Probably no one is more thrilled than Northwest retailers when local cherries arrive each June.
“The Northwest has the best cherries,” said Jeff Fairchild, produce director for New Seasons Market, a chain of 20 stores based in Portland, Ore. “They’re a huge moneymaker for us.”
With a light crop expected out of California this year, there should be plenty of excitement when Northwest cherries arrive, he said.
“Eating-wise, Northwest cherries are hard to beat for texture, color and flavor,” Fairchild said. “You’re getting a consistently sized, even-colored cherry.”
That is because, with a longer, more reliable season than other areas, Northwest growers have been able to invest in state-of-the-art packing facilities, he said.
Also, “they continue to improve their varieties,” Fairchild said.
New Seasons Market sells cherries from California early in the season but switches to Northwest product as soon as it is available.
“Once the local ones start, that’s where all the energy is,” Fairchild said.
Stores display five to 10 cases of cherries, depending on the size of the location.
New Seasons features Northwest cherries on ad about every two weeks, usually for $1 or $2 off the regular price.
Sales of organic cherries also are really strong.
The local organic cherry deal “brings on a new sense of excitement,” Fairchild said.
Customers of Bert’s Red Apple Market in Seattle are equally excited about the debut of Northwest cherries, said produce manager Terry Short.
Short gets many of his cherries from local growers who insist that he sell their product.
“They’re just the best,” he said.
Shoppers want to know where their cherries come from, so Short indicates on his displays where they are grown.
The rainier variety, as pricey as it may be, is a favorite at Bert’s Red Apple.
“The Northwest rainier cherries are absolutely incredible,” Short said. “At my store, the rainier cherries will sell 2-to-1 over the other ones.”
Short displays about two boxes of cherries at a time and rotates them every day.
“We’re a small store, but we do an incredible amount of business,” he said.
He sells 20 or 25 cases or more of rainiers every week.
“When I get them from the farm, they’ve got to come in two or three times a week to make sure I get them fresh,” he said.
The Red Apple group features Northwest cherries on ad two or three times each season.
“A few local growers really push,” Short said, and offer an ad discount of $2 or $3 per pound.
The store also displays organic red and rainier cherries as long as they are reasonably priced.
“If they are $3 a pound higher than conventional, I’m not going to do it,” Short said.
Both stores offer shoppers the option of buying bulk cherries.
New Seasons Market merchandises 20% of its cherries in a bulk display just to show them off, Fairchild said.
“They sell better in bags, but people get excited seeing them in bulk,” he said.
Short at Bert’s Red Apple does not like to buy bulk product, but he said sometimes that is the only way he can get good product from local growers.
“Most of my customers are in a hurry, and they know the bag will be good, so they grab a bag and run with it,” he said.
Both retailers encourage cherry sampling.
Fairchild said he keeps a trash can near the display so shoppers can dispose of the pits.
New Seasons Market also encourages sampling during a two-week cherry event in late June, where stores feature several cherry varieties and allow shoppers to taste the difference.