the top five blueberry producing states in the country with 8000 acres harvesting more than 30 million pounds of blueberries each year and counting.  Santa Barbara Blueberries alone harvests about 35,000 pounds a year Lemkuil said and that number, too, will grow as the plants mature.  In colder climates, blueberry plants live anywhere from 40 to 60 years.  In warmer climates where plants stay evergreen all year their lifespan may be reduced to 30 years or so, though it is early to tell.  Most of California’s plantings are currently in their late teen years.

This year Santa Barbara Blueberries opened their season on April 24^th and depending on the weather may extend to Labor Day if lucky.  “It has been foggy in the mornings and in the mid-80s during the day so it is looking good so far for a long season again,” Lemkuil said.  Blueberry bloom is very weather dependent.  As soon as temperatures reach in the 90s for extended periods plants begin to shut down.  Therefore, prolonged blooming is dependent on cooler temperatures.  But not worry, because all those buckets you just picked at your local farm can last all winter in your freezer.  Just take Ken Warkentin’s advice.  He’s been running the Santa Barbara Blueberries farm stand these days.  He freezes the big ones, eats the medium sized ones right away, saves the small ones for pancakes and muffins, and lets the green ones sit on the counter to ripen.  Get yours while still available and don’t forget to wear a hat!  Find a U-Pick location near you by checking your state’s department of agriculture website or local extension office.

Ken Warkentin at Santa Barbara Blueberries

Santa Barbara Blueberries is open everyday during the harvest season and is located at 1980 Highway 101, Gaviota, Calif. Ph: (805) 686-5718.

For more information on University of California Extension blueberry research visit their website here.

U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council information is at www.blueberry.org.