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2005 cranberry sales expected to surpass seven million barrels for first time ever
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240 cranberry food products now available in Japan, Germany, France and Mexico
WISCONSIN RAPIDS, Wis. – The Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association (WSCGA) today announced that cranberry sales are expected to reach record highs in 2005, due in large part to efforts to market cranberries around the world, which have resulted in approximately 25 percent of the nation’s cranberries sold outside the United States. The USDA’s Cranberry Marketing Committee (CMC) has projected that more than seven million barrels of fruit are expected to be sold in 2005, which would break the seven-million-barrel-mark for the first time ever.
News of the increased sales and success in international marketing comes just as growers begin harvesting what is projected to be the largest crop ever in Wisconsin. Harvest begins in early October and continues into late October or early November. The USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service has projected that Wisconsin growers will harvest 3.67 million barrels of fruit in 2005, up 11 percent from the 3.3 million barrels harvested in 2004. Nationwide, growers are forecasted to produce 6.49 million barrels in 2005.
“While cranberries – one of only three fruits native to the United States – have been a part of our country’s history since the first Thanksgiving, they are now also making a big splash in other countries around the world,” said Tom Lochner, executive director of WSCGA. “By continuing to spread positive information about cranberries and their many health benefits, we can work to keep demand up with our growing supply.”
The CMC, in which seven Wisconsin cranberry growers play a lead role, has been marketing cranberries internationally for six years, but saw significant successes during the last year, especially in Japan, Germany, France and Mexico.
In just the last year alone, 120 new manufactured food products containing cranberries were introduced in Japan, Germany, Mexico and France, and additional products are coming out every month. Some of the most popular food products that are manufactured and sold in these countries include cereals, snack bars, trail mixes, sweets, juices, nutritional supplements and dried fruit. Additionally, unique items such as cranberry skin- and body-care products are seeing increased success in these countries, as well.
According to Lochner, some of the most important factors that have led to the successful marketing of cranberries outside the U.S. are the fruit’s health benefits. The cranberry is a fat-free, low-calorie food that is high in fiber and antioxidants, which are attributes foreign consumers seek. In fact, in France, cranberry products now include health claims on their labels, and that has contributed to a 3,000-percent increase in cranberry sales in that country in 2004 alone.
Dave Farrimond, manager of the Cranberry Marketing Committee, says the biggest challenge the group has seen in its efforts to market cranberries internationally is introducing a food that no one in the country has ever heard of before.
“In many countries, we need to develop a word for ‘cranberry’ in the country’s native language,” Farrimond said. “It is a big challenge to first spread information about the new word, and then work to educate consumers and food manufacturers about the health and other benefits of cranberries. The breakthroughs we’ve seen during the last year, though, demonstrate that there is a strong international market that is interested in cranberries.”
Particularly in light of this recent success with international marketing, Lochner says that Wisconsin growers and growers nationwide see the international marketplace as an opportunity to continue to expand cranberries’ consumer base and ensure that the demand for cranberry products continues to grow. The CMC has been working for approximately five years to launch and continue the growers’ international marketing efforts.
“Wisconsin has been leading the nation in cranberry production for 10 years, and international marketing is just one way our growers can continue to have outlets through which to sell their products,” said Lochner.
Cranberries have been harvested in Wisconsin since the 1830s, even before Wisconsin was a state. WSCGA was founded in 1887 and is committed to developing and implementing programs that will assist growers in doing a better job of growing cranberries and strengthen the public support for cranberry growing in Wisconsin. For more information on WSCGA, visit www.wiscran.org.
For more information about the USDA Cranberry Marketing Committee’s international marketing efforts, visit www.uscranberries.com.
