Costa Group grows record-setting blueberry

Costa Group has hit the record books for developing and growing the world’s heaviest blueberry, according to the official Guinness World Records.

The blueberry was picked on 13 November, 2023, at Costa’s berry farm in Corindi, New South Wales, Australia.

Weighing in at 20.40g (0.71oz) and measuring 39.31mm, it was grown by Brad Hocking, Jessica Scalzo and Marie-France Courtois. The previous world record was for a 16.20g berry grown in Western Australia in 2020.

The blueberry was from the Eterna variety, as part of Costa’s Variety Improvement Program (VIP), which licenses Costa bred blueberry varieties in regions including the Americas, Morocco, China, and South Africa.

Costa’s VIP programme is headquartered at Corindi and has been operating for more than 25 years, developing on average one to two new varieties of blueberries of global commercial value each year.

It utilises Costa’s extensive network of farms in mid latitude, low latitude, and low chill to mid-chill locations to select, evaluate and develop new varieties suitable for a range of global growing conditions, meeting both customer and consumer requirements for premium blueberry varieties.

George Jessett, Costa Berries International horticulture manager, said there was a huge amount of confidence and excitement around the new varieties.

“We are always looking to develop new varieties that improve on the current benchmark and meet evolving customer requirements. We are also looking to breed varieties that are more adaptable to hotter climates, are more drought tolerant and with better resistance against pest and disease pressure,” Jessett said.

Senior horticulturalist Brad Hocking said the Eterna variety was known for its large fruit size, crisp texture and long shelf-life.

“Eterna as a variety has a really great flavour and consistently large fruit. When we picked this one, there were probably around 20 other berries of a similar size,” Hocking said.

“This really is a delightful piece of fruit. While the fruit is large, there’s absolutely no compromise on quality or flavour as would be expected when developing a premium variety blueberry.”