AL SJR85

Declares the Cullman County Strawberry Festival as the official Alabama State Strawberry Festival.

Cullman's sandy, fertile soil became ideal for strawberry cultivation starting in the 1890s, with the 1897 Cullman Tribune reporting strawberries were more profitable than cotton.

The inaugural Cullman Strawberry Festival launched on May 13, 1939, when approximately 22,000 acres of strawberry fields were in production in the county.

The modern festival attracts more than 25,000 attendees from 20 different states and features entertainment, concerts, cooking contests, artisan vendors, a Miss Strawberry Festival pageant, and locally-grown strawberries.

Cullman County maintains a national reputation as one of Alabama's top producers of high-quality strawberries.