Fruit and vegetable growers, farm markets, agricultural industry educators, food producers and more have been gathering every winter for the past 19 years at the world renowned Great Lakes Fruit Vegetable and Farm Market Expo held in in Grand Rapids. This year, the world is coming to our doorstep in the virtual realm, which has the potential to reach more industry leaders than ever before all because of the pandemic. That’s because due to this year’s unprecedented circumstances the entire event is taking place online. Organizers have been telling the industry, “It will be an unforgettable event with industry partners,” and two major pioneers from Michigan’s Great Southwest. Dr. Ron Goldy and Paul Friday, have been recognized for their invaluable contributions.
Over the three day span, which kicked off Tuesday, industry players are being afforded the opportunity to visit with experts in a virtual tradeshow…network with other professionals…enjoy the awards program and poster sessions and take in the education programming.
This year’s education program includes sessions on fruit crops, vegetable crops, other specialty crops, greenhouse crop production and marketing, farm marketing ideas and operations, farmers’ markets and organic production and marketing. There are also sessions covering diversity of general interest topics, including food safety and labor.
As in the past, presentations are being made by researchers and Extension educators from Michigan State University, other Land Grand universities and industry. Many of the education sessions also offer credits for Michigan and Ohio Private and Commerciale Applicators and Certified Crop Advisors.
In awards ceremonies Tuesday, Dr. Ron Goldy and Farmer Paul Friday received high honors and recognition. Goldy was given the Master Farmer Associate Award and Paul Friday was named as a Michigan State Horticultural Society Distinguished Service Award winner.
Dr. Goldy was named recipient of the 2020 Master Farmer Associate Award by the Michigan Vegetable Council. That award is presented annually to an individual or business actively supporting the vegetable production industry in Michigan. It recognizes leadership roles in industry and community organizations and support of vegetable crop research.
Ron is a Senior Extension Eucator for Michigan State University Extension. He has a unique appointment as he serves 50-percent extension and 50-percent research at the Southwest Michigan Research and Extension Center in Benton Harbor. Ron had a wide range of agricultural experiences in his youth, which led to his vast array of knowledge and talent while at MSU whether working with vegetable producers, fruit producers, or farm marketers.
Besides performing extension work on fresh market vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, and peppers, Ron performs research beneficial to those same growers. He has provided the industry with research on irrigation that has helped growers keep nutrients in the right place on the sandy southwest soil.
The Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable, and Farm Market Expo would not be what it is today without Ron Goldy. He leads numerous education sessions on both vegetable and farm market topics, and has been a leader of the farm market section of the Expo. Each year Ron has taken the farm market guests on a bus tour to numerous west Michigan farm markets, and makes sure to get to the places that have the latest innovations in agritourism. The Michigan Vegetable Council says they would not be the successful organization they are today without the services of Ron Goldy.
Click this link to see the video played at his award:
https://player.vimeo.com/video/441040953
Also on Tuesday, the renowned Farmer Paul Friday was named a Michigan State Horticultural Society Distinguished Service Award Winner.
Paul was raised on a fruit farm in the Southwest Michigan community of Coloma, growing cherries, apples, and peaches, but he preferred the peaches. He took that love of the fruit and turned it into a lifetime of records, awards, and contributions to the peach industry. When Paul started breeding peaches, Michigan grew two main varieties, Red Haven and Red Skin. He recognized that there was an opportunity to expand the industry, so he started breeding peaches.
Due to his breeding work, Paul now holds 34 patents and one Guinness Book of World Records entry for heaviest peach. One of his varieties tended toward large peaches and one day he noticed an exceptionally large one. He called Guinness and it turned out he had a record. In addition to good size, Paul’s Flamin’ Fury peaches are known for their color, firm sweet fruit, and high yields.
Paul has not kept his knowledge a secret, though. He is nationally renowned due to speeches around the country and his undying service on local and national peach boards. He has served on the Michigan Peach Sponsors and the National Peach Council. The National Peach Council even awarded him their Distinguished Service Award in 2010. He has spoken to farm market audiences locally at the Great Lakes Expo, where he had a trade show booth for decades. He has also spoken nationally from Idaho and Colorado to Pennsylvania and Alabama. Remarkably, he has even spoken internationally in Canada and Mexico.
Paul’s sense of humor has served him well in marketing his peaches. He enjoys the attention that humor can bring and he takes every opportunity to talk about his peaches. He has dedicated his life to improving the Michigan peach industry and the peach industry will always bear Paul’s stamp.
The Michigan State Horticultural Society announced Tuesday, they are pleased to present the 2020 Distinguished Service Award to Paul Friday. Click the link below to see the video they shared.
https://player.vimeo.com/video/456257586
Also announced Tuesday at the Great Lakes Expo were the winners of the Jordan Tatter Scholarships.
In December of 2003, the Michigan State Horticultural Society and the Michigan Vegetable Council announced their intention to initiate a scholarship fund in Jordan Tatter’s memory. Each organization committed $5,000 to start that fund, which has the support of the Tatter family, as well as many of Michigan’s agricultural leaders. The scholarship is endowed at Michigan State University, and the earnings are used to provide scholarships for deserving students pursuing careers in the Fruit & Vegetable Industry. Including this year, a total of $63,000 in scholarships has been awarded.
This year’s winners include:
John Gove Undergraduate
John Gove grew up on his family’s fruit, flower and vegetable farm in Massachusetts. Starting in fourth grade, he ran his own part of the farm, specializing in cherry tomatoes and popcorn. He paid for the inputs and saved the profits for college and a car. His work on the farm led him to a Bachelor of Science degree in Horticulture at Michigan State University, where he expects to graduate in the spring of 2021. While at MSU, he has worked in the plant physiology lab, working with Stevia and in the floriculture lab, working with succulents. Upon graduation, he hopes to work for a company for a few years where he will be able to make a difference in the world of agriculture. Eventually, he plans to make his way back to the family farm, becoming the 7th generation to run it.
Doug Higgins Graduate
Doug Higgins is a PhD candidate at Michigan State University. He has been working on developing hop downy mildew management strategies for Michigan as well as investigating a new disease of hop plants called halo blight. Doug’s thesis has generated Michigan’s first hop-specific fungicide efficacy results. These results were then published in the journal Plant Disease and were the subject of a number of extension articles and presentations. Upon completion of his PhD, Doug is planning a career as an Extension Specialist or Professor. He plans to apply what he’s learned through a methodical approach to research based in a full understanding of the cropping system, field observations and a strong relationship with growers wherever he ends up working.
The Great Lakes Fruit Vegetable & Farm Market Expo continues online through Thursday.
