Strawberry Letter 37

Kickin off the dark clouds that lay low over this noggin for most of January. This mama was out of commission and in the business of hot water bottles, tiger balm, nyquil and heavy doses of Acetaminophen. In my sickly haze I was not very productive. I couldn’t take time off (are your little violins playing?) and honestly I could not get my act together to do the bare basics never keep up on my blog. (*sniff*)

But the sun is shining again and I am breathing. This pony’s first adventure of course was food shopping. Tuesday, I hit Trader Joe’s with the burst of excitement that can only come after weeks of drudgery. In my shopping splender I passed a beautiful, bright and mountainous end-cap of strawberries. Intrigued, I drew closer. They looked good. The red color was alive. But, what really caught my eye was a small flower bud just under the plastic clamshell lid (learned terminology later). What promise!

I took my little nature pod home and devoured them all over the next few days. Each time the strawberry pile got smaller, my strawberry bud continued to take center stage at the top of the clamshell box. It was not that the strawberries alone wouldn’t make my heart sing, but come on, the small white flower pushed it over on cuteness factor.

Luckily, on the top of the strawberry clamshell box, there was a little bit of info that also gave me a sparkle. It was the number code of the person who picked these particular berries. I wanted to tell the company that it was a genius move to include a little strawberry flower in their strawberry bundles. So I sent them an email and thanked them for the little extra gift. I told them if they didn’t do this on purpose, that they should consider it.

This is what I got back just a few days later.

Dear Sierra,

Thank you for visiting the FreshQC™ website to rate our strawberries.  Consumer feedback is invaluable to us.  The 16-digit FreshQC™ number is tied to the picker, variety, field location, date and exact time of day the flat was picked.  We are able to connect you to our growers and the actual picker that picked your package of produce.  They are able to read your comments providing accountability and continuous improvement for their work.

                                          

I’m so glad you had a great experience with Wish Farms!  I love that there was a strawberry flower in your clamshell – a lot of people don’t realize that’s how strawberries form.   I wish I could say it was done intentionally, but I think that package was meant just for you to find!  They are of the Radiance variety and picked from one of our growing operations in Central Florida.  We are a year round supplier of strawberries – our Florida season kicked off in November and will go through the month of April until our California season picks up!   Be sure to keep letting us know what you think through our FreshQC™ program!

 
Nice to get the response, especially so soon. I have little faith that they will take my advice, but it is good to know some ear heard my little ole comment. Here is to a delightful flower in my strawberry clam shell that gave a hint of sunshine in the midst of dreary winter. Fists to the air; STRAWBERRY FLOWERS FOR EVERYONE!

p.s. a few weeks later, I find this in my next strawberry purchase at T.J.’s, an extra long stem. Ok, maybe I am just easily pleased.?