U.S. Black Chokeberry Farms Doubled in 2013

Last week, we learned about black chokeberry’s return to North America, and about how the United States accounts for “but a fraction of total world output, albeit an increasing one.” A look at the most recent data confirms that black chokeberry farms are increasing, indeed.

The latest numbers in the USDA’s National Organic Program database indicate that, as of this writing, there are 76 certified-organic black chokeberry operations in the United States. That’s nearly double the 40 producers cited in HerbalGram’s black chokeberry profile, which relied on 2012 statistics. And it doesn’t even take into account the farming of non-organic black chokeberry.

Organic black chokeberry production now spans 14 U.S. states-as far west as California and as east as Maine-but a great bulk of these farms (47 to be exact) is in Iowa. It will be interesting to see how yield and price for black chokeberries differ from more popular berries, such as blueberries.

Robby Gardner

Associate Editor

Nutritional Outlook magazine

robby.gardner@ubm.com