Kent City, Mich.

The Hubert family has been farming in central Michigan since the late 1800’s. The original parcel, in Kent City, was 80 acres. That quickly grew to over 200 acres and, as was customary for the time, the farm had a bit of everything. Herman Hubert grew peaches and apples, raised cattle and sold milk; he farmed.

It wasn’t until the 1960’s that the family really began to focus primarily on growing fruit trees. As the operation grew, it became more vertically integrated. In 1982, Ken Hubert, Herman’s great-grandson, took over the business and the family became involved in not only growing fruit, but also packing, storing and delivering the apples. Today the family farms over 700 acres, owns a large cold storage operation (where the apples rest until they’re ready to ship), is involved in the packing and processing of apples and even has a hand in the trucking business.

Ken’s son, Victor, helps him with the farm today, and his grandson, Randy, is ready to begin his career as a Michigan apple grower. This, coupled with Ken’s declaration, “I still like to plant trees!” would seem to guarantee that the Hubert family will be farming in central Michigan for years to come.