A Different Kind of Year for Fruit Growers

There’s no mistaking that 2020 was filled with more than the usual challenges, but there were positives to be found.

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Every year is different in farming, orcharding, beverage production and growing, yet 2020 certainly took the prize for being the most unpredictable, chaotic and challenging year in recent memory. Most people want to put 2020 behind them and forget about it, but in truth there were some positives to be found in this year’s growing season and those items will be brought to the forefront in this, Orchard & Vine’s 2020 annual fruit round-up.

Here you’ll find the pluses and the minuses that growers celebrated, suffered through, and shared. It’s been a long year for most and simply making it to the end of 2020 is an accomplishment. Learning from the challenges and rejoicing in the successes will hopefully make moving into 2021 easier and more prosperous for everyone.

Together we are better

Farmers and fruit growers, unlike those in other business segments, believe in sharing and in helping their fellow growers do well. Orchardists want to see their fellow fruit growers succeed so they pass on information and share resources in a collaborative fashion. It will be a cold day you-know-where when a company like Coca-Cola sends employees over to help out on the bottling line at Pepsi, but that’s exactly what growers did this year. 2020 marked a year of helping each other out in a variety of ways, whether that was through labour, equipment or information sharing.

In Delta, on Westham Island, berry grower Kevin Husband of Emma Lea Farms knew fairly early into the season that COVID-19 was going to impact his u-pick operation. He’s a glass-half-full kind of guy, so instead of bemoaning it, he sought to work with the regulations as he understood them to make things work.

“We set up a separate entrance for u-pick to have social distancing away from the farm market,” he says. “Before they entered the route into the u-pick, there was a sanitation station.”

It took the farm team about two weeks to get everything from partitions and stickers for the new buckets to Interac machines in the field and drive-thru flat pick-up set up, but it was worth it. The process was fairly streamlined and the numbers of visitors were up by about a third.

“The people were able to go outside and do an activity and it was a beneficial activity,” Husband says, adding, “It was the most economical way to source your fruit and secure your fruit for the winter. I never realized how strong [a motivation] that was.”

He says COVID has heightened awareness of the importance of domestic agriculture.

Husband’s u-pick system was so successful that berry industry specialist with the BC Ministry of Agriculture, Carolyn Teasdale, shared the standards and format with others in the industry.

“It was really nice to be able to work with her, to put something together,” he says.

Husband had worries, of course, about his team.

“It was very stressful. Each day you’re worried about the contact on your farm,” he notes. “You’re worried about your workers and your employees. We were uptight all season because of the possible risk. We just feel so blessed now that this year turned out the way it did. We had no idea what our future was for u-pick.”

Berry outcomes

As was the case with all fruit, weather and labour seemed to be the biggest hurdles in berries this year. These are ongoing issues that were exasperated by the challenges COVID presented. Labour especially was a major concern this year. While some berry growers were able to make u-picks work more effectively to get berries picked and sold rather than relying on an uncertain labour force, other growers weren’t comfortable offering u-pick as an option or didn’t have the facilities to do so.

Strawberry growers in micro-climates, like Husband, had strong growing seasons with good fruit and positive yields, describing it as a great season. Others, like many of those in Abbotsford, were hit with too many rain incidents that made for mouldy berries. The total crop volumes are expected to be slightly up when numbers are finalized.

Raspberries were also hit with rain that led to mould, but expectations are for overall volumes to be up slightly over last year’s given the cold snap that kept 2019’s yields down. Like strawberries, results in raspberries were variable among growers and labour issues saw some berries rot on the canes. Meeting last year’s yield levels will be positive as acreages have declined over previous years and growers await new varieties that can withstand Fraser Valley weather and machine picking.

Blueberries were down pretty much across the board due to poor pollination, weather and labour challenges. Yield results are expected to be down by as much as 25 per cent when final numbers are tallied. It was an exceptionally hard year for blueberry growers who have had excellent years recently like the 189 million pounds of berries produced in 2019.

Cranberries are among the lucky ones this berry season, according to the feedback from Grant Keefer of Yellow Point Cranberries in Ladysmith. He’s also the treasurer of the BC Cranberry Growers’ Association.  

