Wild blueberry harvest underway

August 12, 2011, Toronto – Wild blueberries have reached the peak of their growing season in the fields of Quebec and the Atlantic provinces.

“Wild blueberries provide four distinct advantages: their unique taste as a result of tangy and sweet flavours; their smaller and more compact size, which delivers up to three times more berries than cultivated; their superior performance in keeping shape, texture and colour; and lastly, their mystique of a naturally growing berry native to Atlantic Canada, Quebec and Maine,” the Wild Blueberry Association of North America (WBANA) said in a press release.

WBANA is an international trade association of growers and processors of wild blueberries from Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward island, Newfoundland and Maine.

Although fresh cartons of berries are a summertime favourite, 99 per cent of wild blueberries harvested each August and September are individually quick frozen (IQF), allowing for fast preservation of taste, nutrition and antioxidant power. Within hours of being picked, wild blueberries are sorted, cleaned and processed using state-of-the-art technology to preserve their flavour, quality and nutritional goodness.

IQF berries can remain frozen for up to two years without losing their flavour or nutritional value