AU: Blueberry industry booming
Blueberry orchards have increased from 500 hectares to more than 1,100 hectares, and there are plans for further expansion.
Since 2011 the farm-gate value of the fruit has risen from $84 million to between $120 to $130 million.
Phillip Wilk, the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries' blueberry industry development officer, conducted a national survey of growers.
"Most people said that they were planning either expanding on what they already had or they had expanded already and those plants are yet not under production and they will be over the next couple of years. So there's a further 500 hectares that have gone in so that's almost a 50 per cent increase that will occur over the next four years."
The farm-gate value of the NSW crop is valued at more than $100 million and represents 84 per cent of the country's 6,000 tonne crop.
The main growth region has been on the Coffs Coast where banana growers are moving out of the traditional crop and into blueberry and greenhouse production.
"Many of those former banana growers have actually removed a lot of the bananas," he said. "Some of them have a very small amount of banana on there but most have taken the bananas out and changed over to both blueberry and tunnel production for small vegetables."
There's also been increased plantings in Tasmania and in new regions areas like Queensland's Atherton Tablelands.
"Some of the big areas have been at both ends of the season," he said. "Many people have been starting to put blueberries into non-traditional places like northern QLD to try and get the earlier season. Also the tail end of the season down in Tasmania, there's been a huge growth in many areas there that can grow for it as long and as late as possible."
Source: abc.net.au