Show Notes
In this episode of “The Business of Blueberries,” Kasey Cronquist, president of the U.S. Highbush Council (USHBC) and the North American Blueberry Council, is joined by Ben Escoe, president and CEO of Twin River Berries. Twin River is a vertically integrated berry company built on a foundation of family farming and global reach. Escoe leads a network of U.S. farms and partners across Mexico, Chile and Peru, working to ensure year-round availability of high-quality blueberries, raspberries and blackberries. He was first introduced to agriculture when his father started a small organic berry operation while Escoe was studying finance in college. He recognized through that experience that “farming requires a lot of innovation” and quickly developed a passion for blueberry production. “ Success starts with our farms and with our growers. When farms succeed, we succeed. Everybody in the supply chain succeeds. … It's not all about just operating for the sake of profits. It's about building an ecosystem that works for everybody involved in genetics and markets and supply chain. Those are all tools that feed that ecosystem, and if you can make the whole system thrive, then we feel that's when you've really built something lasting.” – Ben Escoe
Topics covered include: An introduction to Escoe. The beginnings and evolution of Twin River Berries and how the company has grown and expanded over time. The opportunity the variety Peachy Blue is providing to the blueberry industry.
Crop Report The Blueberry Crop Report is an update on crop conditions and markets throughout important blueberry growing areas. You’ll hear from Luis Vegas in Peru and Mario Ramirez in Mexico. This was recorded on October 23, 2025.
More from The Business of Blueberries
In this episode of “The Business of Blueberries,” Kasey Cronquist, president of the U.S. Highbush Council (USHBC) and the North American Blueberry Council (NABC), is joined by Luke Lindberg, the former USDA's Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs, who’s now serving as executive director of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). In his role with USDA, Lindberg worked alongside Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins to expand market access, strengthen American agriculture's competitiveness and reduce our nation's agricultural trade deficit. Cronquist and Lindberg have traveled together on USDA agricultural trade missions to Mexico, Australia and New Zealand. “I've been really fortunate to be able to, in this position, represent what I think is one of been the most fun constituents to ever work with, which is America's farmers and ranchers and growers all around the country.” – Luke Lindberg Topics covered include: An introduction to Lindberg and his efforts at USDA. The impact of U.S. trade negotiations and agreements, and how they directly affect American farmers. The connections between food security and national security.
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In this special episode of “The Business of Blueberries,” Kasey Cronquist, president of the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council (USHBC) and the North American Blueberry Council (NABC), delivers a keynote on why industry progress comes from people working together, and shares USHBC’s role in growing the entire blueberry category. Cronquist outlines the need to balance a 148% supply increase over 15 years with demand growth through health research, advertising, data and market development, emphasizing “a home for every berry” across fresh and frozen, and new usage occasions.
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In this episode of “The Business of Blueberries,” Kasey Cronquist, president of the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council (USHBC) and the North American Blueberry Council (NABC), , is joined by VentureFuel Founder and CEO Fred Schonenberg. VentureFuel is an innovation advisory firm that helps major brands, such as Netflix and General Mills, unlock growth through startup collaborations. The USHBC partnered with VentureFuel last year to launch the Blueberry Boost Accelerator, a first-of-its-kind program supporting emerging brands using blueberries as a prominent ingredient. Schonenberg reflects on the first year of the program, and builds anticipation for the second accelerator cohort and live pitch competition that will take place at The 2026 Blueberry Convention.