Nov. 27—Tracyn Thayer said she didn’t expect many cranberries this year, partly because winter flooding destroyed her irrigation pond south of Bethel.
But when she went to her 5-acre farm, weed picker in hand to clear the tall grass, she discovered some beautiful, deep red berries poking out from under the blades of grass.
Overall, Maine cranberry growers had a good season, said Charles Armstrong, a cranberry expert at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension who helps farms manage pests. By his calculations, the state’s 20 farms have harvested about 500,000 pounds of berries, which amounts to about $850,000 for growers. Now growers must deal with the intense demand that comes with the holidays.
This year, Thayer picked only about 500 pounds of cranberries, compared to 7,200 pounds during her first year in business. But buyers are still asking for more, she said.
“I have nothing left to sell,” she said.
This is her fourth season running Birch Bog Farm in Albany Township, but her first on her own. It was not an easy year, as she had to deal with divorce, difficult weather and maintenance around the swamp. She still works full-time in accounting at Apex Group. But Thayer and her mother spent about two weeks sorting the berries and filling about 30 crates to sell, she said.
Thayer sold her berries to Good Food Store in Bethel, Fair Share Market in Norway and Goranson Farm in Norway. During a good season, she expands that list to include places like Rosemont Market, Royal River Natural Foods and food co-ops in Portland, and in New Hampshire in Littleton and Concord.
Thayer, like many cranberry farmers in Maine, picks her crops dry, using a mechanical harvester that looks like a lawn mower with rakes attached. The harvest starts in early October.
While many people associate cranberry farms with flooded swamps, like those seen in the Ocean Spray commercials, Armstrong said dry picking extends shelf life. Immersing the berries in water is the easiest and fastest way to harvest, but the moisture makes the berries spoil more quickly. That’s why it’s ideal for juice products, he said.
Normally, Maine cranberries cost about $1.75 per pound, a staggering difference from the 20 cents per pound price for flooded crops. Organic crops can easily cost $5 a pound, he said.
Thayer’s organic cranberries are certified by the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association. People who buy directly from the farm pay $7 per pound, $7.50 if they want the berries packaged. She charges $6 per pound wholesale and she recommends grocers sell around $8.95 to $9.95 per pound.
Karen Sparrow, owner of Sparrow Farm in Pittston, said she doesn’t know exactly how many pounds she harvested, but her 4-acre bogs were full. Armstrong said she must have had a bumper crop this year.
While she and her husband started the farm in 1978, her husband built the three cranberry bogs during the state’s push to grow the cranberry industry in the early 1990s. The sandy soil of the swamps ensures that the plants can reproduce for years. In winter, the marshes are flooded to protect the plants’ vines.
Since her husband died, Sparrow said she and her team of eight have worked harder to meet demand and last-minute requests for cranberries.
The farm delivers the cranberries and eggs to customers on a regular route that extends as far south as Kittery. She has met her customers over the years and charges $7 per pound or $7.50 per pound if packaged in plastic clamshells.
Portland Food Co-op produce manager Ryan Ference said he had to complete an “emergency run” to stock more Sparrow’s cranberries because it was so busy. The store was selling about 50 pounds a week, even before the holiday rush started.
A YEAR LOOKING BACK
He said the store is fortunate to have good relationships with local farms and farmers like Sparrow.
“Everyone had a really tough year last year,” he said. “The crops have suffered. So this year has been a pretty phenomenal recovery year for all the farms.”
The co-op also stocks cranberries from Ricker Hill Orchards, which Armstrong said is one of the state’s largest growers at 25 acres. The largest grower is Mingo’s Products in Calais with 17 hectares of land.
Last week, Armstrong bought several packages of Ricker Hill cranberries at Hannaford and couldn’t find a single rotten berry. That’s a testament to the high quality of this year’s harvest statewide, he said.
“The color is really great,” he said. “A beautiful deep red color, which is what Maine is known for. We have colder temperatures leading up to harvest time. The cold nights really create that deep red color.”
The berries, which are a staple on Thanksgiving dinner tables, can last even longer when frozen. Sparrow recommends adding them to cereal or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
BAKED IN GOODNESS
Atsuko Fujimoto, an acclaimed baker who owns Norimoto Bakery in Portland’s Deering Center, says she buys all local fruits for her baked goods, including Maine-grown cranberries from local supermarkets and a wholesaler called Native Maine Produce.
She often chooses Ricker Hill cranberries. The fruit is reliable and not that hard to find compared to other fruits like blueberries, she said.
Right now, Norimoto’s menu includes a buckle — a classic New England dessert — and a cranberry custard pie, which Fujimoto makes every Thanksgiving and which he says is a customer favorite. She makes about 100 of each dessert per week, about 1200 of each dessert per season.
Fujimoto said when the season changes, she likes to swap the buckle’s blueberry topping for cranberry.
She said the best way to bake with cranberry is to balance it with something sweeter, like the sweetened condensed milk she uses for the cakes. The leftover cranberry sauce tastes great over ice cream, she said. But personally, she said she loves the tart flavor of the berry.
“I can’t think of any other berries that last so long in the refrigerator. It’s such a stable berry,” she says. “I think it’s the easiest berry to work with.”
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