Chicago — Cranberries might be a staple on Thanksgiving tables, but a glut of US supplies has gotten so large that fruit could be headed to the compost pile. Just as demand is hitting its seasonal peak, American processors are anxiously awaiting government approval that would allow them to turn excess fruit into fertiliser. The programme would be the first of its kind for cranberries. Supplies have piled up amid bountiful US harvests and a surge in imports. Inventories were large enough to top consumption before farmers even started gathering this year’s crop in September. The overhang prompted growers and processors to vote in favour of the disposal programme at a twice yearly meeting of the Cranberry Marketing Committee in August. The US department of agriculture could rubber-stamp the proposal as early as this week. "The order will allow the industry to get back into supply and demand balance," said Kellyanne Dignan, the director of global co-operative communications at Ocean Spr...
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