In this episode of “The Business of Blueberries,” Kasey Cronquist, president of the U.S. Highbush Council (USHBC) and the North American Blueberry Council (NABC), is joined by Steve Mantle, founder and CEO of Innov8.ag. Mantle and his team have been working closely with USHBC to transform high-tech field data into actionable insights. With test fields already established, Mantle is here to share where we are today, where we’re headed and why the BerrySmart Fields program is just getting started. He dives into the intersection of technology and agriculture – specifically, how we’re improving our ability to forecast yield using data-informed decisions across the blueberry supply chain.

“ Our work is focused on validating a smart farm network that enables blueberry growers, packers, marketers, stakeholders, sales tech and research to collaborate on farm operation optimization. So everything from what tech to be using, how to use it, to the bigger picture of how do we unlock data insights across the blueberry industry in ways that help the whole blueberry value chain grow and thrive into the future.” – Steve Mantle

Topics covered include:

• An introduction to Steve Mantle and his work.
• The purpose and impact of the BerrySmart Fields, and what it offers to all stakeholders in the blueberry supply chain.
• What the future holds for the BerrySmart team, and the innovations they’re evaluating and sharing with the industry.
• How to learn more at The Blueberry Convention 2025. We hope to see you there!

Crop Report

The Blueberry Crop Report is an update on crop conditions and markets throughout important blueberry growing areas. Today you’ll hear from Alan Schreiber in Washington, TJ Hafner in Oregon, Brody Schropp in Michigan, Matt Macrie in New Jersey and Sunny Brar in British Columbia. This was recorded on July 10, 2025.

In this episode of “The Business of Blueberries,” Kasey Cronquist, president of the U.S. Highbush Council (USHBC) and the North American Blueberry Council (NABC), is joined by Ken Gilliam, vice president of predictive analysis at The Directions Group, and Cassidy Marn, account executive at The Directions Group. Together, Gilliam and Marn turn insights into real-world game plans, get teams on board and help teams move in the right direction to drive impactful decisions across organizations. Currently, they’re assisting USHBC with a survey related to its 2026-2030 strategic plan.

“ You need data to make a better decision about what your next strategy is, and that survey is one of the primary tools that we use to inform the data stack that we need to find the issues that are most relevant to USHBC and the rest of the council.” – Ken Gilliam

Topics covered include:

• An introduction to The Directions Group and the history of the organization.
• A discussion about the USHBC survey and why it’s so crucial for blueberry stakeholders to participate. (You can participate now here!)
• The topics and questions included in this year’s survey.
• How The Directions Group separates itself from other groups to reach a broader audience.

Check out the “Farmer of the Future 2.0” report by The Direction's Group, a foundational study and audience segmentation of U.S. farmers that changed the way many organizations had previously approached the market.

Crop Report

The Blueberry Crop Report is an update on crop conditions and markets throughout important blueberry growing areas. Today you’ll hear from Mario Ramirez in Mexico,

Michelle Borges in California, Sunny Brar in British Columbia and Brody Schropp in Michigan. This was recorded on July 3, 2025.

In this episode of “The Business of Blueberries,” Kasey Cronquist, president of the U.S. Highbush Council (USHBC) and the North American Blueberry Council (NABC), is joined by Lucas Thelosen, founder and CEO of Gravity, and Joe Vargas, director of business intelligence for USHBC and NABC. Thelosen has been at the forefront of leveraging technology to transform industries, and today he and Vargas discuss what this means for blueberries and for agriculture.

“ What if we could bring the same level of analytical sophistication that someone like Amazon has or someone like Google has, to the average business?” – Lucas Thelosen

“ I think that artificial intelligence piece where you can have an analyst with you 24/7, whether you're working on stuff in an airplane or in the middle of the night, it's there for you to be able to help you understand things that you didn't see.” – Joe Vargas

Topics covered include:

• An introduction to artificial intelligence (AI) and its use for extracting insights from data.
• A discussion about how the USHBC is leveraging advancements in AI to help the industry make more optimal decisions.
• Why this is the next evolution of the BerrySmart Insights platform.
• How data and AI will impact the future of the blueberry industry.

