Florida Strawberry Members

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

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$15,500 in Scholarships Raised

March 21, 2013 by FSGA

Our Ambassadors with the Best Flat buyers John Poppell and Wish Farms, Chuck Hollenkamp and Andy Gutierrez.
Our Ambassadors with the Best Flat buyers John Poppell and Wish Farms, Chuck Hollenkamp and Andy Gutierrez.

2013 proved to be another successful year in raising scholarship money through the Florida Strawberry Best Flat Competition at the 78th Annual Florida Strawberry Festival. A total of $15,500 was raised over three days of competition. This year’s competition raised almost twice the $8,100 that was raised in 2012.

The judges once again had a difficult time determining this year’s winners. The competition was fierce and being recognized as a winner in this contest is a big deal in our industry! The Jay Taylor Band acted as our judges on the final day of the competition.

The Florida Strawberry Growers Association has awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars in scholarships since 1983. Scholarship applications are ready for pick up or download beginning in June each year and are usually due by the middle of September that same year.

The Florida Strawberry Growers Association offers scholarships to encourage young men and women to continue their education beyond high school. The committee will determine the amount of the scholarship, but none will be less than $500.00.

Eligible students must be an enrolled college undergraduate or a high school graduate and submit a letter of intent to attend college. You can find more information on our scholarship program here.

March  1, 2013 – Swine Sale

1st Place Grower – E. W. Simmons Farm
Handler – Wish Farms
Buyer – Wish Farms
$1,100
Total
$1,100
2nd Place Grower – Mike Lott Farms
Handler – C & D Fruit & Vegetable
Buyer – C & D Fruit & Vegetable
$1,000
Total
$1,000
3rd Place Grower – Southern Farm Alliance & Colson Rd Farm
Handler – Colorful Harvest
Buyer – Colorful Harvest
$1,000
Total
$1,000
Total Swine Sale
$3,100

March  3, 2013 – Plant Sale

1st Place Grower – E. W. Simmons Farm
Handler – Wish Farms
Buyer – Poppell Insurance
$1,000
Buyer-Matched by Wish Farms
$1,000
Total
$2,000
2nd Place Grower – Fancy Farms
Handler – Wish Farms
Buyer – Wish Farms
$600
Total
$600
3rd Place Grower – D & K Farms
Handler – Colorful Harvest
Buyer – Colorful Harvest
$650
Total
$650
Total Plant Sale
$3,250

March 9, 2013 – Steer Sale

1st Place Grower – Mike Lott Farms
Handler – C & D Fruit & Vegetable
Buyer – Wish Farms, and
$1,600
Buyer-Matched by Crop Protection Services, and
$1,600
Buyer-C & D Fruit & Vegetable Donated
$1,000
Buyer-Matched by Oaks Farm
$1,000
Total
$5,200
2nd Place Grower – Sewell Farms, LLC
Handler – Westlake Produce
Buyer – Wish Farms
$1,500
Buyer-Matched by Colorful Harvest
$1,500
Total
$3,000
3rd Place Grower – Sam Williamson Farm
Handler – Driscolls
Buyer – Driscolls
$1,000
Total
$1,000
Total Steer Sale
$9,200

2013 Best Flat Competition

Total Scholarship Money Raised
$15,550

Filed Under: Latest News Tagged With: education, Financial Aid, florida, Florida Strawberry, florida strawberry growers association, Jay Taylor, Scholarship, Strawberry Festival

2013 Florida Berry Expo

February 15, 2013 by FSGA

Register today for the 2013 Florida Berry Expo at UF/IFAS Gulf Coast Research and Education Center.

