Specialty products are now the focus of Flavor Tree Fruit Co. LLC of Hanford, CA and no one item seems bigger than its Verry Cherry plum – a high-brix fruit cross between various cherry and plum varieties.
Flavor Tree expects to begin harvesting Verry Cherries this year in about the third week of June, with shipments extending into August.
This year’s volume is projected to grow by over 100 percent compared to 2018, totaling about 500,000 boxes this year.
The Verry Cherry is described as being juicy like a plum and having the size of a small plum. On the cherry side, it is painted as sweet with a nice cherry flavor.
Flavor Tree also exports the Verry Cherry to China, which amounted to about 40,000 boxes in 2018, despite facing tariffs of 50 percent.
The company has rights to almost all Verry Cherries grown, with about 450 acres in production, mostly grown in the Hanford area.