"The popularity of this fruit has grown a lot. We have many Italian clients who purchase plants for rather limited areas. Producers are rather small, we often sell plants to farmhouses that use them for their restaurant businesses. This is also because it's not easy to grow blueberries," explains Paolo Zanzi from Vivai F.lli Zanzi.
Eastern Europe requires much higher quantities. The most popular varieties are Duke and Blue Crop. "They are usually produced in Trentino, the Apls, Calabria and the Apennines."
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Cesare Pasello from Varese grows 2000 plants of giant blueberries and production in 2017 was very good. "Quality, quantities and prices were excellent. I believe the secret is to have the right soil (slightly acid) and exposure. I only used drip irrigation in the evening and early morning."
The company sells through private structures and owns a refrigerated storage unit to start the cold chain right after harvesting.