By SHELLY STRAUTZ-SPRINGBORN

Michigan Correspondent

LANSING, Mich. — Two Michigan agriculture businesses have been awarded Food and Agriculture Investment Program grants by the Michigan Commission of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Always Local LLC was awarded $50,000 and Hartford Farm Supply LLC received $75,000 to expand their food and agriculture processing capabilities.

Hartford Farm Supply, which operates under the name Paw Paw River Produce, will construct a controlled atmosphere storage facility in Hartford. Owner and manager Jason Meachum, who operates the business with his father and two brothers, said the project will allow for greater capacity and more efficient storage for apples that are grown in southwestern Michigan and the Traverse City region.

The 13,440 square-foot facility will increase storage capacity, allowing for additional days of packing and keeping Michigan apples on the shelves in retail stores longer.

“The project will also reduce the need for apple imports, prevent apples from leaving the state for storage and expand the customer footprint for Michigan growers,” Meachum said.

The project will require a $1.2 million investment. The facility will provide storage for 8-10 growers and is expected to be completed prior to the fall harvest season.

“Southwest Michigan has a shortage of controlled atmosphere storage, so this project will be a great start in helping bridge the gap between growers and the packing house,” he said. “From the packing house perspective, more controlled atmosphere storage equates to more packing days, which leads to more opportunities for workers.”

In addition to the Shafer Lake Fruit apple packing facility in Hartford, the Meachums operate a 6,000-acre third-generation family farm in southwestern Michigan on which they grow corn, soybeans, wheat, apples, strawberries, cherries, plums, tomatoes and peppers. They also operate a trucking company.

Always Local LLC will use its $50,000 performance-based grant toward the development of a new large-scale commercial aquaponics farm in Caledonia. The primary products will be fresh salad mix and locally raised fish.

The facility will produce under the brand name Revolution Farms and will provide a fresh salad mix product that can be sourced in West Michigan. Currently, 95 percent of the lettuce consumed in Michigan is grown outside the region. The opportunity to grow lettuce locally will provide a fresher product, create jobs and investment in Michigan and reduce transit.

“The Revolution Farms team is extremely excited about developing a cutting-edge sustainable farm to deliver fresher and healthier produce to our fellow citizens in West Michigan and beyond,” said CEO Tripp Frey. “We are ecstatic about being a part of the farm revolution and being a leader in sustainable agriculture.”

The $3.3 million project includes the construction of a 55,000 square-foot state-of-the-art Venlo style glass greenhouse and a 35,000 square-foot warehouse in Caledonia. During the first phase, the project is expected to create up to 12 new jobs.

Once operational, the facility will produce a fresh salad mix and locally raised fish, with first harvest expected in late summer 2018. Operations will include an aquaculture system and a cutting-edge aquaponics system and assembly line. The project will also include space for packing and logistics. Once fully operational, the project is expected to have eight greenhouses.

The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development’s (MDARD) Food and Agriculture Investment Program provides financial support for projects that help expand food and agriculture processing to enable growth in the industry and Michigan’s economy. Projects are selected based on their impact to the overall agriculture industry and their impact to food and agriculture growth and investment in the state.