Crop Report

The Blueberry Crop Report is an update on crop conditions and markets throughout important blueberry growing areas. Today you’ll hear from TJ Hafner in Oregon, Alan Schreiber in Washington, Jody McPherson in North Carolina, Pat Goin in Indiana, Luis Vegas in Peru and Mario Ramirez in Mexico. This was recorded on June 12, 2025.

In this episode of “The Business of Blueberries,” Kasey Cronquist, president of the U.S. Highbush Council (USHBC) and the North American Blueberry Council (NABC), is joined by Mario Steta, chair of the International Blueberry Organization (IBO) and vice president of sustainability, compliance and public affairs for Driscoll’s Europe, Middle East and Africa. With deep experience in global berry production and trade, Steta is helping lead the charge on innovation, sustainability and international collaboration in the blueberry industry. Under his leadership, the IBO represents over 90% of the world’s blueberry production. He shares the current state of affairs in the blueberry industry and the many benefits he sees in global collaboration to improve technology and innovation for all blueberry stakeholders.

“ But, in essence, we see the blueberry industry and our commitment to it, beyond what we do as a company and with our growers, as an effort that speaks for exactly what we’re doing today. Opening up and having a dialogue of the things we can work together, the concerns we have, and the differences we have, too, which is important.” – Mario Steta

Topics covered include:

• An introduction to Steta and his work with IBO and Driscoll’s.
• A discussion on IBO’s mission and the progress it’s making on behalf of the global blueberry industry.
• Details on this year’s IBO summit in South Africa.
• Insights from the IBO 2024 Report.

Crop Report

The Blueberry Crop Report is an update on crop conditions and markets throughout important blueberry growing areas. Today you’ll hear from Mario Ramirez in Mexico, Michelle Borges in California, Sunny Brar in British Columbia, Jody McPherson in North Carolina, TJ Hafner in Oregon, Luis Vegas in Peru and Derrin Wheeler in Georgia. This was recorded on June 6, 2025.

In this episode of “The Business of Blueberries,” Kasey Cronquist, president of the U.S. Highbush Council (USHBC) and the North American Blueberry Council (NABC), is joined by Paul Sandefur, Ph.D., vice president of research and development at Fall Creek Farm and Nursery. Sandefur received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in horticulture from the University of Arkansas, and his doctoral degree from Washington State University. He leads the mid- and high-chill blueberry breeding program based in Oregon, and collaborates closely with Fall Creek’s breeding teams in Mexico and Europe. He joins the podcast to share about the process of bringing new blueberry varieties to the market, and the many characteristics Fall Creek is focusing on for the future of the industry.

“ Now, I have the pleasure of working with our global team to bring new varieties to the market. So really focusing on new varieties that have the eating experience that brings the joy that we need consumers to have, that we want consumers to have, but then also have the grower economics to make it work. That’s what gets me going and that’s what I get excited about doing every day.” – Paul Sandefur, Ph.D.

Topics covered include:

• An introduction to Sandefur and his work.
• The process behind developing new blueberry varieties and the obstacles plant breeders face in bringing them to market.
• The traits and unique qualities of the Peachy Blue variety.

Crop Report

The Blueberry Crop Report is an update on crop conditions and markets throughout important blueberry growing areas. Today you’ll hear from Mario Ramirez in Mexico, Luis Vegas in Peru, Todd Sanders in California, Sunny Brar in British Columbia, Jody McPherson in North Carolina and Pat Goin in Indiana. This was recorded on May 29, 2025.

