My 39 honeyberry bushes are starting to produce more than our family can eat, so I am toying with the idea of trying to sell some at farmer’s market next summer. However, once I blow the debris from them with my purposely wimpy leaf blower, they tend to bleed and look a bit messy. If I pick them the previous evening, I suspect they will look even worse, plus would require refrigeration overnight. Have any of you tried it, and if so, how did it go? Did any varieties fare better than others? Did you need to offer jam or pastry samples to first educate the public?
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USK it’s might have recommendations on that, I would check if there’s documentation online relevant to storage they have published
It’s worth reaching out to them either way, they’ll definitely be able to give you advice whether they have published it or not
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Are you shaking the branches to harvest, or plucking the fruits off? I think HoneyberryUSA sells a shaker machine for commercial haskap harvesting.
When i lightly shake my Proven Winners varieties Sugar Pie and Honeybunch, and the ripe fruits fall right off the bush without any bleeding. They also hold up for several days in the fridge when harvested that way.
id think they are too fragile to sell as fresh. the frozen market is how most are used. the newer cultivars are even more prone to damage. flash frozen on sheet pans and then placed in a clam pint would be the best way to preserve their look but not everyone likes frozen. thats how i preserve mine except i use qt. freezer bags. frozen berries in yogurts the best!.
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Steve and I store our haskap with the same methods.
If you want to sell fresh, you will basically need to refrigerate and sell upon picking. I typically see them sold processed as jam or baking in my local community.
Large operations seem to process or sell as frozen in my area.
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a local farmer put in 40 acres of honeyberries. mostly aurora about 7 yrs ago.he was selling them frozen in our supermarket for awhile. it was before mine were in production so i was buying them, then a few years later they stopped selling them. i guess he decided to haul them down to the southern cites where he got more money for them. i get about 20-30lbs from mine now. way more than i can use so family and friends get some.
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