VANCOUVER, CANADA – Consumers will soon have premium cherries to fill their hands and tasty dishes, and Oppy is looking to bless them even further with an early start to the season. To bring this to fruition, Oppy has secured a new marketing partnership for North America with Felix Costa & Sons.

“We are really delighted about boosting our cherry program with the Brookside label,” said David Nelley, Vice President of Categories at Oppy. “Fruit grown by Costa is one of the best known cherry lines in Asia, where they have an excellent reputation for quality and flavor. Domestic buyers whose opinion we value have told us they always want more Brookside label cherries.”

The new partners will begin shipping high-quality cherries in Felix Costa & Sons' famed Brookside label during the last week in April, according to a press release. Following the Brookside California season, Oppy will then transition into Orchard View cherries as harvest starts in June.Brookside cherries are grown by the third generation of the Costa family, as well as affiliated cherry producers that focus on high-quality export cherries. The company maintains a diligent year-round effort in order to keep focused on cultivating superb cherries.

“Once we discovered that we were shipping a high percentage of our cherries to the same overseas customers as Oppy’s partner Orchard View, it made sense to consider working together,” Greg Costa, Partner in Felix Costa & Sons, said. “We spend a great deal of time in the orchards, focusing our efforts on a bigger, firmer, sweeter cherry. Careful orchard management is essential throughout the entire year.” 

During the growing season, Costa acquires a thousand miles per week visiting associated orchards throughout California’s cherry-growing districuts to ensure that the fruit destined to bear the Brookside label meets its standards. Costa also chairs the California Cherry Board research committee. 

Costa credits the Unitec optical sorter for putting the final polish on Brookside cherry packs. The Unitec was installed in Felix Costa & Sons’ packhouse four years ago.“We’ve always had great quality, but the sorter establishes a base that makes us more consistent, and makes it easier to be consistent,” Costa continued.

Oppy stated that California cherry season will begin around a week later than last year due to cooler weather and a later boom. Oppy and Felix Costa & Sons will begin with the Brooks variety in late April, which will then be followed by Tulare, Coral Champagne, Garnet, and Bing–which represent the largest percentage of the Brookside label. 

Oppy plans to spearhead a successful season with powerful spring cherry promotions, and interactive social media outreach. This outreach will include contests and other features in order to increase Brookside’s exposure in the North American market.

As cherry season ramps up, count on AndNowUKnow for all the latest.

Oppy