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North Bay continues to grow and prosper in Michigan

By
Keith Loria

North Bay Produce, a cooperative of 33 grower-owners representing more than 1,000 farms from around the world, has deep roots within Michigan, both from a company standpoint and also within its grower/membership network. In fact, Michigan is North Bay’s flagship region and will continue to be a very important part of its overall sales strategy for blueberries, apples and asparagus.

north bayAmong the benefits of working in Michigan according to Ryan Lockman, vice president of sales and procurement, is the protection that the Great Lakes provide from a temperature standpoint.

“North Bay has many things to be excited about in 2024,” Lockman said. “A few key points are continued growth in genetics, continued emphasis and growth on technology and continued offerings of value to help our growers navigate tough economic conditions.”

As of the third week of May, the 2024 Michigan season outlook is looking promising.

“We had a couple scares in regard to cold events in April, but look to have come through those time periods with minimal damage — with both apples and blueberries — and asparagus is continuing to have a great season,” Lockman said. “The pollination time period was great, which is huge for the quality of our crops. Because of the warmer winter, we are seeing all crops looking earlier than normal currently, but we could see things balance out as we move closer to harvest.”

North Bay enjoys strong relationships within the retail community and work with those relationships year-round.

“Our goal is to create pricing that is proportionate to the overall volume that is within the marketplace at any given time, in order to maximize grower returns but as well as to spark the appropriate amount of movement,” Lockman said.

Among the company’s strategies to maintain strong relationships with farmers and suppliers are offering solid grower support, strong sales solutions, genetic accessibility, technology both in sales and within the farm, diversified markets, financial support and packing solutions.

“Success comes from having the correct product, in the right place, at the right time, and at an appropriate price, and a commitment to a long-term partnership that is based on mutual understandings of the needs of each party,” Lockman said.

Business year-to-date in 2024 has been good in spots; however, over the past 6-8 weeks, the company has seen very tough berry markets. 

“This is mainly due to good crops in many locations, but is also causing a traffic jam within the retail shelves,” Lockman said.

Going forward, North Bay will continue to add more volume into its Reserve label and program.

“With the increase in volumes of premium varieties, we are seeing large demand increases for this label in the future, both short and long term,” Lockman said. North Bay’s long-term goals are to continue to ingrain ourselves within the apple, berry and asparagus markets but also to continue to provide added value to the growers, the retailers and ultimately the consumers that we are working with within those categories.”

Keith Loria

Keith Loria

About Keith Loria  |  email

A graduate of the University of Miami, Keith Loria is a D.C.-based award-winning journalist who has been writing for major publications for close to 20 years on topics as diverse as real estate, food and sports. He started his career with the Associated Press and has held high editorial positions at magazines aimed at healthcare, sports and technology. When not busy writing, he can be found enjoying time with his wife, Patricia, and two daughters, Jordan and Cassidy.

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February 4, 2025
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