Blueberry supplies in the United States are tight right now, though there are more berries on track with the imminent start of the season in New Jersey.

«Right now the blueberries come from Georgia and North Carolina. New Jersey is going to start probably around the 10th. They will start harvesting in a reduced way and next week there will be more volume,” says Tony Biondo, of Trucco Inc., in Vineland, New Jersey. This marks a slightly earlier start to the season compared to last year, when the state started its blueberries on June 15.

Biondo says the New Jersey crop appears to have both good quality and volume. "It's going to be a great season for New Jersey and we'll probably make it to August," he adds. August is also when Trucco, which packages blueberries in 450g, 510g and 900g containers, sources blueberries from Michigan and British Columbia.

North Carolina
The New Jersey start comes after problems with North Carolina's blueberry crop this year. «They don't have a very big harvest. They had a week with large volumes and then they dropped a lot,” Biondo continues. "So our suppliers, instead of having two loads of blueberries a day, for example, only had 10 pallets a day, which is not much." Mexico also offers blueberries, but not in considerable volume.

It is no surprise that demand is strong and exceeds available supply. «I think it will continue to be strong in the market throughout the season. Since North Carolina's supply has almost dried up, New Jersey will be able to get a premium for its blueberries," Biondo concludes. «Normally there is a lot of volume between all the states. Once it starts, it will only be New Jersey, so the market will remain higher unless there is a quality issue later in the season. But right now the quality seems great.”