Some blueberry fields stretch as far as the eye can see. Cultivated blueberry bushes can grow as high as 12 feet tall. How much taller is that than your height?

Blueberries grow in clusters on bushes.            

Each blueberry grows from a different white blossom on the bush. Blossoms must be pollinated by bees. Blueberry growers can tell how good their crop will be by counting the blossoms.

The fresh blueberry harvest is mainly done by hand. It is hard work, but the pickers are experts and work very quickly.

Blueberries are also picked by big machines called harvesters that move slowly along the rows of blueberry bushes, gently shaking off the ripe berries. Most machine-harvested blueberries are frozen.

The blueberries are sprayed with cool water to remove any dirt or insects that may have been carried with them from the field.

The blueberries are sorted; the bruised and unripe ones are removed. Only plump, beautiful berries are allowed to pass the inspection point.

Fresh blueberries are placed in clear plastic containers called "clam shell" containers. Most of them hold 1 pint (2 cups) of blueberries but you can find containers that are larger and smaller. Why do you think they call them clamshells?

Labels are placed on each container by machine. The label has lots of good information on it. What kind of information do you think a food label should have?

The containers are placed in cardboard boxes and stored in large refrigerated rooms, then loaded onto big trucks that take the blueberries to market.