The Fruit Growers News - December 2000

After all the talk of value-added products and the healthy attributes of fruits, Bob Underwood has sprung into action and created the first cherry and blueberry health supplements to hit the market.

With 40 years as cherry growers, including 25 years of operating a retail farm market in Traverse City, Mich., Underwood and his wife Janet have turned to the new arena of nutriceuticals.

Cherry Rich and Blueberry Rich with the Underwood Fruit label are new dietary supplements using the whole fruit - Michigan red tart cherries and wild Maine-grown blueberries. Underwood registered the trademarks for the products that became available to consumers in October after two years of trial and error to find the right formula and manufacturers. For their new venture, the Underwoods moved to a new office on Garfield Road, a busy thoroughfare in Traverse City.

“We’re making it very clear that it is not our goal to solve the cherry industry’s problems. My interest and my goal is to provide the fruit in a convenient and easy way to consumers,” Underwood said. “If we can do this and it catches on it will use fruit,” he added.

In order to make use of the healthful benefits of cherries and blueberries, Underwood researched the best way to take juice and convert it into powder. He never found a way to do this successfully, so the Underwoods looked at ways to take the whole fruit and convert it into a tablet form.

The process takes the whole fruit, minus the pits in cherries, and dehydrates it to convert into tablet and wafer form. Retained are the natural antioxidants, vitamins and minerals found in the fresh fruit. No preservatives are used.

The first phase of the process is done by Van Drunen Farms in Illinois, a company with a manufacturing facility and enough laboratories and staff to work on the project, according to Underwood. Van Drunen Farm takes the quick-frozen fruit that has been dehydrated and converts it into a powder. The powder is formed into tablets and wafers and it is then packaged in colorful red and blue bottles by Shara Labs of Watoma, Wis.

The Underwoods’ venture into nutriceuticals is not associated with research being done by the Amway Corporation, the global direct marketing company, based in Ada, Mich. The company entered into a licensing agreement this year with Michigan State University. Amway is essentially renting the patents from cherry research done by Muraleedharan Nair, professor of horticulture, and expected to use the research to develop a product or products from cherries, possibly in pill form.

Four of Underwood’s chewable cherry wafers or tablets equal 20 fresh tart cherries. Research is finding that tart cherries may be beneficial in protecting against, cancer, heart disease and other illnesses and may relieve pain and help arthritis and gout sufferers. Wild blueberry research shows high levels of anthocyanins, the natural substances that give blueberries their antioxidant power believed to fight aging, cancer, heart disease and urinary tract infections and promote healthy vision.

The Underwoods know from personal accounts of the health benefits of fruit. Their son-in-law, a furniture refinisher, suffers from stiffness in his hands and has found relief by taking the cherry tablets. Others have suggested that the chewable wafers are a way for kids to obtain their daily fruit requirement, with today’s busy lifestyles.

The Underwoods attended a national dietary supplement convention in Baltimore, Md. and were the only exhibitors out of 1,800 booths with a cherry or blueberry tablet. They attracted the attention of other countries including representatives from Iceland, Scandinavian countries, Puerto Rico, Japan, Hong Kong, Korea and Israel. They plan on taking part in the Natural Products Expo in Anaheim, Calif. in March.

“He’s done a great job with it. He’s put in a lot of time and effort to bring it together,” said Phil Korson, president of the Cherry Marketing Institute about Underwood’s new products.

“We’ll take every new sale we can get. We really see the opportunity with nutraceutical-type applications. We’re pretty excited about it,” Korson said.

The blueberry and cherry products are currently only available directly from the Underwoods through by writing to P.O. Box 6633, Traverse City, MI 49696, by calling toll-free at (888) 947-4047, by faxing (888) 947-3829 or by visiting www.underwood fruit.org.

The product will also be available to farm market and farm retail operations. Cherry Rich and Blueberry Rich are available in 60-count bottles of tablets and chewable wafers for $16.50 or $28.50 for a 120-count bottle.

The Underwoods feel a loyalty to cherry growers, family and friends and made sure they knew about the Blueberry Rich and Cherry Rich supplements first. In mid-October they sent a letter to 1,000 of their friends, family and associates so they heard the news before it was released to the media.

“As we creep out on this limb in the entrepreneurial spirit, it is our wish to let you know of our products and plans. Underwood Fruit shares the cherry growing community’s belief in the importance of developing innovative products and exploring new markets,” part of the letter stated.

For the past few months, Dee Smith has been working for the Underwoods as a marketing consultant, helping them navigate the media and public relations waters. The first week an article was published in the Traverse City Record Eagle (the local daily newspaper) and they were interviewed for local television. They hope to attract the attention of state and national media.
Underwood is a well-known name in the fruit growing industry. He is considered the “father” of the Northwest Michigan Research Station in Suttons Bay and has an office complex there named in his honor. He and his wife, Janet bought 203 acres of orchard in 1963 and soon acquired an additional 40 acres. This was the beginning of Underwood Farm, which expanded again in 1973 with the purchases of 115 acres for tart cherries and apples on East Long Lake Road just southwest of Traverse City. The Underwoods operated the Underwood Farm Market on Center Road for 25 years and processed tart cherries for 13 years.

Underwood has also helped promote the National Cherry Festival. He served on the National Cherry Festival Board of Directors for 13 years as well as the Michigan Cherry Committee, on the executive committee of the Michigan State Horticultural Society and as an officer on the Northwest Michigan Horticultural Research Foundation.

The Underwoods made the decision to close their farm market in 1994 partly because their three adult children are involved in other businesses and weren’t interested in taking it on. They produced a million pounds of tart red cherries during their final 2000 season as growers.

“I wasn’t ready to get in the big rocking chair and sit there,” said Underwood about his latest venture in nutraceuticals.