Canadian-grown blueberries hit the market

With more than $1 billion in sales in the past five years, Canada is the third largest national prod…

With more than $1 billion in sales in the past five years, Canada is the third largest national producer of sweet highbush blueberries in the world.

A hot dry summer in B.C. - which produces the lion's share of the fruit in this country, with more than 800 growers in the province - has meant the crop is farther ahead than usual.

While they're generally harvested until the first week of October, “we're going to be lucky if we go to the first week of September this year,” says Debbie Etsell, executive director for the British Columbia Blueberry Council.

Meanwhile, on the East Coast, the harsh winter delayed the start of the wild blueberry harvest by about a week.

There are two basic types of blueberries. Highbush, or cultivated, bear larger berries. Lowbush, or wild, are smaller.

About 90 per cent of the wild blueberry crop is frozen within 24 hours of harvest, which involves laborious hand raking and separating the berries from twigs and leaves.

Both wild and fresh blueberries are packaged frozen for sale throughout the year in grocery stores.

The U.S. and Japan are big export markets for both wild and cultivated Canadian blueberries.