Record High Temperatures Produce Early Vidalia Onion Crop for Bland Farms

REIDSVILLE, GA – With help from south Georgia’s unusually high temperatures this winter, Bland Farms is expecting an early Vidalia® onion crop for 2017.

As Vidalia onion seeds only mature during winter where the short days are also mild, according the Vidalia® Onion Committee, Bland Farms is undoubtedly eager for this year’s yield.

“Weather conditions have been excellent,” says Troy Bland. “We are excited that we will not only be able to harvest the Vidalia onions when Mother Nature allows, but that we also have the ability to maintain their quality within our controlled atmosphere rooms.”

To help further insure quality and consistency across the board is Bland Farms’ 8-line Ellisam® Gran Torino. Making its debut into Bland Farms’ infrastructure last year, the Gran Torino has entirely transformed production in their packing facility.

It allows for unprecedented quality control by taking 20 pictures per onion, 10 per second, and then grading them by weight, size, color and external appearance, exponentially improving the efficiency of our processes, Troy Bland explained.

Combining the capabilities of the Ellisam® Gran Torino with near-ideal winter weather, Bland Farms believes they are looking at harvesting one of their best Vidalia onion crops to-date.

In addition to their excitement for Vidalia season, Bland Farms is also enthusiastic about new cross-promotional offers for 2017.

As Vidalia Brands, a sister company with Bland Farms that develops snacks and condiments, will be unveiling both a new all-natural dressing line and a Vidalia sweet onion ring line, the opportunities are endless.