10/28/2026
We are proud to introduce Fresh Meadows Farm - our newest organic cranberry producer and a fifth-generation Black-owned farm in Carver, MA.
Fresh Meadows has an especially deep connection to the cranberry dry harvest in Massachusetts. As they tell it: "Cranberries, one of three native North American fruits, were handpicked by Native Americans and the early settlers for centuries. With the escalation of commercial production during the latter part of the 19th century and early part of the 20th century, came an increasing demand for migrant labor. These opportunities played a large role in shaping the early geographical patterns of the Cape Verdean emigration. The ancestral heritage of Fresh Meadows Farm is directly tied to the labor demands created by this rapidly expanding cranberry industry, (more specifically the cranberry dry harvest!)"
Dom Fernandes’ grandfather John Alves was one of those workers. A first-generation Cape Verdean immigrant, he began constructing the Fresh Meadows cranberry bogs in 1945. Dom now farms that same land using traditional dry-harvesting techniques and growing heirloom varieties: Early Black and Howe. Unlike the bulk wet-harvested cranberries used for processing, Fresh Meadows harvests incrementally to deliver the cranberries at their peak.
As Dom puts it: Cape Verdeans grew this industry in Massachusetts and Fresh Meadows is keeping the tradition going. Find their fresh cranberries on the list now!