Berry healthy

HUTCHINSON, Minn. — Stepping inside the on-farm stand at Wright Farms, one can find numerous items that are all grown or made in Minnesota. One of the more unique items is grown right on Wright Farms — Aronia berries.

“We are extremely diversified and are always looking for the little niche things,” said Paul Wright, the farm owner.

Along with their organic Aronia berries and products made with them, the family sells popcorn, direct market beef to the public and small square and mini straw bales to landscape companies.

Wright and his wife, Heather, and their family milk 40 cows in a tiestall barn at their farm near Hutchinson. They raise all their replacements along with replacements for another farm.

The on-farm store was started in 2022.

“The health benefits of Aronia are getting more and more well known as more and more people are looking to be health conscious,” Wright said.

The Wrights sell the berries as frozen berries, juice, gummies and a protein powder. They also feed them to their calves. Wright has also experimented with making Aronia berry ice cream. Each year, the Wrights harvest 40,000-50,000 pounds of berries from their 10-acre orchard.

“We have started putting Aronia berry juice in our calf health program,” Wright said. “When it comes to calf health you do everything you possibly can.”

The Wrights press the juice themselves.

“When you just drink the juice it’s not as potent as the berries straight,” Wright said.

There is a noticeable difference in calf health since they started feeding Aronia berry juice to their calves, Wright said.

Aronia berries contain antioxidants.

“It is one heck of a boost to your immune system,” Wright said. “That’s the biggest reason we feed it to our calves. It seems to be helping as we have very few calf health issues. We probably have the only calves around that can say they are raised on purple milk.”

Wright’s journey to Aronia berry farming started in 2016.

“I came across an article that said Aronia berries are the highest antioxidant berry out there,” Wright said. “So, we thought about it and planted 10 acres for a total of 12,500 plants of berry bushes that summer.”

Besides being full of antioxidants, Aronia berries are anti-inflammatory because of their polyphenols, anthocyanins and flavonoids, Wright said.

“We have some dedicated customers of Aronia,” Wright said.

He said they tell customers to consume one serving of Aronia per day for one or two months and then stop and see what happens.

“Chances are, your knee, back or muscle pain will come back,” Wright said.

Aronia berries are native to the Midwest and, therefore, grow well in central Minnesota.

“Native American cultures were very familiar with the fruit,” Wright said.

Throughout the year, maintenance on the berries is minimal since the plants are perennials. The grass in between the rows of berries is mowed regularly and weeds or small trees are pulled out as needed.

“In February or March, we trim all the bushes down, taking off all the little branches,” Wright said. “They are a very hardy plant.”

The Wrights have installed inground irrigation and spray an organic foliar feeder as fertilizer.

“Prior to harvest, we test the Brix level on a refractometer,” Wright said. “But, if you can give a gentle pull and the berries fall off, they are ready.”

Harvest for the berries is done with a shaker machine that is pulled behind a tractor. “Typically, we have pure berries coming through,” Wright said. “Hardly any leaves or twigs come through the shaker.”

All berries are collected and placed in tubs. Depending on what the berries are going to be used for determines if they will need to go through a de-stemming machine. Berries that are de-stemmed are sent to a facility in Iowa to a certified organic cleaner and are made into powders.

Meanwhile, the remaining berries are washed by the Wrights and are kept in a freezer in Minnesota.

“We have our own walk-in freezer on the farm that we store them in,” Wright said. “We pack that as full of boxes as we can and then we work with a freezer facility in St. Michael to store them. As sales progress we will go up and bring more back to the farm.” 

Wright said a serving of Aronia berries equates to 15-20 berries or 2 ounces of juice. 

“Originally, we liked the uniqueness and the high anti-oxidant food and we are into the niche market so we thought it would be a good fit,” Wright said. “The berries are very common in many European countries.”

There are many ways to utilize Aronia berries and Wright Farms is working with a grower in Iowa to create gummies, soaps, lotions and powders.

“We are working towards becoming the go-to place for Aronia berry products,” Wright said. “There is a big story to tell with Aronia and our little farm store helps us do that. But it takes a continuous effort to do it.”