Highlights From 2012 Great Lakes Expo
December 18, 2012 
One of the highlights of the Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable & Farm Market Expo, held in Grand Rapids, MI, in December, was the presentation of scholarships to several students who are earning their degrees, at various levels, in different horticulture fields. The scholarships are presented by the Michigan State Horticultural Society and the Michigan Vegetable Council and are sponsored by several companies and organizations, including American/Western Fruit Grower.
Here is a brief look at this year’s scholarship recipients, most of whom are student at Michigan State University.
• Srdan Acimovic is currently working on his Ph.D. in plant pathology and will graduate in 2014. His goal is to provide fruit growers with the means and technology for safer and healthier fruit production. He will be seeking a research oriented position in the tree injection industry oriented towards tree-based agriculture.
• Elise Carolan is in the third year of a four-year program in horticulture with a minor in entomology. She is interested in pest management studies in the plant pathology or entomology areas. She plans to continue her education with graduate school in the hopes of becoming a professor or Extension agent.
• Kasey Clemens will graduate in May 2014, with a Masters degree in plant pathology. She has been actively involved in Dr. Annemiek Schilder’s small fruit pathology lab. Her work at the lab focused on cane and twig blight disease and Phomopsis vaccinii with blueberries. In the future she would like to use this research to improve production strategies of horticultural crops.
• Clemon Dabney III is pursuing a Masters degree at the University of Minnesota in applied plant science with an emphasis on plant breeding and molecular genetics. Clemon is a research assistant in the potato breeding program at the University of Minnesota. He plans to eventually earn a Ph.D. degree and become a university researcher and instructor.
• Ryann Gustafson is a food science major with an interest in food safety/toxicology. She works in Dr. Mary Hausbeck’s plant pathology lab at MSU. Ryann aspires to work for a food processor within the industry. Funding for Ryann’s scholarship was provided by gifts received by the Michigan Vegetable Council in memory of Joe Oomen.
• Krista Janeschek will graduate in 2014 with a B.S. degree in crop and soil science. She has been actively involved in the MSU Student Organic Farm. She also interned as a crop scout for Wilbur-Ellis Co.. She is interested in the tree fruit industry and working alongside farmers and farmer–supply representantives to perform or be indirectly related to tree fruit research.
• Ashley Leach will be graduating in May with a Bachelor’s in entomology and an interest in sustainable agriculture. She has worked to trap the spotted wing drosophila and evaluated native pollination in blueberry crops. Ashley would also like to get a Master’s degree in agricultural science.
• William Lindberg is pursuing a Masters in horticulture with plans to graduate in May 2013. His area of interest is blueberry production. He is gaining expertise in blueberry production and quality while growing up on a blueberry farm. He is looking to open his own business while focusing on providing fresh and local fruits to the residents of west Michigan.
• Richard McNally is working on his Ph.D. in plant pathology and plans to graduate in May 2013. His area of interest is fire blight. As an aspiring scientist he has actively sought to communicate his work with seminars and posters. As a developing plant pathologist he hopes to use his expertise in plant biology and plant disease to help the agricultural community produce healthy and affordable fruits and vegetables.
• Tara Oomen is majoring in agribusiness management with a minor in agronomy. During the past two summers, Tara gained experience as a field scout for Wilbur Ellis Co. in west central Michigan and as a field representative for Helena Chemical Co. in Martin, OH. She has also worked in Dr. Mary Hausbeck’s plant pathology lab. Tara plans to either return to the family farm or work in the industry in an ag-related position.
• Kyle Totzke is working on a major in horticultural science and plans to graduate in May 2014. His area of interest is viticulture and enology. He would like to pursue a career in winegrape production and wine making. Kyle will be involved in an internship in Europe to grasp a better knowledge of winegrape production.
• Timothy Vinke will be graduating in the spring with a degree in agribusiness management, specializing in sustainable agriculture and food systems. He has worked in Dr. Dan Brainard’s sustainable vegetable production lab at MSU. He plans to return to the family farm in Shelby, MI.
• Aaron Yoder is working on a Ph.D. degree in horticulture focused on alternative management practices in vegetable cropping systems that might reduce inputs and improve soil quality. Aaron intends to pursue a career as a university or industry researcher related to his interest in vegetable crop production.
Jordan B. Tatter Scholarships
In December 2003, the Michigan State Horticultural Society and the Michigan Vegetable Council announced their intention to initiate a scholarship fund in the memory of Jordan Tatter, a long-time professor at MSU. Each organization committed $5,000 to start this fund that is endowed at Michigan State University. The earnings are used to provide scholarships for deserving students pursuing careers in the fruit and vegetable industry. Including this year, a total of $38,000 in scholarships has been awarded.
