Michigan Tart Cherry Processors: Issues and Strategy

Michigan accounts for approximately 70 percent of the total number of tart cherry processing firms in the U.S. Changes in preferences of consumers and increasing participation of global competitors are driving down demand for traditional tart cherry products and imposing new pressures on the U.S. industry, particularly in Michigan. The objective of this report is to document main characteristics of the tart cherry processing industry in Michigan; namely, business characteristics, category of products, supply sources, and market outlets. Also, the study aims to assess business strategies and future expectations for the industry in Michigan. Interviews with managers of tart cherry processing companies were conducted to document the objectives of this research. For the purpose of this project only processing companies that at the time of the interviews reported processing raw tart cherries were contacted. Nineteen firms were selected from the Cherry Marketing Institute 2003 Statistical Handbook (CMI, 2003) and contacted for personal interviews in 2004. The scope of the study allows the results to present an important description of the tart cherry processing industry in Michigan. Moreover, results are useful indicators of where the industry's current position and challenges that participants perceive will be the most important in the future