Current Happenings
Plan to join us on September 16th from mid-to late afternoon for post-harvest party and presentation of the new plan, recent marketing successes and discussion of next steps in research and fair trade actions. We plan to host this at Rob’s Samson Estates facility and to feature innovations in raspberry food and beverages. The Wild Hive marketing team will be there with exciting news from the marketing program.
More details will be forthcoming following harvest.
Save the Date!
WRRC Selects Fourth Industry Service Award
In 2017 we initiated a practice of honoring one individual who made contributions above and beyond the normal call of duty to advance the interests of Washington State raspberry growers. We are delighted to announce that John Clark has been selected at the 2020 recipient of this award.
2017 Lyle Rader
2018 Curt Maberry
2019 Darryl Ehlers
2020 John Clark
Raspberry farms are built on the contributions of many outstanding individuals who have made significant contributions to the raspberry industry. John certainly meets this criteria. We were pleased to present this award at our Annual Meeting December 9th. We made a video featuring John’s thoughts on berry farming that we are sure you’d enjoy!
Virtual Washington Red Raspberry
Harvesting and Processing Tour
The WRRC continues to support the US Trade Representative’s Investigation No. 332–577, Raspberries for Processing: Conditions of Competition between U.S. and Foreign Suppliers, with a Focus on Washington State, for the purpose of providing a report that provides an overview of the U.S. raspberry industry in Washington state and assesses the conditions of competition between U.S. and foreign suppliers of raspberries meant for processing. As part of the International Trade Commission’s 14-month study, their staff planned to participate in an in-person tour of our harvesting and processing practices this summer. However, due to the pandemic restricting travel, the WRRC created this comprehensive virtual harvesting and processing tour that is now accessible to the ITC, as well as the general public.
School Foodservice Update
As part of our ongoing efforts to engage school foodservice, we have just launched a new toolkit and supporting webpages that provide this important audience with resources just for them. The site showcases top school chefs and culinary professionals and includes recipes formatted and designed specifically for schools. In addition to the resources, we have partnered with Healthy School Recipes, and they hosted a webinar on September 17 to walk K-12 operators through the new resources and give them practical tips and tricks to incorporating frozen raspberries in a variety of formats into their school menus. Attached is a press release about the new site and resources, as well as the webinar, that we are using to promote the new offerings to school foodservice-focused publications across the country. We are thrilled to bring these new resources to support the industry’s efforts to increase demand within the school foodservice market.
Upcoming Meetings
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Sept 16: POST HARVEST PARTY
Samson Estates Winery
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Dec 1-3: WA SMALL FRUIT CONFERENCE & LYNDEN AG SHOW
Lynden Fairgrounds
