In addition to the large number of farms and agricultural businesses growing the country’s finest berries, there was a creating factory, a fruit processing plant, a canning factory, and a freezing facility producing strawberries for Breyers Ice Cream and other national brands. During the peak of the strawberry business Portland would ship out 30 railroad cars a day. Portland started hosting the Mi
ddle Tennessee Strawberry Festival in 1941, and that tradition continues today. Each year in mid-May the festival brings 40,000+ people together to celebrate the importance of the strawberry industry to Portland’s heritage. Portland has become more industrialized over the past few decades, but we still have several local strawberry farmers who bring strawberries to sell at the Festival & have pick-your-own farms available in the area. We can't predict what the strawberry crop will look like each year as the weather plays a huge factor in the size of the strawberry crop, but our community still celebrates together each May the importance strawberries have on our town's heritage. We hope you will join us this year to celebrate! The Middle Tennessee Strawberry Festival provides an opportunity for people to travel to Portland to enjoy the events, the food, the community and the small-town feel of Portland with family & friends.
