Strawberry Situation at Millar Berry Farms [2014]
Channel: Millar Berry Farms
Date: 13/07/2014

This is an explanation for why conditions in our strawberry patch were less than ideal in 2014.

Here are some links with more detailed information:
http://www.thegrower.org/readnews.php?id=9c8y4k5c0k6w
http://www.novascotiastrawberryblog.com/2014/03/strawberry-newsletter-2014-1.html

"This year, you may have noticed our shortage of strawberries, and the poor condition of our fields. This is not due to a lack of effort on our part. Our soils are healthier than ever, and we've been working hard, only to see all our efforts result in the mass death of a large majority of our plants.

Shortly before our harvest this year, it came to our attention that several strawberry plant viruses were spreading across Canada. While one virus on its own is not catastrophic, when multiple viruses infect the same plant, the results are dire. We were hesitant to speak about this during our harvest, since mentioning the word "virus" in the same breath as our fruit would likely lead to unwarranted fear about food safety. Rest assured, the viruses only affect strawberry plants, and are spread by aphids.

Our only course of action now, is to plow under any fields that have these viruses, which is nearly all of them, old and new plantings included. As long as there are any infected plants remaining, it will soon spread across the whole farm again. On the East Coast, hundreds of acres of strawberries have already been plowed under, resulting in millions of dollars of losses. If we had been aware of this years ago, we likely would not have continued to buy our certified plants from that area.

From what we've gathered from the many government and independent experts that have visited our farm, we are the worst hit in this region. We are now beginning the painful process of plowing countless hours of our hard work into the dirt, leaving us with less than half of what we were counting on for next year.

Since strawberry plants cannot be harvested the same year they are planted, we will have to plant a huge amount of plants next year, but our yield will still be much lower than normal. The input costs for the first year of a strawberry field is much higher than subsequent years, and results in 0 income. As strawberries are our main crop, we are taking quite a hit financially, but we are trying to scrape by, with help from our raspberries and assortment of vegetables.

We would like to thank our loyal customers for supporting us through these less-than-ideal conditions, and hope you will continue to do so in the future. We are always striving to bring you the highest quality produce, and hope that we can meet your expectations, as well as our own, in the coming years."