The introduction of new commercial strawberry varieties has raised expectations for an industry turnaround after years of declining production.
Heading into 2026, the California Strawberry Commission projected earlier spring production and marketable fruit volume in April, citing the availability of new commercially available varieties of strawberries from the University of California and private companies. “It’s been all about unseasonably warm temperatures early on. It bumped the season up by two or three weeks,” said Mark Bolda, University of California Cooperative Extension strawberry adviser.
Watsonville-Salinas growers harvested 10 times more strawberries by April 4 than the same period two years ago, according to industry figures. California grows 90% of the nation’s strawberries, with 43,726 total acres this year, the commission projected.
