WATSONVILLE, CA - While the holiday season may be bringing us some cooler temperatures, winter is definitely heating up for Well•Pict Strawberries. It’s hard to ignore a healthy, delicious product that has no downside for the consumer, and as Christmas approaches, the company is looking to help retailers increase their ring at the register. 

“Thanks to years of refining growing techniques, not to mention some good old fashioned ingenuity and hard work, the days of only seeing berries in stores during summer is over,” says Dan Crowley, VP of Sales and Marketing. “Today, you can find our premium, proprietary berries in produce aisles all over the world, all year long, to the delight of consumers everywhere.” 

He also notes that strawberry consumption around the nation continues to grow, and as demand rises, Well•Pict is ramping up productivity to match. “We have expanded our Florida berry production over the last several years, which allows customers to purchase Well•Pict berries during the holidays and into the New Year.” 

Well•Pict prides itself on keeping its retail partners’ stores well supplied throughout the year by rotating farming along both the West and East Coasts. While a majority of the year is covered by California’s lengthy growing season in Watsonville and Oxnard, they have expanded production in Baja California, as well as supplementing supply with its Florida farms. Crowley went on to say that at present, the quality of the crop is good and volume is steady. Well•Pict will ship from Florida for as long as weather and market conditions will allow, with the Florida Coast season typically covering through to April.

The good news for the market is that the versatility of strawberries gives produce retailers new ways to add eye-catching color to their produce aisles in the “off” season. “The ‘new normal’ in berries being available 12 months out of the year dovetails nicely with younger consumer expectations, too,” Dan notes. “According to a research study from the Boston Consulting Group, Millennials will spend the greatest amount of money in the coming year on fresh fruits, organic food and natural products — over soft drinks, restaurants and even luxury goods.” 

Overall consumer interest in buying healthy, natural foods is a trend that crosses all generations. “This trend is here to stay, as we’ve seen berry sales continue to increase dramatically year over year,” Dan says. He also adds that berries are so appealing, studies have shown that merely adding berry displays to a store’s produce section actually boosts all other produce sales by 6% or more.

When asked about the challenges of this season, Dan admits that, “Weather instability is always a challenge. Warm temperatures at the time of planting can affect the development of the berries, and water is still a topic of concern. But we’re a forward thinking company, and one way Well•Pict addresses water conservation is with the use of drip irrigation, which we adopted early, well before the current California drought.”

Premium berries, like those packaged by Well•Pict, are a great way to address today’s consumers that feast with their eyes, as well as their mouths. And as 2016 gets underway, expect more tasty updates on this growing category. 

Well•Pict