| For more than 20 years the Hurst family business has provided customers with premium-quality fresh berries. Today we are the leading fresh-berry shipper in the Northwest, delivering fresh, ripe berries throughout the year. We are committed to food safety, strong relationships with our growers and keeping our promises to our customers. |
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Mark and Patty Hurst founded Hurst’s Berry Farm in Sheridan, Oregon, in 1980
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Our mission statement is “Leadership, loyalty and excellence in berries from farm to market.” This is both a long-term vision and a daily practice that guides how we partner with growers and market their fresh berries throughout the world. Living up to this mission would not be possible without the dedication of our employees, growers, vendors and, of course, our faithful customers.
Hurst’s Berry Farm recognizes how fast the fresh berry industry is changing. We have worked very hard to be leaders and activists during these exciting times. We are actively involved in the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council, North American Blueberry Council and Oregon Blueberry Commission, working to promote blueberries and strengthen the industry.
Mark Hurst has been instrumental in the establishment and development of these three organizations. He was the chair of the Oregon Blueberry Commission for eight years in the 1990s, then president of the North American Blueberry Council for two years and the first chairman the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council from 2000 to 2007.
Today, other members of the Hurst’s Berry Farm team, including Farm Manager Derek Peacock and Director of Export Sales Doug Perkins, serve on the blueberry commissions and councils. The blueberry industry is unique in that our leaders work together to build and strengthen the industry. Hurst’s Berry Farm is proud to be a leader participating in this growth.
Since founding the company in the early 1980s, Mark Hurst has been a grower advocate. Our business model recognizes that every step of the supply chain must be profitable in order to maintain market health and sustain growth. Many of our core growers in the Willamette Valley have been with Hurst’s Berry Farm for nearly 25 years. As we grow our company, we wish to build and sustain relationships with companies that share our core values and understand that loyalty and partnerships are critical to long-term success.
It is often said that sales and marketing plans get customers to buy, and quality keeps them buying. Hurst’s Berry Farm has made quality a top priority in our operations. As we continue to expand our marketing program, we will work closely with our suppliers to maintain excellence in quality.
Hurst’s Berry Farm offers a wider selection of fresh berries than any other major berry shipper. Buyers throughout the world recognize Hurst’s Berry Farm as the year-round source for fresh berries, including blueberries, raspberries, blackberries and more. (Check our Products page for information on what’s available now.)
To provide fresh berries throughout the year, we grow several different varieties that ripen at different times on our farms in Oregon, Washington, California and Mexico, and we source additional berries from our grower-partners in Canada and South America.
Food safety has been at the center of discussions involving fresh produce. Hurst’s is working closely with all of our growers and packers to ensure compliance with food safety standards. We also review our procedures regularly and update them as necessary.
With an ever-expanding product line, we are constantly on the lookout for new varieties and types of fresh berries. If we can’t get the quality we need from the existing varieties, we will often experiment with other varieties. And if we can’t get the quality we need from existing suppliers . . . we grow it ourselves.
The newest addition to our product line, the kiwi berry, is one of the most exciting new fruits to come into the produce department in a long time. These miniature kiwi fruits are now being grown here on the farm.
Hurst’s commitment to excellence extends to the packing room, where only the highest quality berries are carefully packed. Fresh berries coming in from the fields are cooled in state-of-the-art vacuum cooling facilities. This ensures that Hurst’s customers receive firmer, higher quality berries with an extended shelf life. Quality inspection through every step of the packing process means none but the best berries make it into a Hurst’s package.
We have been a leader in new package design and intend to carry that leadership into the future. We work closely with packaging vendors to incorporate the latest innovations into our packaging. In 1991 it became clear that the plastic clamshell with its improved ventilation and recycled material was essential to maintaining a premium package.
Today, all berries we ship are packed in clamshells. To meet customers’ demands we now offer multiple sizes of clamshells, depending on the product. As an example, our blueberries can be packed in five-pound, two-pound, pint and half-pint sized clamshells. And, of course, we can custom pack to meet your specific needs.
Customers rely on Hurst’s for on-time deliveries. We work with several transportation companies whose core focus is the handling and transportation of fresh fruit. Their air-freight containers are insulated and filled with gel-ice packs to maintain the berries’ freshness. You can count on Hurst’s Berry Farm for products that arrive fresh, cool and on time.
It was 1980 when Mark and Patty Hurst first laid eyes on a small berry farm in Sheridan, Oregon. Mark, the son of a Northern California apple grower, and his wife were determined to find a positive environment in which to raise their family and make a living at the same time. Berries seemed to be the perfect match because they did not require a lot of land, just hard work and attention to detail.
That 3-1/2 acre farm became the foundation for what is today the largest shipper of fresh berries in the Northwest. For the next four years the Hursts would build the fledgling business, harvesting, loading and driving the berries south to San Francisco Bay Area markets three times a week in a 1968 Ford Econoline van carrying 300 flats per trip.
In 1984 the Hursts formed a partnership with Patty’s sister Debbie and her husband Dan Caldwell, which allowed us to expand our facility and increase our volume. When demand was higher than we could supply, we began purchasing and packing berries from other Oregon growers. With this new infusion of capital and our commitment to excellence, Hurst’s Berry Farm was gaining a reputation for top-quality products and service.
In 1998 we leased some land in Mexico and began growing berries there to lengthen the season of availability. We now farm in Michoacan, Jalisco and Colima, Mexico, where we grow red raspberries, blackberries and blueberries to provide a continuous supply of fresh, ripe berries year round. Our philosophy is to have ownership of every process from the farm to the grocery store and to constantly look for ways to better serve our customers.
Today, Owners Mark and Patty Hurst, farm in both Oregon and Mexico and ship and pack for some of Oregon¹s top berry growers. We also have a branch office in California, bringing us blueberries in the spring and early summer.
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