COMSTOCK PARK, MI — Two related and highly sophisticated construction projects are under way here and in nearby Sparta, MI. Apple storage, packing and shipping is a common thread. But the 178,000-square-foot Comstock Park facility will also be a wholesale produce distribution facility owned and operated by Heeren Bros. Produce, which, until this fall, is still operating from nearby Grand Rapids, MI.

At the center of the activity is All Fresh GPS LLC, which will also soon be moving into the new Comstock Park facility. “GPS” in the name of the company, which was formed in 2011, stands for “grower-packer-shipper.” Company President Tom Curtis said that All Fresh is owned by Heeren Bros. Produce and Applewood Orchards Inc. in Deerfield, MI. Beyond that, there is a complex network of partners involved in related operations.

The sprawling $22 million Comstock Park facility will serve as Heeren’s new cold-chain controlled produce distribution warehouse. It will also be an ultra-modern apple storage, grading, packing and shipping facility. Corporate office space will also be in place when the facility opens this October.

Tom Curtis, president of All Fresh GPS, toured construction of Elite Apple’s packinghouse in Sparta, MI, with Scott Swindeman, the owner of Applewood Orchards Inc. in Deerfield, MI. Below, the shell of the All Fresh GPS warehouse as it appeared on July 19.According to a June press release, Heeren Bros. will utilize 60,000 square feet of the 178,000-square-foot facility for produce distribution and 11,000 square feet for corporate offices. Its packing arm, Ridgeking Apple Packing, will utilize the remaining 107,000 square feet for apple storage and packing.

All Fresh GPS markets apples for Ridgeking and Applewood. It will also begin marketing apples packed by Elite Apple. Applewood Orchards is one of seven partners launching Elite, a new 55,000-square-foot packing plant in Sparta. The new $7 million facility will feature state-of-the-art packing equipment, which includes internal and external apple grading capabilities.

Curtis said the Heeren family and partners undertook the construction with an eye on the future. Michigan’s apple industry is quickly developing with young trees and proprietary and club apple varieties atop already popular newer varieties such as Honeycrisp.

The ambitious expansion, which Curtis said is part of a 30-year plan, is designed to handle the growth. Food safety is a key component in the new construction, he noted.

The five leading varieties being shipped by All Fresh are Gala, Honeycrisp, Fuji, Jonagold and Red Delicious. The firm will also ship Jonathan, Empire and McIntosh apples.

“We grow club varieties, as well,” Curtis said. Kiku and Piñata club apples are being produced by Applewood.

According to the press release, All Fresh GPS represents more than 75 family-owned grower operations that represent 10,000 acres of Michigan apple orchards.