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USDA Turns Down Request to Limit Cranberry Production
Wisconsin Ag Connection - 08/21/2014

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has said no to a request by the federal Cranberry Marketing Committee to put a cap on the number of berries each producer can sell in an attempt to raise the value of their products. The panel voted to reduce the total crop by 15 percent during its meeting in February after the 2013 harvest brought in a record six million barrels of production that essentially flooded the market.

Reports say that the ag department cited several reasons for its decision not to get involved in controlling the supply. One of them included possible illegal coordination between the cranberry committee and Canadian growers, who sell many of their berries through the U.S. market. Other USDA officials say they have concerns about disrupting the natural order of supply-and-demand among consumers.

This isn't the first time the committee proposed limiting cranberry production. Similar caps were placed on the berries back in the early 2000s.

Earlier this month, the National Ag Statistics Service forecast the nation's cranberry production for 2014 to be around 57 million barrels. That's down four percent from last year's record, but still high enough to keep the value of the crop below profitable levels for growers.


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