Customer notice at Coles flags major issue with popular buy
A customer notice at a Coles supermarket has flagged a major issue for one of Australia's favourite snacks.
Blueberries are the latest victim of the less-than-ideal weather conditions that have plagued growers of fresh produce for much of 2025.
This has led to blueberry shortages and price hikes in supermarkets across the country.
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Blueberries are the latest victim of less-than-ideal weather conditions. 9Honey
The notice, which appeared at the end of July, read: "In this week's Coles catalogue commencing July 23, we have advertised Australia Blueberries 125g.
"We regret to advise this product is in short supply due to extreme weather activity in the growing region and may be temporarily unavailable.
"We apologise for any inconvenience caused."
A Coles spokesperson further explained the issue to 9honey Kitchen.
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A Coles spokesperson further explained the issue to 9honey Kitchen. 9Honey
While the supermarket expects supply to improve soon, the disruption may last longer than expected. 9Honey
"Due to recent heavy rain that occurred just last week in one of our key growing areas causing some damage to crops and impacting picking schedules, we are seeing a tighter blueberry supply right now," they said.
"The good news for blueberry lovers is that this dip in availability isn't expected to last long and we should see improved supply in the coming weeks.
"In the meantime, we've got no shortage of fresh fruit on offer, with 100 per cent Aussie in-season citrus fruits in strong supply for a Vitamin C boost this winter!
"And while cherries aren't in season locally, we're excited to offer top-quality cherries from the US. They're tasting incredible and we've got plenty to go around."
A 125g punnet of blueberries was selling for $5 at Coles due to the supply issues but this week the price dropped to $4.70. Woolworths is selling blueberries for $4 and at Aldi have them for $3.99.
Woolworths is also struggling to keep up with customer demand due to the shortage.
Woolworths is also struggling to keep up with customer demand due to the shortage. 9honey
A note at the supermarket this week reads: "An Update on Blueberry. Blueberry supply has been impacted due to rain in growing regions.
"We are working with our growers to return supply to normal as soon as possible."
Cosimo Macri, berry category manager at Express Fruit Service at Sydney Markets, told 9honey Kitchen the issue would extend through August, with growing regions from Coffs Harbour to Byron Bay impacted.
"They've just been getting a lot of bad weather, a lot of rain, a lot of overcast days. And blueberries like sun," he said, adding that blueberries "like a bit of heat, like all fruits".
Prices have also been driven up by supply issues. 9Honey
"So it's just knocked them around. They'll get two, three days of good weather, and then they get two, three days of bad weather.
"They'll pick a good bit of fruit for a couple of days, and then they won't go in a pick because it's raining. Because if you pick blueberries and they're still wet, they don't get that bloom in."
Macri said "bloom" was the white powder appearance on blueberries that signalled they were at their peak of flavour and crispness.
"If you pick blueberries and they're wet, they'll be all shiny and that's like it's protection so they won't last as long," he said.
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Cosimo Macri said growing conditions from Coffs Harbour to Byron Bay had been impacted. Getty
Both cost and quality have been affected by the bad weather. 9Honey
While some blueberries come from the Sunshine Coast and a bit further north, these areas did not contribute the numbers needed to satisfy the demand from Aussie shoppers.
"The biggest guy in Coffs Harbour, it's the Oz Group Coop, they're packing about 7000 to 8000 trays a week at the moment. But when they're in full production, they're picking about 350,000 to 400,000 trays a week," Macri says.
He said strawberries were also being impacted, along with "all the berries at the moment".
"So we're getting a lot of second-grade 500g family packs when you're not getting that really beautiful, clean fruit because it's just doing a lot of damage to the strawberries. And blueberries are the same," he added.
Other fruits such as apples and citrus are in abundant supply. 9Honey
"If your blueberries aren't under tunnels, they're just under netting or they're out in the open, the rains just knock them over."
Echoing Coles' spokesperson, Macri pointed to the abundance of mandarins selling for $3 to $4 a kilo as a possible alternative until berry season kicked off properly in the warmer months later this year, from about September.
In the warmer months, farmers' concerns turn to too much heat, which can also negatively impact the quality of berries.
"If it's too hot, it cooks the fruit; if it's too cold, you get the fruit, but it doesn't grow. And then if you get rain or frost or hail ... there's a lot of weather variables in fresh produce.
Macri says strawberries area also being impacted along with "all berries at the moment". 9Honey
Some blueberries come from New Zealand, Queensland and Western Australia, which helps to fill the gap left by the weather issues in NSW, with September, October, and November the best months.
"When they finish towards December, January, you start to look at the southern side out of Victoria and then Tasmania."
Macri said blueberries had increased in popularity in recent years thanks to the number of varieties growing on farms around the country, surpassing even strawberries, particularly for parents feeding young children.
Some blueberries come from New Zealand, Queensland, and Western Australia, which helps to fill the gap. Getty Images/iStockphoto
"You've got to remember with blueberries, there's no stems, there's no seeds, they are pretty portable for families. They can take a punnet to school, put a few in a lunchbox, and eat them straight away."
Macri is one of many fruit and vegetable purveyors in Australia who work with Box Divvy, a social enterprise business that takes fruits and vegetables off the hands of farmers and sells them via various "hubs" around the country.
Families can expect to save up to 30 per cent compared to online supermarket prices.
Box Divvy is offering blueberries for $3.50 a punnet, or 3 punnets for $9 this week.
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Families can expect to save up to 30 percent compared to online supermarket prices. Getty
Box Divvy is offering blueberries for $3.50 per punnet, or 3 punnets for $9 this week. Getty
This week Box Divvy's seasonal produce also includes passionfruit for 75c each, Afourer mandarins for under $3 per kilo or $19.50 for a 9kg box, Cara Cara oranges which are priced at around $2 per kilo or $14 for a 9kg box, new season blood oranges which are a little over $3 a kilo, seedless watermelons for under $10 each, 500g punnets of strawberries from Queensland for under $6, Royal Gala apples for around $3.60 per kg, and even new season Kensington Pride Mangos.
These mangoes have come from Darwin and are just starting their season for $6.50 each.
Mango prices are expected to fall in early October.
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