WAREHAM – The 2017 cranberry harvest in Massachusetts is underway and there are a number of local events to celebrate the season.
The annual Harvest Celebration will be held this weekend at A.D. Makepeace in Wareham and the Nantucket Conservation Foundation is holding their 14th annual Cranberry Festival on Saturday.
The forecast for this year’s harvest is expected to fall slightly from last year, due to the wet and cool early summer.
The Cape Cod Cranberry Growers Association is predicting a yield of 2.2 million barrels, which is down 4 percent from 2016.
Association Executive Director Brian Wick said that customers won’t notice any impacts.
“There’s no concerns there, there will be plenty of fruit, there will be plenty of products with cranberries, so there’s not going to be any impact on that side of the business,” said Wick.
“Certainly from our perspective we want to make sure our growers are able to achieve as much yield as possible for their farms.”
The holiday weekend is the signature time of the year for cranberry harvest that draws a number of Cape Codders and tourists.
There is a section about visiting a bog on cranberries.org and many growers in the area are offering tours, in case people are not able to make it to the festivals.
Wick said people come from all over the world to see this harvest.
“It’s so unique and so iconic to Cape Cod to Massachusetts and Cape Cod that it’s really something that no one should take for granted and I don’t think anybody does,” said Wick.
By JUSTIN SAUNDERS, CapeCod.com Newscenter