Berry Blue LLC., an MBG Marketing company, has announced its partnership with the University of Florida Blueberry Breeding Program to research and develop new and proprietary late-season southern highbush blueberry varieties. This collaboration will bring together the expertise of both organizations to create unique blueberry varieties that are not currently available in the market for late May and June.
The University of Florida Blueberry Breeding Program has a long history of developing successful blueberry cultivars, and Berry Blue is committed to uniting the combined expertise of both breeding programs and bringing these innovative cultivars to blueberry growers. Through this partnership, the two organizations will work together to develop blueberry varieties that not only have enhanced agronomic traits, but also improved consumer appeal.
“We are thrilled to be partnering with the University of Florida Blueberry Breeding Program,” said Brad Moorer, President/CEO of Berry Blue LLC. and MBG Marketing. “Their expertise in blueberry breeding has been tremendously influential in the industry. We are excited to bring together our collective breeding efforts and technology to deliver transformative cultivars to MBG growers.”
MBG will leverage the results of this partnership between Berry Blue and the University of Florida Blueberry Breeding Program in its already highly successful southeastern blueberry program it sells under the Naturipe brand.
“This multi-year, multi-million dollar investment into new varieties further validates the commitment that MBG grower/owners have made to innovating for the future of the berry category,” states Moorer.
“This will be a ground-breaking advancement of southern highbush blueberries. Together, we will deliver the highest quality, best tasting berries to retailers and consumers around the world.” “When Brad approached me about this project, I got very excited about the possibility of extending the work we have been doing for Florida growers. In this project, we will leverage our expertise and germplasm to breed blueberry varieties with high yield and ideal fruit characteristics. These efforts will complement the work we have been doing and we will continue doing in Florida. This means we will use the new funding to develop cultivars for the window after the Florida season. We would not be able to do this work if it was not for the support of Berry Blue and MBG,” said Patricio Munoz, Blueberry Breeder at the University of Florida.
