New Brunswick's BioSciences CommunityCompaniesResearch OrganizationsDevelopment OrganizationsTechnology transfer, allied industry and scientific associations Other Canadian BioSciences Associations and Commercialization Agencies Southeastern New Brunswick the object of big plans for Cranberries
January 13, 2009Rogersville, NB - Excitement was high at a public information session held today to announce that Ocean Spray, the world's largest cranberry growing entity, chose Rogersville as the site for the cooperative's regional hub. The decision culminates a worldwide search for the best spot to invest in new cranberry bogs.
Ocean Spray, a cranberry and grapefruit growers co-operative, which is responsible for two thirds of the world's cranberry production, announced its intention to spend $90 million setting up 769 hectares of cranberry bog near Rogersville.
The co-operative, which is owned by 600 cranberry growers and 50 Florida grapefruit growers, plans to set up 142 hectares by 2011, then an additional 627 hectares to be complete around 2014. The company has been gathering intelligence in New Brunswick for over a year, in order to pick out the most appropriate site and do work for the environmental impact assessment. If all goes well with the environmental impact assessment, they will begin construction in April, and the first harvest will be ready by 2012.
The introduction of Ocean Spray to the province would be a significant boost to the New Brunswick industry. There are 21 cranberry operators in the province working on 210 hectares of farmland. In 2007, the cranberry industry produced 3.1 million kilograms of product worth $3.8 million in farmgate earnings. The industry is predicting that both the production and value grew in 2008.
The popularity of cranberries continues to grow, in large part due to the role the fruit plays in human health. Like its cousin, the wild blueberry, the components of the crop whose impact on health we prize are called flavonoids. As scientific knowledge expands, it is increasingly thought that the mode of action of these flavonoids - originally thought to be powerful antioxidants - actually impact human well-being in more subtle ways by reducing inflammation. Inflammation is increasingly being seen as a common link in a host of degenerative diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, neurodegenerative diseases, even diabetes.
New Brunswick and the maritimes are home to a strong cluster of science and technology related to the health functionality of Vaccinium fruit, a genus which includes cranberry and wild blueberries.
For more information on this story, please visit:
http://nbbusinessjournal.canadaeast.com/journal/article/539345
http://timestranscript.canadaeast.com/rss/article/537001
http://www.cbc.ca/money/story/2009/01/14/nb-ocean-spray.html
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