Bluer than Berries

When a court last week awarded $56 million to a large group of blueberry growers who alleged price fixing among the state’s largest berry processing companies, the response from Washington County was one of shock, disbelief and confusion. The decision, of course, will be appealed, but in the meantime, blueberry growers and producers need answers, and, perhaps, help.

One major processor, Cherryfield Foods, immediately scaled back its operations, telling scores of employees not to come to work. The other Washington County processor, Jasper Wyman & Son, is trying to do business as usual.

When paper mills threaten to shut down, a team from Augusta is almost immediately on the scene seeing what can be done to keep the machines running. In this case, there have been a few calls from the Department of Agriculture, but no real attempt at assistance.

As legal proceedings continue, the situation remains in flux. But some things are clear. For one, there will be a meager blueberry crop in future years if work is not done now to keep fields in shape. That work won’t be done if workers aren’t being paid and banks aren’t loaning money to an industry it sees in jeopardy. Since the court ruling, growers and processors have already been told by banks that they are a bad credit risk. If fields aren’t prepared and fewer berries are grown, picked and processed, the Maine wild blueberry industry will not be able to meet its commitment to clients ranging from muffin makers to McDonald’s. If these companies go elsewhere to get their blueberries, the industry will be doomed no matter who ultimately wins the court case.

There are several ways state officials in the Department of Agriculture can help. In the short term, they can simply try to answer questions. Some, such as why the jury decided what it did, are not answerable, but just having a concerned person from Augusta show up to listen indicates the state is concerned about this industry. Beyond that, the state can work to ensure that money is available to keep processors processing and growers growing. This does not necessarily mean putting up state funds, but, as it has done with other industries, state officials can work with banks to find ways to finance the work that needs to be done.

The crux of the legal battle is the system used to price berries. Many growers say it is unfair and, in the case of the growers who went to court, that prices are set by collusion. Oddly, some processors don’t like the system either. This presents the perfect opportunity for the Agriculture Department to step in and look for a better pricing system (as long as it doesn’t make it as complicated as the one governing milk prices).

Both growers and processors say they don’t want to bankrupt the industry. The state should echo that sentiment and then get to work to ensure that doesn’t happen.