Alexa now knows her blueberries.

In mid-January, the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council launched a “skill” for the Amazon-created smart speaker that will deliver recipes, tips and other berry-related information upon voice command.

The skill, called A Blueberry Boost, allows Alexa users to ask the device questions about blueberries. Alexa will deliver and direct customers to blueberry.org for more information.

To build the skill, the blueberry council wrote more than 700 unique questions for the smart device, said Jennifer Sparks, the vice president of marketing and communications for the industry trade group based in Folsom, California.

The blueberry council also developed a toolkit, Alexa Skill: A Blueberry Boost Toolkit, for blueberry growers, marketers and others in the industry to promote the skill and otherwise make the most use of it. For more information, go to: ushbc.blueberry.org/all-resources/toolkits-and-marketing-materials/alexa-skill-a-blueberry-boost.

—by Ross Courtney