Florida Strawberry Members

Welcome to the home of the freshest, most delicious strawberries in the world. Enjoy fresh Florida strawberries, available December through April.

Berry Brawl Competition

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All Florida strawberry growers, handlers and supporting members are invited to the first annual Florida Strawberry Growers Association Summer Family Fun cook-out and to watch the Berry Brawl games.

A shaded picnic area and tables will be available to tailgate and cheer on your favorite team as they compete at our first annual Berry Brawl. The Brawl will be five head-to-head events, with teams of six competing for fun, awards and bragging rights. Plus there will be activities for the kids, games and a water slide!

The party will begin at 12:30 pm at 13138 Lewis Gallagher Rd, Dover, FL 33527 and the Brawl will start at 1:00 pm. All team captains need to check in at 12:15 pm for an event walk-through and rules. There will be plenty of food and fun for everyone, watching the brawl will be just as much fun as competing (maybe more).

Berry Brawl Competition

  • Team Requirements
  • 6 people per team, minimum 2 girls
  • Team members must be 16 or older
  • Team spirit is encouraged so be creative!

T-shirts for all participants
Trophies for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place.

The Events

  • Tug-O-War
  • Crazy Obstacle Relay
  • Rock-em-Sock-em Jousting
  • The Berry Crawl
  • Belly Bumper Throw down

Complete the form below to register. $25.00 per team registration to hold your spot.

Click to Download

 

FSGA Chefs Advisory Board

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Clockwise: Chef Jason Gronlund, Chef Justin Timineri, Chef Judson McLester, Chef J. Hugh McEvoy and Chef Norman Van Aken
Clockwise: Chef Jason Gronlund, Chef Justin Timineri, Chef Judson McLester, Chef J. Hugh McEvoy and Chef Norman Van Aken

PLANT CITY/DOVER, FLA – March 19, 2012 – The Florida Strawberry Growers Association (FSGA) developed a FSGA Chefs Advisory Board as a way to help spread the word about the state’s winter strawberries. Five Florida-based celebrity chefs answered the Association’s call to become founding members of the Board.

“We approached several top Florida-based chefs with an invitation to share their favorite Florida strawberry recipe in support of this program. In return, the Association and the chefs themselves will publicize the program by distributing several thousand, high-quality, oversize postcards. Each of five postcards features one of the chefs along with photographs and his strawberry recipe. We are encouraging consumers and culinary professionals to visit our new culinary blog Strawberry Sue. The postcards will also be featured there,” said Sue Harrell, director of marketing for FSGA.

“We are overwhelmed with the response from some of our state’s superstar chefs. We hope to expand the program in the future. Greater production this year necessarily required enhanced marketing efforts to create awareness and increase sales. One of the ways we’re taking on the challenge is by reaching out to chefs and asking them to assist in showcasing our industry.

“Establishing relationships with executive chefs, research and product development experts and chef instructors who teach in accredited culinary academies are the best ways possible to spread the word about our special strawberries throughout the foodservice industry. We’re focusing on educating both seasoned chefs and the chefs of tomorrow about our industry from the farm to the table. Establishing and nurturing these valuable relationships is an integral program designed to develop new markets today and maintain them in the future,” Harrell concluded.

The participating chefs are –

States east of the Mississippi are target markets for fresh-crop Florida strawberries. The industry is also exporting Florida strawberries to buyers in Europe and Canada. Fresh Florida strawberries are available each year from Thanksgiving through Easter, given strong market demand and positive weather conditions during harvest.

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Editor note: Interviews with FSGA executives may be arranged. FSGA is a voluntary, non-profit organization of Florida strawberry growers who support research, education and promotion.

Agriculture Literacy Day

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GAINESVILLE – The ninth annual Florida Agriculture Literacy Day is scheduled for Tuesday, May 1, 2012. Florida Agriculture in the Classroom, Inc. invites Florida agriculture industry volunteers to read its newest storybook to elementary school children in honor of the event.