“It’s actually been pretty good. Overall the crop is up from last year,” he says. “The quality is pretty good, the colour’s been nice. There’s just some varieties where the fruit just didn’t size up.”

Additional positives for cranberry growers are the new varieties coming from Rutgers Cranberry Research Center and Valley Corporation, he says.

“Also seeing what varieties work best for BC at the BC Cranberry Research Society Farm trials,” he notes. “Because of them, Rutgers have released a new variety specifically suited for the BC west coast called Vasanna.”

Trade challenges for berry growers

The US political climate has left its mark on the future of BC berry growers as the Americans took action on a variety of allegations, and blueberries have been targeted first.

In late September a US International Trade Commission investigation was announced into the cross-border trade of blueberries. If trade actions are taken against Canadian blueberries, these will take effect in June, but more information will be available after January 27 when information on the initial stage of the investigation is released. While Canada is the fourth largest source of blueberry imports to the US, the investigation is done on a global basis that will include Canadian berries. However, due to the Canada-US-Mexico Agreement, Canadian berries will also be assessed separately.

Anju Gill, executive director with the BC Blueberry Council, says it’s too early to say if BC growers will face new challenges accessing US markets. Legal counsel has been retained by trade officials in Ottawa to prepare Canada’s case with the involvement of the BC Blueberry Council.

“There’s obviously some politics involved, but it’s really data analysis,” Gill explains. “It’s very early to say what this could look like.”

Other berry groups are watching the process as strawberries have been put forth as another import to be investigated and raspberries (while not yet named in the official report that cited blueberries and strawberries) have been mentioned by US bureaucrats as another potential target.

Strawberry blossom weevil identified

Tracy Hueppelsheuser , the Abbotsford-based, provincial entomologist for the British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture, notes that in the first week of September the Canadian Food Inspection Agency announced the discovery of two pests of note: strawberry blossom weevil and grape phylloxera.

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Parasitoid wasp

Photo by Warren Wong

Parasitoid wasp

Parasitoid wasp Leptopilina japonica (left), which is one of the species from Asia that is now established in British Columbia. The parasitoid finds fruit infested by larvae of spotted wing Drosophila (right), and inserts eggs into the larvae beneath the surface of the fruit using a syringe-like “ovipositor”! (sort of like a stinger). The parasitoid’s offspring eats the spotted wing drosophila larva from the inside out and develops into an adult parasitoid (rather than a fly).

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Spotted wing drosophila

Spotted wing drosophila

Now Hueppelsheuser is ready to help arm growers with the information they need. The strawberry blossom weevil – anthonomus rubi – was confirmed through a submission from a Fraser Valley backyard grower and is the first detection in North America.

“We did an area-wide survey… and visually looked for this insect in wild cane berries,” she says. “We found it in many places in the Fraser Valley.”

While the pest prefers strawberries and cane berry plants, it was also found in wild roses and cultivated roses used as road-side landscaping. Hueppelsheuser cautions growers to look for dying buds or buds that don’t open in the spring. What may look like botrytis may actually be a weevil in the bud.

“Collect some buds,” she says. “Call me and we’ll make arrangements to have a look."

As a major pest in Europe, the strawberry blossom weevil could be a significant issue for berry growers. More information about the pest will become available over the winter.

SWD has a new sheriff in town

Spotted wing drosophila originates from Asian regions, so it stands to reason that a parasitic wasp that uses SWD larvae as an egg laying site is also from the same area. Hueppelsheuser notes there were two parasitoid wasps researchers were hoping to find and one was detected coming out of fruit in 2019. These non-stinging, tiny wasps are naturally occurring in BC.

“They have established themselves in the areas where there is spotted wing,” she says. “[We are] trying to get an understanding of how wide spread the wasps are and how abundant and will they help to impact the spotted wing in fruit production.”

As research continues, growers can expect a new helper in the fight against SWD in the future, but management practices like clean picking and proper disposal of fruit will continue to be important.