• Devon Rossman is working on his Bachelor’s degree in horticulture with an interest in sustainable agriculture for value-added crops. After graduation he is considering going into research, agribusiness, Extension, and possibly returning to the family farm.
• Rebekah Faivor is a Master’s degree student in horticulture with research on low tunnels and their benefits for farmers. Her research concentrated on the earliness factor of both planting date and harvest date. Rebekah would like to use the techniques and research methods to one day own and run her own vegetable farm.
For details on this year’s cider contest winners, and other awards, go to the next page.
Cider Contest, Distinguished Service Awards
In the 16th annual Michigan cider contest, Jim and Beck Engelsma of Engelsma’s Apple Barn Cider Mill in Walker, MI, took home the first-place prize, followed close behind by Plymouth Orchards and Cider Mill and Hy’s Cider Mill, which came in second and third place, respectively. Despite a year in which nearly a third of Michigan’s 120 cider mills did not press cider this year, due to the short apple crop, there were still 23 entries in this year’s competition. Judging took place with the help of nine judges who went through three rounds of evaluations.
The Michigan State Horticultural Society also presented two Distinguished Service Awards during the event.
• Al and Joe Dietrich: In 1853, the Dietrich family settled 80 acres in Conklin, MI. 159 years later, Joe and Al are the fifth generation to own the now 1,000-acre farm in partnership with their sons, Ryan and Daniel, each of whom are looking forward to keeping up the tradition of the family farm.
The Dietrich family farm began as a traditional farm and gradually transitioned to a fruit farm. In 1928, after returning from a trip to California, Aloys Dietrich built one of the first fruit graders in the Ridge area. He hand-lathed fence posts to make the pulleys. In the 1930s, with the success of his grader, Aloys started to plant more orchards. In the 1950s, his sons Ray and Leo joined their father with the success of growing apples. They purchased their first commercial grader in 1955. A larger apple grader was installed in the 1970s. As the farm grew, more properties were added and a new packing facility was constructed, and a four-lane grader was purchased in 2004. The family built a CA apple storage facility in 1969. They now have the capacity to store 800,000 bushels of apples each year. Riveridge Produce brokers the farm’s apple crop.
Joe and his wife Kathy have three children. He is currently on the board of MACMA Apple committee, and a director of Cherry Growers Inc. Kathy manages the accounts payable and works as a dental hygienist. Their son Ryan graduated from Michigan State University and is now a partner on the farm as the sixth generation. Joe serves on the pastoral council and Kathy is a member of the finance council at St. Joseph Church.
Al and his wife Helen have six children and three grandchildren. Al is a past president of MACMA Apple committee. He served on the Michigan Apple Committee and is a member of USApple. Helen chairs the Farm Bureau Ag Labor Committee, and she represents migrant workers on several committees and is a minority advisor to the Ottawa County Farm Service Agency board. Helen manages payroll for the farm. Son Daniel, wife Ashley, and children are the sixth and seventh generations on the farm.
• Earl Peterson, Peterson Farms: Leroy Peterson’s son Earl was born on the family fruit farm. He was taught the values of hard work and selling the product you raised. After high school graduation in 1965, Earl left the farm and went on to college. He received his Bachelor of Arts in 1969 and a Masters from Central Michigan in 1979. During this time he met his wife Linda and they both were teaching at Hart Public Schools.
In 1971, he and Linda purchased their first farm as a summer time occupation. Eventually, he left his principal’s job at Hart Public Schools in 1979, to farm full time. The Peterson family is now farming more than 2,500 acres consisting mainly of tart cherries and peaches.
A major transition took place in 1984 when Earl started processing fruit for his farm and local growers. The family business, Peterson Farms, now has three processing facilities in Oceana County. The crops they process are tart cherries, apples, sweet cherries, blueberries, peaches, juice, concentrate, and others.
Because of the growth of the business, other companies have been started by the Peterson family, including Cherry Technologies Inc. and Oceana County Freezer Storage Inc. They also have a pol bagging operation. Peterson Farms Trucking was started in 1995, and Oceana Technologies started in 1998 and is a microbiological testing facility. In 2004, Peterson Farms Fresh Inc. started specializing in fresh cut fruit particularly apples. More than 500 people are employed with Peterson Farms and affiliates.
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