Ocean Spray (cooperative)

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**Ocean Spray**
Type	Agricultural marketing cooperative
Founded	1930
Headquarters	Middleborough, Massachusetts
Products	cranberries, grapefruit
Website	http://www.oceanspray.com/ http://www.oceanspray.ca/

Ocean Spray is an agricultural cooperative of growers of cranberries and grapefruit headquartered in Middleborough/Lakeville, Massachusetts. It currently has 750 member growers (in Massachusetts, Wisconsin, New Jersey, Oregon, Washington, Florida, British Columbia and other parts of Canada). The cooperative employs about 2,000 people, with sales of $1.4 billion in fiscal year 2005. Their products include cranberry sauce, fruit juices, and dried cranberries.

Ocean Spray was formed in 1930, in Hanson, Massachusetts, by three cranberry growers who wanted to expand their market for cranberries. Led by grower Marcus L. Urann, who had perfected a cranberry sauce, the cooperative developed more cranberry-based products. In the same year Ocean Spray became the first producer of cranberry juice drinks with the introduction of Cranberry Juice Cocktail. In 1976, the cooperative expanded its membership to grapefruit growers in Florida.

The cooperative has made a number of innovations, including the first juice blend, the first juice boxes, and sweetened dried cranberries (Craisins).

[edit] Recent History

In June 2004, Ocean Spray members voted down a joint venture of the cooperative’s beverage business with PepsiCo. Pepsi had offered the co-op $100 million, an assumption of debt and fixed prices for cranberry harvests. In July 2006, the cooperative signed a 25-year single-serve (machine-dispensed) juice distribution deal with Pepsi.

In September 2004, Ocean Spray agreed to purchase the processing assets of Northland Cranberry.^[1] This acquisition included a juice production facility in Wisconsin Rapids, WI.^[2]

In June 2006, at the request of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, PETA, Ocean Spray agreed to end its support for animal experiments. Previously, Ocean Spray had funded tests involving infecting mice with H. pylori, bacteria that cause painful stomach ulcers, and then feeding them cranberry juice to see if it had any positive effect. These experiments were supported in order that cranberry juice could be touted as a digestif in Ocean Spray's advertising.