Published August 31, 2007 1:08 am

Berry picking on the rise

Illegal harvest very common

BY J.D. GALLOP
FLORIDA TODAY

PALM BAY - During the past month the men -- mostly migrant workers -- have been seen stepping gingerly through thick palmetto patches, carrying bags and searching for an olive-shaped berry touted for its medicinal value.

Experts said it's saw palmetto season, a time when migrant workers roam overgrown lots and sometimes private property hoping to cash in on the high demand for the wild, Florida-grown crop many think can help with prostate problems.

The ripe red or orange berries -- with a history dating back to the time when Seminole Indians ate them for survival -- sell for $1 to $2 a pound, depending on the quality of the harvest and demand, experts say.

Last week, reports of berry pickers on private property led to the arrests of 15 illegal immigrants spotted sorting through an open field next to a Bob Evans restaurant on Palm Bay Road.

"The only thing we could determine is that they were hired to do that, but we don't know by who," said Cmdr. Steve Wilkinson of the West Melbourne Police Department.

The men, mostly Mexican nationals, were reported to federal immigration officials. There have been other sightings of berry pickers in Palm Bay.

The Palmetto berries grow mostly in Florida and can be found in backyards, parks or overgrown lots.

The herbal extract is taken from the fatty oil of the berry.

"There's a good market for the berries, especially as baby boomers get older," said Mark Blumenthal, founder of the Austin-based American Botanical Council, which specializes in herbal remedy awareness. "But here's the deal, palmetto production is actually down this year, increasing the price. With that, you have an incentive for people to poach on property."

The problems of poaching are more pronounced in the state's more rural areas.

In the Ocala National Forest the migrants pick the berries from the forest floor, often leaving little for black bears and other animals to forage, officials say.

The U.S. Forest Service issues permits to palmetto berry harvesters to avoid over gleaning, said Capt. Gregg Eason of the Florida Wildlife Commission.

"If they don't have a permit, then we seize the palmetto berries, go back out and spread them on the ground. Nine times out of 10 the people involved are illegal aliens," Eason said.

The migrants who pick the berries -- or the people who hire them -- take the berries to buying stations across South Florida.

From there, the workers get their money, said Sid Hulse, a spokesman for Valensa International, a processing company.

"You'd have to eat a lot of berries to get the daily benefit, that's why we extract the fatty oil where the beneficial compounds are found," Hulse said. Hulse also said anyone with palmetto berries on their property can bring them in if they fit the standard for ripeness.

"It's recognized as a wild crop," Hulse said.

"If someone comes on your property and picks your berries, they're stealing from you."

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