Healthy Florida Farms educates students on the nutritional value of Florida fruits, vegetables, dairy, beef, poultry and seafood products

The fourth in a series of rhyming children’s books, Healthy Florida Farms educates students on the nutritional value of Florida fruits, vegetables, dairy, beef, poultry and seafood products. Copies of the books and lesson plans for teachers, and bookmarks and other items for students will be distributed to volunteer readers beginning in March.

Registration for Florida Agriculture Literacy Day will begin in February at Florida Agriculture in the Classroom’s website at www.agtag.org. The deadline to register, if you’re reading on Florida Agriculture Literacy Day, is Friday, April 16, 2012. If you are reading after that, we ask that you complete the reading before the end of the school year and schedule it at least two weeks in advance.

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services employees, University of Florida IFAS Extension agents, 4-H agents and master gardeners, Florida Farm Bureau members, Florida Cattlemen and Cattlewomen, FFA teachers, students and other agriculture industry representatives are invited to read for the event and are expected to schedule the readings themselves.

In addition to Florida Agriculture Literacy Day, Florida Agriculture in the Classroom, a non-profit organization based in Gainesville, is charged with educating Florida students and teachers about the importance of agriculture by providing curricula, materials, workshops, grant money and other programs to teachers and agriculture industry volunteers.

Florida Agriculture in the Classroom is able to offer the books and materials for Agriculture Literacy Day free of because of the funding it receives from sales of the agriculture specialty license plate also known as the ‘Ag Tag.’

Celebrate Strawberry Month

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February is Fabulous Florida Strawberry Month

PLANT CITY/DOVER, FLA — Fresh strawberries in February? February is fabulous in Florida where strawberry farmers are harvesting their sweet winter crop and shipping handpicked fruit to key markets.

“Strawberries dipped in chocolate or served straight up with a dollop of whipped cream are sure to please the special Valentine in your life,” said Sue Harrell, director of marketing for the Florida Strawberry Growers Association (FSGA). “It’s a happy coincidence that Valentine’s Day, one of the most popular celebrations in the country, falls during the peak of our season,” she continued.

“Acreage this year is estimated at 11,000 – about 1,000 acres over last year. Florida’s cool nights and warm days have made the berries particularly sweet and the shipping quality is excellent,” said Ted Campbell, Executive Director of the Association.

Strawberry farmers begin harvesting in November and continue until the end of March. Marketing programs are giving consumers, chefs and caterers the knowledge and opportunity to purchase Florida’s flavorful, healthy and delicious berries in the winter when they least expect them.

“We’re celebrating February as Fabulous Florida Strawberry Month to call special attention to winter strawberries. We’re getting the word out this season to as many audiences as possible,” Harrell concluded.

States east of the Mississippi are target markets for Florida strawberries.

After experiencing two consecutive years of freezing temperatures and heavy rainfall, growers are optimistic that mild weather will continue through the harvest season.

Strawberry tips and facts:

  • Eating eight strawberries a day has been shown to lower blood pressure and improve memory and heart health.
  • When you’re on the run, take strawberries with you in a plastic container or sandwich bag.
  • Strawberries taste best at room temperature.
  • Strawberries are picked at full ripeness. Unlike some other fruits, they don’t ripen once they are harvested.
  • A dash of balsamic vinegar, lemon or orange juice will bring out the flavor of strawberries.
  • Strawberries are the only fruit that have seeds on the outside —about 200 of them. Each seed has the potential to become a new variety. Strawberry seeds are all those little bumpy spots on the surface of the berry.

More information about Florida strawberries including recipes, news, events and behind the scenes stories are available on the Strawberry Sue blog.

About Florida Winter Strawberries

In 1980, a few strawberry growers began meeting in their homes to discuss the best way to organize a group that would represent the interests of the Florida strawberry industry. On February 11, 1982, the Florida Strawberry Growers Association (FSGA) was born. Hillsborough County is recognized as the Winter Strawberry Capital of the World and the home of some of the sweetest, reddest and juiciest strawberries around.

Get Connected

Florida Strawberry Growers Association
P.O. Box: 2550
Plant City, FL 33564
Telephone: 813-752-6822
Fax: 813-752-216

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