Strawberries did well in California in 2007, producing 145.9 million 10-pound trays, with more than half -- or 75.8 million trays -- coming from the Pajaro and Salinas valleys, according to the California Strawberry Commission.

Last year, only 138.4 million trays were produced in the state and only 65.4 million of them came from the Pajaro and Salinas valleys, said Peggy Dillon, a spokeswoman with the Strawberry Commission.

"We had a great year," said Dillon. "It's mostly because of the great weather and the fact that we didn't have a freeze like last year. What we said back then came true: That the freeze actually helped build up the root systems, and it made the plants strong and robust."

The statistics provided were for the growing periods between January and Dec. 15. There are 34,500 total acreage in the state that are in strawberry production. The total acreage in the Watsonville/Salinas areas is 12,827.

Most of the strawberries produced in California are sold in the U.S., Canada, Japan, but the majority of the market, roughly 75 percent of it, is domestic, said Dillon.

Dillon said the commission was looking forward to having even a better year in 2008.

The California Strawberry Commission was created by law, the result of a referendum of farmers and handlers in 1993 who agreed to be taxed in return for the publicity of their product. The money raised funds the Strawberry Commission's activities and projects.

Some of the projects include outreach and promoting the fruit through their Web site.