Better Optics for cherries

Cherry growers likely feel there is little to cheer about in 2020. Like other fruit growers, they faced labour challenges while weather issues severely challenged the crop from start to finish, according to Rick Chong, director of sales with Sutherland SA Produce. He estimates overall tonnage may be down by as much as 60 per cent over average years.

“Some of our growers had maybe a 20 per cent crop and some didn’t have any crop,” he says. “Some weren’t able to get them off the trees.”

Harsh frosts in 2019 caused issues as did rain-pitting, which hasn’t been seen this severely in Chong’s memory.

“We saw splitting but the biggest issue we saw was pitting,” he explains. “It wasn’t new, but it was severe. We’re seeing 20 to 25 per cent pitting that was due to rain.”

With pitting not showing up until after fruit was shipped to importers, it was a hard blow to Canada’s reputation for great quality fruit. It shocked the industry, Chong says. Add this to countries facing COVID lock-downs and trade was a bitter pill this year.

On a brighter note prices in Canada were strong because of the lack of crops and Chong says the value of a bucket of cherries doubled. People were willing to pay it because of their increased awareness of local food during COVID.

“Canadian prices were probably at record prices,” Chong says.

Another positive is the conversion to optical packing by the majority of cherry packers. “All the Canadian packers, they are world class now,” he notes. “They can compete with anyone on quality.”

New varieties of cherries out of the Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre will also help with better varieties for the export market and improve grower returns.

Great vintages coming from 2020 grapes

Grape growers were hit by an early sudden frost, but Troy Osborne, director of viticulture for Arterra Western Vineyards isn’t too worried. Most vineyards were able to get their grapes off before there was too much fruit drop.

“We had a slow start, bud break was a bit delayed, we had a cool wet spring and early summer which resulted in a below average fruit set,” he says. “We had a pretty average late summer, but we had an exceptional fall.”

Most grape growers who responded to the Orchard and Vine survey felt it was a good growing year. They also found there were positives to be had in the midst of the pandemic. This included the opportunity to slow down, spend more time with family and even become more organized and adjust the business. Many started or increased online sales with great results. In the survey, wine grape growers reported Pinot noir and several white varieties were their best performers of the season.

Growers also worked together to manage labour issues according to Osborne.  

“Certainly for some of our independent growers, labour was an issue,” he says. “Everybody really pulled together. People are pulling together to get [the fruit] off. There were definitely labour shortages throughout the industry without a doubt.”

Obviously, the biggest challenge in labour was during harvest, but the crunch is expected to be worth the chaos given the high fruit quality Osborne sees.

“Although the yields are down, the quality is exceptional,” he says. “I’m really excited. We saw similar conditions in 2016 and some of the wines from ’16 were fantastic.”

Although powdery mildew was something of an issue, Osborne says the majority of growers were able to spray at the right time to create an overall clean harvest.

Phylloxera Shows Up in BC

Unfortunately, grape phylloxera was found on Vancouver Island in September and wine grape growers who aren’t prepared may suffer from the adverse effects of the aphid-like insect.

“It’s native to eastern North America and it has travelled around the world into major grape growing regions,” says Hueppelsheuser. “It was a grower that submitted it as a suspect sample.”

Coastal BC was one of the few regions free of the pest until this discovery, she says. It works like a root aphid and a leaf aphid, spending time both above and below ground.

“It’s actually the root damage that causes problems to the vines,” she notes. “It causes gall. At this point, we do not know how widespread it is on Vancouver Island or the Gulf Island wine grape plantings. Surveys are beginning.”

This pest’s root feeding will eventually kill vines after a few years of decline. The solution is simple, though not easy. Growers need to make use of resistant North American root stock and graft European varieties onto it. With the milder coastal winters, grape growers in these regions don’t have the same protection as interior BC growers where the bug is knocked back by the cold.

“If you have weak or declining areas in your vineyard, check the roots for galls from this insect and call CFIA or me if you find anything suspect,” she says. “You may have phylloxera in your vineyard, but if you have resistant root stock, then the plants won’t get impacted.”

Diversity brings growers together

Lauren Sellars, owner of Snowy Mountain Organics in Cawston, believes in the strength of diversity, both within her orchard and with other farmers she works with. She has about 20 different types of peaches, 20 types of apples, 18 varieties of plums, cherries, apricots, nectarines and more in what she calls her “diversity garden.”