Thursday, February 21, 2013
11:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

University of Florida/IFAS
Gulf Coast Research and Education Center
14625 CR 672, Wimauma, FL  33598
813-634-0000
ccooley@ufl.edu

Click-to-Download-ProgramClick-to-Register

Highlights include:

  • Florida strawberry industry: results from a comprehensive industry survey
  • Smart irrigation: smartphone app for managing strawberry irrigation in Florida
  • Nematode management considerations for strawberries
  • Strawberry tasting of latest selections

Field Tours:

  • Application timing of Stinger™ for broadleaf weed control in strawberry
  • Comparison of freeze protection methods on strawberries and blueberries
  • Using crop protectants and non-traditional irrigation techniques for strawberry transplant establishment and blueberry production
  • Evaluation of planting dates, fertilization requirements, and Florida-produced strawberry plug transplants in open fields and high tunnels
  • Breeding: a sneak preview of potential varieties
  • Determination of irrigation requirements for vertical and horizontal soilless systems for strawberry and blackberry cultivars

CEU’s will be available.

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Filed Under: Latest News Tagged With: agchat, agriculture, agriculture expo, agritalk, agvocate, Education Center, farming, florida, florida berry expo, Fruit, Irrigation

Strawberry crop in fine shape

January 10, 2013 by FSGA

Florida strawberry growers hold their breath as the new year unfurls with crop and market in fine shape

Ripe Red Florida Strawberries in Field

As the new year rolled into its first week, Florida strawberries were in great shape with abundant volume, excellent quality and — unlike last year — a solid market.

“I hold my breath when I say everything’s fine, but there are not too many problems just yet,” Ted Campbell, executive director of the Florida Strawberry Growers Association in Plant City, FL, told The Produce News Jan. 3. “I think the market will be okay. They’re harvesting full bore right now, which means the prices will come down with the volume of the harvest, but I think we’ll be okay.”

Early in the season, strawberry prices were at near-record highs as demand was strong and little volume was available.

Last year, Florida growers got clobbered by a trifecta of calamity: California, which is usually out of the deal by the time Florida comes on in early December, had an extended season; Mexico had tremendous volume; and a very warm winter — even by Florida standards — led to volume that simply crashed the market as growers tried to unload berries anywhere they could at any price.

Things are different this year.

Continue reading at Produce News

Filed Under: Latest News Tagged With: California, florida, florida strawberry growers association, Mexico, New Year, Plant City Florida, ted campbell

Ag Commissioner Optimistic

December 1, 2012 by FSGA

Florida ag commissioner optimistic about future of Florida produce

A Florida Strawberry FieldThe 2012 presidential election did not go the way most Florida farmers would have preferred. The future of the Farm Bill is cloudy and workable immigration reform seems years away. Foreign competition is increasing and the Sunshine State faces challenges ranging from diseases like the citrus-destroying HLB to the ongoing tangle of water-quality restrictions imposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. But Adam Putnam, commissioner of agriculture and consumer services, is optimistic about the future of Florida produce.

“We have an active, progressive group that are leaders for the country, and I’m continually reminded of that when I meet with our colleagues around the country,” Commissioner Putnam said. “The challenges that Florida has and a couple of our brothers and sisters like California, the rest of the country looks to us and says ‘We need to pay attention to what’s going on there because that’s going to be going on in our backyard in two years or five years.’

“Florida agriculture continues to be strong — 300 commodities around the state. Some are having the worst year ever, others are continuing to do very well and are benefiting from the fact that trade flows and demand are continuing to grow. Just to put this in the big picture perspective, in the long run there’s nobody in a better position from a standpoint of job security than people who are in the food business,” Commissioner Putnam said….How do you feed a planet of 9 billion people without extraordinary improvements in yield and productivity that have to be driven by science? At the root of everything we do, we have to continue to embrace science and have policy makers embrace science in order to feed a growing world. We have to have another green revolution to get there. Having policies that allow our country and state to reach our potential is going to be important to global stability because 9 billion hungry people is a recipe for global catastrophe.”

Continue reading at Produce News

Filed Under: Latest News Tagged With: Adam Putnam, commissioner of agriculture, disease, Farm Bill, florida, florida agriculture, immigration, produce

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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.

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

Recent Posts

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The Florida Strawberry Growers Association, a 501(c)5 non-profit organization located in Dover, Florida. · Parent company of the Florida Strawberry Patent Service and the Florida Strawberry Research and Education Foundation. · All Content Copyright ©2016. All rights reserved.