Innovator's vision could take Saskatoon's to the next level

Source: Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food

A Saskatchewan innovator in the saskatoon sector has come up with another bright idea that could take her industry to the next level.

Sandy Purdy, founder of Prairie Berries Inc. near Keeler, developed the concept of dry-packaging saskatoons by borrowing from the successes other berry markets have enjoyed by making their product available in a dry goods format.

“In gauging the potential that I see for our dried saskatoons, I only have to draw parallels to other fruits in the industry, such as dried cranberries or dried blueberries,” Purdy said.

“Look at the phenomenal growth of cranberries over a five-year period. Outside of being in a bag or can at Thanksgiving time, you never saw them in any other form. Now you see them in muffins and bagels and granola bars, or dried so that consumers can eat them as a snack food,” she added.

“So you look at that kind of growth, and it’s not that we’re inventing anything new. We’re probably just following the pack, just trying to find alternative uses for our saskatoons.”

Purdy received funding from the Advancing Canadian Agriculture and Agri-Food Saskatchewan (ACAAFS) program to cover 50 per cent of the cost in developing her concept into a project for experimentation. Without this kind of assistance from ACAAFS, she says that small businesses like hers probably wouldn’t be able to bring their ideas for innovative food products into reality.

Since receiving the funding, Purdy has been working with the Saskatchewan Food Industry Development Centre in Saskatoon to perfect a drying process for saskatoons first of all, then to test things like shelf life, packaging options, consumer feedback and marketplace stability.

Weight and shelf life are the two main benefits of a dried food product, which should be able to store without any degradation in quality for at least 12 months. Since Purdy’s project began in June 2006, the results of its shelf life tests won’t be known until mid-2007.

If the product development processes and marketability trials are successful, Purdy sees incredible potential for expansion in the province’s saskatoon industry. Should the product take off in the same way as other dried berries, not only would increased demand improve returns on the existing berry supply, but it would also require more saskatoons to be grown overall. At the same time, commercial production facilities would likely be required, delivering a boost to value-added processing in the province.

Working on a dried saskatoon product is just the latest innovation from Purdy. Over the past year, she also began packaging and shipping saskatoons to Germany as a means of testing prospective new European markets. The endeavour proved to be successful. Her German broker has indicated he wants to import the berries again next season.

Purdy says her continual efforts to develop new saskatoon markets are a labour of love. “I have a passion for agriculture and I have a passion for saskatoons, so I see my role as continuing to push the envelope and see what else we can do with these products.”

Ever the visionary, Purdy sees the potential for the berries to play a much greater role in the province’s agricultural sector. “Is it perhaps an alternative crop for Saskatchewan? I think that’s a question we should really think about. If we’re not getting the prices we’d like on wheat, can we make it work with saskatoons?” she asked.

“It’s a native fruit to the province. My goodness, we should be able to do something with it!”
For more information, contact:

Sandy Purdy
Prairie Berries Inc
Phone: (306) 788-2018
E-mail: prairieberries@sasktel.net