MarketMaker assists fruit industry
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EmailMarketMaker provides assistance to Michigan’s fruit producers affected by spring freezes.
Many Michigan fruit producers were adversely affected by warm temperatures in March followed by freezes in April. This resulted in many farmers being short of popular fruits like apples and peaches when selling directly to the consumer.
MarketMaker can provide assistance to farmers who experience a shortage of fruits due to this spring’s adverse weather and now operates in 17 states. Some of those states produce some of the same fruit crops that are produced in Michigan but have not been effected by the extreme temperatures. For example, MarketMaker lists 45 peach producers in South Carolina, 75 in Georgia, 13 in Florida, 5 in Alabama and 53 in Kentucky. Michigan growers who need peaches for their farm markets can contact growers through MarketMaker to secure fruit and help fill gaps in their locally produced products.
Simply go to the Michigan MarketMaker website to find growers in other states.
The ideal situation is to have locally produced products available for direct market customers. However, this spring's adverse weather makes offering locally produced products difficult if not impossible for some growers. Farmers involved in direct marketing need to have products available to meet customer needs. Shipping product from areas to the south is not the ideal scenario but may be a market necessity this year to meet customer expectations.
