Grandview, Washington was the site of a grand opening celebration to showcase brand new packinghouses for fresh blueberries. This exciting venture represents a partnership between Olsen Brothers Farms, Wyckoff Farms and Driscoll’s. Olsen Brothers Farms grows organic blueberries exclusively for Driscoll’s. Wyckoff Farms Inc. grows conventional blueberries exclusively for Driscoll’s. Driscoll’s is the largest brand of fresh conventional and organic berries.
The new state-of-the-art facilities feature high speed cooling tunnels, multiple packing lines and high speed labeling technology to handle an ever-expanding number of SKU’s. The facilities also feature the newest BBC Technologies packing equipment to enable efficient packing of multiple SKUs and on-line labeling to support clamshell traceability. The new facilities are dedicated to expediting the movement of berries from the field to the cold room for maximum overall quality. More than 35 new jobs will be created in the local community.
Brothers Larry and Dick Olsen note that the Olsen family has been farming in Eastern Washington for nearly one hundred, years and have been farming blueberries for six years. “Eastern Washington’s fertile slopes with just the right amount of annual precipitation are ideal for organic blueberry production. This allows us to grow ONLY THE FINEST® berries to put into the Driscoll's label,” says co-owner Larry Olsen.
“The combined talents of Olsen Brothers and Wyckoff Farms coming together with Driscoll’s brand leadership are an unbeatable team,” says John Johnston, Driscoll's Director – Blueberry Product Management. ”Consumer demand for fresh blueberries continues to grow, and the blueberry category at retail continues to expand.”
“We are very proud of our partnership with Olsen Brothers and Wyckoff Farms,” said Miles Reiter, Driscoll's Chairman and CEO. “We search the world over for the best places to grow outstanding berries and then we partner with independent family farmers that share our values and passion for growing great berries.”
Driscoll’s is the world’s leading brand of fresh conventional and organic berries. For four generations and over 100 years, the Driscoll’s brand has been trusted and recognized for its superior quality. To fulfill their mission to continually delight berry consumers, Driscoll’s naturally breeds proprietary plant varieties that produce ONLY THE FINEST® year ‘round.
Source: Driscoll Strawberry Associates Inc.