Her experience with fruit was similar to non-organic growers this year. Cherries were awful, apricots were “off” while the other fruits did well and demand was up. However, she had to raise her prices to offset the labour challenges. She was able to get inexperienced labour, but that in itself is problematic.

“I think it was hard on easily 90 per cent of [growers],” she says. “I know really good people who couldn’t hire anyone to pick their stuff.”

But Lauren is looking to the future by exploring ways to create a farmer-owned collective farm-based coop. This meshes well with her collaborations with others to attend farmers’ markets with one another’s products. It allows for attendance at more markets with a greater diversity of produce.

“We leave the farm on Friday. We go and we pull into another cooperatively owned farm, Glen Valley, there’s two farmers there and three businesses: Close to Home Organics, Earth Apple Organic Farm and Glen Valley Organic Farm Co-op,” she explains. “We give them some of our organic fruit and they give some of their organic vegetables to us.”

Growers with similar philosophies and growing practices can expand their product offerings this way and create more sales opportunities.   

“It’s the best way to do it,” she says. “It’s an art in progress.”

Brown marmorated stink bug expands its turf into nuts

The brown marmorated stink bug has been taking advantage of much of southern BC and Hueppelsheuser says it has made its way into hazelnuts.

“Yes, there is BMSB around these rural properties,” she says. “We can detect corking and some damage in the fields. There is some low level of damage caused by the bugs in these fields but it looks like it’s confined to the edges at this point.”

She says the bug has been a significant problem in southern Europe’s nut crops and there are signs of impacts in Oregon as well.

“Even if you are looking at nuts and they are grading out, you won’t actually be able to see the damage until you cut that nut open,” she says.  

Apples and pears up a size

The cold snap in late October caught some apple growers off guard, but the plus was, those apples harvested without damage were large and good quality. Hank Markgraff, horticultural consultant with Hank’s Horticulture, notes that the season was “pretty darn good,” all things considered.

“We had a good fruit set and good weather following bloom,” he says. “June threw a wrench into everybody’s works. It was cool and rainy so we have seen more apple scab than we have in, I’m going to say, 30 years.”

The scab occurred in varieties on which Markgraff hasn’t previously seen the disease. Spraying wasn’t enough with the non-stop rain in June. It warmed up in July and August, and September was looking good until the forest fires in California led to smoke cover.

“It did decrease the amount of sunburn we got on our fruit,” he says. “But we just never cooled down at night. No cooling down at night means no colour formation.”

So apple and pear growers waited and with that wait, some were hit with the surprise freeze.

“Yields were actually up this season,” he notes. “Especially for those that could get their hands on labour and could get through their thinning in a reasonable timeframe.”

He feels that yields were up by about 10 or 15 percent, but losses due to the freezing are likely in the range of 10 to 12 thousand bins. It will end up putting the crop at about the same level as last year.

“But the fruit size is bigger,” says Markgraff. “The same number of boxes, but instead of being size 100, they’re size 88.”

Stone fruits garner strong prices

The reduced volume of stone fruits on the market meant high demand and good pricing. The supply moved quickly due to the slightly below average overall yields. Apricots were hard to find and when they were available, the prices were strong and they were grabbed up fast. While the winter may have impacted overall yields, the few growers doing stone fruits are fresh market sellers with strong demand and little competition.

Easier access to information

Sure, COVID has sucked the life out of most people, but it has actually come with a few positives. One of these is the ease in which growers and farmers can access great information without leaving their comfortable chairs. Consider the fact that the Pacific Agriculture Show and Fortify (the conference for fermenters and distillers) have both created online events, as have organizations like Young Agrarians, BC Young Farmers, FarmFolk CityFolk and many, many others. In fact, a person could easily get a case of information overload without ever switching seats.

There’s no doubt 2020 has been a year with unique challenges beyond the expected weather and pest issues. Here at Orchard and Vine, we want to genuinely and humbly thank our farmers and growers for persisting, looking at positive solutions and working together. Our food supply, and therefore our very existence, depends upon your work.

Thank you.

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