Moreton Bay’s strawberry season has warmed up in the winter weather with “very good quality products” now predicted.
As the largest strawberry-growing region in Australia, a bumper Moreton Bay harvest is welcomed by farmers, agents, supermarkets and residents.
“We’ve had some good weather heading into the pick of the (strawberry) season,” Queensland Strawberries President Andria Schultz said last month.
“So we’re expecting good quality products to be coming out over the next couple of weeks.”
Moreton Bay has around 20 strawberry farms ranging in size from around five-to-seven million plants to some with 30,000 plants.
Together they need and attract thousands of workers into the region, many for around four-five months, living, spending and boosting the Moreton Bay economy.
Oasis Berries has farms at Elimbah and on Bribie Island Rd. At the latter around 60 staff were harvesting well into the afternoons.
The Bribie Island Rd farm, which went from turf to strawberries around 20 years ago, sends millions of strawberries to AusBerry and then Woolworths, Aldi and Costco.
“Right now the crop is at its best with the colder weather,” CEO Jet Nguyen said, “the fruit has more time to develop in size and is really big.
“If the heat spikes up, like last year, we’ll finish early like September. If it stays colder we can push on towards October.
“But everything depends on the weather. This year was pretty wet at the start but it has backed off now and we’re picking a lot.”
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The weather has made 2026 a “challenging year”, says Adrian Schultz. “We’ve had less rain than last year, but consistent grey days aren’t great for strawberry production.
“Now though things are ramping up. Different farms, obviously, are in different stages, but this is certainly when they get very, very busy.
“And the more strawberries on the market …. you see the prices come back.”
Oasis Berries plans to start pick-your-own in the September school holidays.
