Harvesting problems

While most think of the auto industry hurting in the lagging economy, another more silent group in Michigan also is hurting.

Take small farmers like Bill Miller Jr., general manager of Papa’s Pumpkin Patch. He said small farmers are having to adapt more to survive while more people spend less money.

The Miller farm, which was first operated by Bill Miller Sr., and now Bill Miller Jr., takes care of production of the crops, first started in 1973.

He said farmers are taking a hit much like every other economic group.

“People just aren’t spending money. Whether they’re storing it away or they just don’t have it to spend and I think that’s true in every sector of the economy,” Miller Jr. said.

Because the price of items is so important to people, local farmers often are having a tough time managing, Miller Jr., said.

“We’re not selling as much as we have in the past and it’s tough because everyone is shopping price right now and the big boxed stores can bring in stuff in from other countries for very little,” he said.

Papa’s, which grows many different items including strawberries, pumpkins, sweet corn, tomatoes, peppers, melons, asparagus and have recently started a orchard was started in the late ’70s by Bill Miller Sr.

Miller Sr., said farms went through similar troubles in the ’70s and he has his own theories on why the Michigan economy is so bad.

“I think (the economy) just flexes. The problem with Michigan is we haven’t produced enough jobs for young folks. Half of our graduates from our universities, for close to 30 years, that have gotten jobs have moved out of state,” Miller Sr., said.

Miller Jr., said Papa’s has been forced to cut back.

“We have narrowed our focuses to what we do, we used to grow 30 or 40 items now we grow maybe 10 or 15. We try to buy and sell to other local farmers,” he said.

Miller Jr., said he hasn’t noticed many family farms being forced to shut down but rather much more food hitting the market because many people with gardens are now trying to sell their wares.

“What I’m seeing is every guy that gets laid off or every guy that loses his job and has a garden is now a producer. These guys are showing up at the farm markets not knowing anything about the business and they are selling 500 dollars worth of produce for $100 and they think they’re doing great. It’s just cutting the guys that are in it for a living,” he said.

Since 2000, the farm has been open as a educational and recreational farm after Miller Sr., retired from his job as a math professor at Central Michigan University.

By focusing on recreation it has allowed the farm to gain a little more traction as the economic downturn hit, Miller Jr. said.

Because of the economy many stores have been promoting ‘locally grown’ campaigns but Bill Jr. said he just hasn’t seen any of those campaigns being pushed by the corporations.

“They’re all pushing this ‘we buy local’ but none of them do,” he said. “I walk into Meijer’s and see big signs for Michigan apples but if you look under the carts they’re all Washington apples. I go in and try to sell them and they say ‘well, we aren’t set up to buy from the local guys.’ I’ve concluded to one big grocery chain ‘local’ is midwestern U.S, to another of the big grocery chains local is continental US, to another box store local is the western hemisphere, and the fourth one local is the world.”

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