Situated in California’s fertile San Joaquin County, Morada Produce has built a strong reputation as a reliable packer and shipper of cherries.

“Cherries are a major part of our overall business,” said Mike Jameson, director of marketing, who has been involved in the cherry industry since the late 1980s. “In a good year, we’ll pack just over 2 million boxes, and that puts us right in the mix with the top handlers in California.”

The 2026 California cherry season is shaping up to offer an early and potentially strong start. Stemilt Growers expressed optimism about the timing, volume and quality of this season’s fruit. While harvest potential is still developing, the indication points to a crop that slightly surpasses last year, due to favorable weather and strong bloom conditions.

Honeybear Brands is shipping cherries from Chile to meet the holiday and winter shopping demand for the popular fruit.

Sun World International and Pairwise formed a joint venture to collaborate in specialty fruit, beginning with the development of a pitless cherry. Sun World will have exclusive commercial rights to these genetics as they seek a first-to-market position in high-quality pitless cherries. The partnership leverages Sun World’s fruit breeding and licensing expertise with Pairwise’s Fulcrum platform. As part of the agreement, Sun World will make strategic investments to fund development. 

Farmland LP and Stemilt Growers announced a joint venture to expand organic apple and cherry production in Washington’s Columbia Basin.

Stemilt’s picking buckets will soon be full of premium, high-elevation cherries from now until mid-September. A Half Mile Closer to the Moon cherries are available in late summer to offer retailers a grand finale opportunity to drive cherry sales through the end of the season. Stemilt Marketing Director Brianna Shales said volumes were down last season due to record-low temperatures during winter, but 2025 has bounced back with late-season Moon cherry supplies worthy of celebration and promotion until the end.