International Blueberry Organization’s Global State of the Industry Report Made Available For Free

“A more informed industry is a healthier industry,” says Cort Brazelton, the Editor of the   International Blueberry Organization (IBO) State of the Industry report, underscoring the importance of freely available information to the fulfillment of the core values of the IBO. “We are a grower-oriented organization, if good data is one of the critical things that the global industry needs, we need to make that available,” he tells Kasey Cronquist, in his podcast, “The Business of Blueberries.” The IBO Global State of the Industry Report which had previously been sold at a high price for those who were not members of the organization, has recently been made available for free; it compiles comprehensive data from across the global blueberry supply chain, offering in-depth analysis of the trends and new developments taking place in the fast-growing blueberry industry.

“It is an important activity in any business, especially in an industry that has very strong local realities and very strong global realities,” Cort adds, referring to the importance of the types of activities carried out by the IBO, such as the Global State of the Industry Report itself. Cort goes on to explain how the report doesn’t just focus on the metrics or the statistical data but how it also tries to capture plenty of narratives on what’s going on in the market dynamics. 

The report offers an insight into and tracks the rise in demand for blueberries since the beginning of the COVID 19 pandemic. According to the report, a burgeoning demand for blueberries has been recorded specifically in countries such as Peru, Mexico, South Africa and Morocco, to name a few. Owing to an increase in the depth of research surrounding the health benefits of blueberries, the fruit has become more commonplace in these markets, where previously it was deemed a niche product.This has spurred more Northern Hemisphere farmers to plant the crop throughout Europe; in China, plantation has become more rampant and imported blueberries are now more thoroughly inspected with regards to size, firmness and flavor.

The report team for the project has managed to assemble a comprehensive treatise on the status of the blueberry industry with topics ranging from Blueberry demand to production projections. The intended aim of this project has been to serve the industry with consistent

information and intelligence. Above all, however, this project aims to empower informed decision making and to foster a healthier, more close-knit industry, as Cort aptly puts it, “no business can do well making decisions blindly”.