[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 129 (Wednesday, July 22, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4428-S4429]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 656--RECOGNIZING THE IMPORTANCE OF THE BLUEBERRY 
 INDUSTRY TO THE UNITED STATES AND DESIGNATING JULY 2020 AS ``NATIONAL 
                           BLUEBERRY MONTH''

  Ms. STABENOW (for herself, Mrs. Murray, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Perdue, Mr. 
King, and Ms. Collins) submitted the following resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary:

                              S. Res. 656

       Whereas the blueberry is a fruit native to North America;
       Whereas blueberries were first--
       (1) managed and harvested as wild blueberries by the native 
     Wabanaki through specialized burning practices that are still 
     used in 2020; and
       (2) used fresh and dried in food and medicines by Native 
     Americans, who introduced blueberries to early colonists, 
     which led to new uses and forms of blueberries, including 
     frozen, establishing traditions still observed in 2020;
       Whereas the pioneering work conducted in New Jersey in the 
     early 1900s by Elizabeth White and Dr. Frederick Coville, a 
     botanist at the Department of Agriculture, to domesticate 
     wild lowbush blueberries resulted in the development of the 
     hybrid for cultivated highbush blueberries;
       Whereas, because of those early efforts, highbush 
     blueberries are large, sweet, juicy berries that can be 
     commercially produced and shipped;
       Whereas wild blueberries--
       (1) are small and sweet; and
       (2) are not planted, but still grow and are harvested where 
     they have naturally occurred for thousands of years;

[[Page S4429]]

       Whereas the blueberry industry in the United States, 
     including both highbush and wild blueberries, is an important 
     agricultural industry with an annual economic impact of 
     $4,700,000,000;
       Whereas highbush and wild blueberries--
       (1) have a total harvested area estimated at more than 
     140,000 acres; and
       (2) are produced in 48 States by more than 15,000 growers 
     and their families;
       Whereas highbush and wild blueberry production in the 
     United States has continually increased, with particular 
     growth during the first 2 decades of the 21st century, 
     reaching a total harvest of 700,000,000 pounds in 2019;
       Whereas blueberries are--
       (1) low in fat; and
       (2) a source of fiber, vitamins, and minerals;
       Whereas blueberries are being studied to examine the role 
     that the berries may play in promoting good health in areas 
     such as cardiovascular health, brain health, exercise, 
     insulin response, and gut health; and
       Whereas blueberries are harvested in the United States from 
     March through early September, with the peak of the harvest 
     occurring in July: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) designates July 2020 as ``National Blueberry Month'';
       (2) recognizes the contributions of blueberry growers in 
     the United States and their families; and
       (3) recognizes that purchasing blueberries grown in the 
     United States supports farmers, jobs, and the economy of the 
     United States.

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