Story originally printed in the La Crosse Tribune or online at www.lacrossetribune.com
Published - Saturday, July 19, 2008
Berry demand may bring a burst in bogs
Two of the largest buyers of Wisconsin cranberries are on a mission to persuade growers to increase their output, with the hope of adding $75 million annually to the state economy and creating 1,115 jobs.
But in order to make that happen, the presidents of Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc. and Cliffstar Corp. say the state needs to cooperate in speeding up the permitting process to turn more acreage into cranberry bogs. They are looking for a nearly 30% boost in acres planted — from the current 18,000 to 23,000.
If they can't get the additional 5,000 acres in Wisconsin, the cranberry industry may have to turn to Canada, they say.
``The cranberry industry is a good news story,'' said Randy C. Papadellis, president and CEO of Ocean Spray. ``The biggest challenge is the fruit supply.''
Cranberry growing and processing is a $350 million industry in Wisconsin that supports about 7,200 jobs. That would increase by 1,115 — people employed by processors, growers and related industries — if the expansion were to take place, according to projections by University of Wisconsin Extension professors Edward V. Jesse and Steve Deller.
International demand is driving the need for more production. Exports of cranberries have increased from 10% of annual production 10 years ago to 30% of the U.S. crop today. Europe, the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, South Korea, Japan and China have increased their purchases of cranberries.
Largest in country
Wisconsin is the largest cranberry producer in the country, according to the Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association. Wisconsin produced more than 3.75 million barrels of cranberries in 2007, about 60% of the nation's crop.
The cranberry industry accounted for more than 80% of all fruit grown in Wisconsin, in terms of revenue, according to the association.
The 18,000 acres now in production are spread across 19 counties and owned by 250 growers. The 5,000 additional acres that the industry wants to add to cranberry cultivation is also owned or controlled by the growers.
 **FILE**In this photo provided by the Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association shows Paul Frey using a rake to pull in berries at a marsh near Warrens, Wis., Friday, Oct. 5, 2007. The largest producer, Ocean Spray Cranberries, has seen its foreign business grow by double-digit percentages each year for more than a decade and is now $300 million to $400 million annually in 80 different countries, said company chief executive officer Randy Papadellis. (AP Photo/Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association, Andy Manis) |
The presidents of Ocean Spray and Cliffstar say that Wisconsin is the best place to increase cranberry production, because the state already has processing plants and expertise in the industry. Massachusetts, another big cranberry producer, lacks enough land to increase cultivation.
Canada has plenty of land but lacks the processing facilities and experts that are available in Wisconsin, they said.
Putting land into cranberry production is a time-consuming process. Beds must be dug out and irrigation systems installed. When that work is complete, vines are planted, and it takes three years to get a sufficient yield for harvest.
When you add a two-year permitting process to that, it's daunting to growers, the industry executives said.
``I go into meetings and I have growers throw up their hands and say 'What's the point?' '' Papadellis said.
Paul J. Harder, chief executive officer of Cliffstar, and Papadellis met with Gov. Jim Doyle and the state Department of Natural Resources this week to ask for help in speeding up the permit process for growers.
The permit process for the cranberry acreage is complicated because some of the land includes wetlands.
Environmental groups have in the past criticized the cranberry industry for destroying wetlands.
The cranberry industry executives said that they intend to replace any wetlands that are turned into cranberry beds.
``We're not asking for a change in the rules,'' Papadellis said. ``We're not asking for roads, sewer or infrastructure, no training grants.''
Tom Lochner, executive director of the state growers association, said he will take suggestions to the DNR from the group on how to make the process simple for growers.
Doyle's office and the DNR could not be reached for comment Friday afternoon.
Ocean Spray, based in Massachusetts, is a grower-owned co-operative, with about 120 grower-owners in Wisconsin. Ocean Spray buys about 65% of the state's crop and operates processing and receiving facilities in Kenosha, Tomah, Wisconsin Rapids and Babcock. The co-op has 475 full-time employees in Wisconsin.
Cliffstar, a private-label manufacturer, is the second-largest buyer of fruit in the state.
Both companies would expand processing operations in Wisconsin if additional fruit becomes available, they said.
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