Blueberries blooming and booming; California gets on the bandwagon

We're big fans of blueberries here at The Rural Blog — for their taste, their nutritional value and their economic potential for rural areas. And across the nation, more farmers are turning to this profitable produce.

Last year, American farms grew 80 percent more berries than in 2004, the Los Angeles Times reports. That jump came from a 19 percent jump in total acres planted over the past two years, and it helped bring in $498 million in total sales in 2006. California, the nation's largest agricultural state, is joining the bandwagon, producing a record $33 million in sales last year, writes Jerry Hirsch. California farmers enjoy an earlier harvest than producers in the Midwest and Northeast, so they can reap more profits.

Kathy Hoy, a nutritionist at the Produce for Better Health Foundation in Wilmington, Del., called blueberries a "superfood" that may help prevent heart and urinary tract diseases and stop memory loss. There's not clearcut evidence that says blueberries definitely can do all that, but farmers are realizing the crop is worth trying. (Read more)