In this episode of “The Business of Blueberries,” Kasey Cronquist, president of the U.S. Highbush Council (USHBC) and the North American Blueberry Council (NABC), is once again joined by Leslie Wada, Ph.D., and Alyssa Houtby. Dr. Wada is our very own senior director of nutrition and health research at the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council. She’s responsible for furthering the reputation and appreciation for the health benefits of blueberries and USHBC’s health research program. Houtby is the director of government affairs for the North American Blueberry Council and serves as a policy adviser to the USHBC, helping identify and advance the public policy goals for blueberries. Together, they collaborate to increase the impact of the blueberry industry on government policy and health research to continue to expand consumer demand for blueberries.

“  I don't think anybody would ever question that blueberries are a healthy product, but now we have, because of the USHBC and the work that Dr. Wada has led, we have credible science to stand on and influence government policies. … So it's a great space for us to work in as a credible source of information, and also politically savvy enough to identify where the opportunities are.” – Alyssa Houtby

Topics covered include:

• An introduction to Wada and Houtby, and their work for the councils.
• The opportunities for blueberries that emerge from the revision of the dietary guidelines and the growing viewpoint of “food as medicine.”
• How the blueberry industry can impact future government policy and health research efforts.

Crop Report

The Blueberry Crop Report is an update on crop conditions and markets throughout important blueberry growing areas. Today you’ll hear from Georgia, California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, Indiana, Mexico and Peru. This was recorded on May 8, 2025.

In this episode of “The Business of Blueberries,” Kasey Cronquist, president of the U.S. Highbush Council (USHBC) and the North American Blueberry Council (NABC), is joined by Haiying Zhang, USHBC director of global business development. Zhang has a strong background in the agriculture industry and was previously the senior director of global marketing for American Pistachio Growers. In her role at USHBC, she works to expand global blueberry trade by increasing consumption in international markets. Zhang also works with the USDA to seek grants to continue to develop global markets.

“  My job at USHBC is to expand the global trade for our blueberries through increasing consumption in our international markets. And so, really, our goal is to make blueberries the world's favorite fruit.” – Haiying Zhang

Topics covered include:

• An exploration of the USHBC’s efforts to expand the number and size of international markets for blueberries.
• The purpose and benefits of the USDA’s Market Access Program (MAP) and Regional Agricultural Promotional Program (RAPP), and how they are being used to promote the blueberry industry.
• A deep dive into the analysis performed to evaluate global markets and determine which are most valuable to pursue.

Crop Report

The Blueberry Crop Report is an update on crop conditions and markets throughout important blueberry growing areas. Today you’ll hear from Mexico, North Carolina, California, Oregon, Washington and British Columbia. This was recorded on April 24, 2025.

In this episode of “The Business of Blueberries,” Kasey Cronquist, president of the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council (USHBC) and the North American Blueberry Council, is joined by Brian Kuehl, executive director of the Agriculture Trade Education Council. The Agriculture Trade Education Council is the premier resource for education on the value of agricultural trade policies, practices and structures. Its mission is to provide understandable and reliable information on trade to inform and empower decision-making that facilitates growth in U.S. food and agriculture. He also serves as the director of government and public affairs at Pinion, a leading advisory and accounting firm dedicated to the food and agriculture industry. In this episode, he shares the history of global trade as we know it today and unpacks the issues that are significant to the blueberry industry going forward.

“ The Agriculture Trade Education Council views itself as content neutral in the sense of it's not taking a stand for tariffs or against tariffs, or for a free trade agreement or against a free trade agreement. That's not its job. Its job is to provide trade information, so it tries to stay out of the fights and the debates. It tries to just provide information so that everyone who's engaged in those discussions can operate off a common platform of knowledge and understanding.” – Brian Kuehl

Topics covered include:

• An introduction to Kuehl and his work.
• The opportunities provided by the Agriculture Trade Education Council and the importance of this type of education.
• The history of the global trade system and the dynamic nature of its evolution.
• The most significant aspects of current agricultural trade that will impact the blueberry industry.

Crop Report

The Blueberry Crop Report is an update on crop conditions and markets throughout important blueberry growing areas. Today you’ll hear from Jody McPherson in North Caroline, T.J. Hafner in Oregon and Mario Ramirez in Mexico. This was recorded on April 17, 2025.