Picture Logo for UMaine Cooperative Extension
CRANBERRIES
cranberry uprights for decorationbutton for linking back to UMaine Cooperative Extension's Cranberry home page
What's New?!
2009 Harvest (and other) Stories:
On May 8th, the Maine BPC approved our request for a Special Local Needs 24 (c) permit for the chemigation of Callisto. The permitted use is effective immediately, and I should have a copy of the new label very soon.
button for linking to html page about Callisto herbicide
Notes from the UMass Cranberry Management Update - Jan. 2009 in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
MS Word (533 Kb) || pdf (282 Kb)
The cranberry management calendar for Maine is continuing to expand, including a section called "Harvest Tips."  If you have any harvesting tips to share, don't be shy.
Link to Maine cranberry management calendar
EXCITING HEALTH FINDINGS!!
Several previous findings suggest that oxidative stress may play an important role in the development of Alzheimer disease, which is now the 4th-leading cause of death among adults!!
Apparent Correlation Between Antioxidants & Protection from Alzheimer Disease!
Flavonoids--which are examined in one of the two new studies looking at risk of Alzheimer Disease, published in the June 26, 2002 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association--are phenolic plant pigments, with high anti-oxidative power within the human body. Ripe, RED cranberries are understandably high in flavonoid content, and are the 1st of 3 flavonoid examples cited in one of the two new JAMA studies!! The other two are green & black tea, and pulses.
Cranberries are also, as you probably know, very high in Vitamin C, which also appears to protect our brains--and other parts--from the oxidative damage done by free radicals.

Cranberry Ranks Top in Antioxidants, Versus 19 Other Fruits! 
Current Status of Maine'sCranberry Industry
Some cranberries floating in water in Columbia Falls
       There are currently about 28 cranberry farms and roughly 190 acres of cranberries within the State of Maine. Roughly 88% of the acres are in Washington County. The beds range in size from less than one half acre, to five to ten acres. Due to various aspects of water and fertilizer management, a bed of one or two acres is viewed by many growers to be ideal in size. Cherryfield Foods, Inc. has more acreage (over 100) than any other operation within the state. The 2nd-largest establishment is 16 acres, then 12, and so on, with most growers operating 2 acres or less.
From the very beginning of Maine’s ‘reborn’ cranberry industry (which began in 1989), local markets for fresh cranberries within the state have been strong, and so small growers have had an easy time finding niche markets here for their berries or value-added cranberry products.  In addition, despite the fact that most of Maine's cranberries are used for processing, fresh Maine cranberries can now be found during October and November in many Shaw’s and Shop ‘n Save supermarkets throughout much of the state, and Wal*Mart has also entered that arena in recent years.  Some of the smaller and more regional stores, such as IGA, have also been eager to buy Maine cranberries, and growers frequently report selling double the amount of bags compared to the same, or even lower-priced, Ocean Spray brand berries, suggesting that demand for Maine-grown cranberries within our state is strong.  Shoppers frequently email the university through this web site, asking why they cannot find Maine cranberries all year long, in the freezer section.  Finding individual growers in Maine with large enough supplies of fresh cranberries at harvest time is one limiting factor, coupled with the highly competitive nature of frozen food space in stores.

If you have comments or questions about this page,
contact Charles Armstrong at: charlesa@umext.maine.edu
Putting knowledge to work with the people of Maine
The University of Maine Cooperative Extension Pest Management logo
Accessibility | Non-discrimination and Disability Resources | Non-disclosure | Contact
A Member of the University of Maine System
These pages are maintained by the Pest Management Office, University of Maine Cooperative Extension.
Page Last Modified: 11/20/09