Local cherry farmers gathered last week for a Michigan Cherry Growers Alliance end-of-harvest event at the Northwest Michigan Horticulture Center, which recapped the tough growing season while laying out priorities for the upcoming year.
“It’s important that the growers are in the room and having a voice,” Cherry Alliance founder Leisa Eckerle said. “It was very clear having that opportunity to be able to sit at the table and have discussions is really important, especially right now, when there’s so much going on in the industry from how our crops look the last couple of years to pricing to what’s happening with the federal marketing order.”
Eckerle is a local farmer and owner of Benjamin Twiggs in Traverse City, and founded the Cherry Alliance in 2024.
At the meeting, farmers discussed the federal marketing order from the Cherry Industry Administrative Board (CIAB), which will be up for a vote in the spring, regarding whether to keep it or not, in relation to the strategic planning of marketing local cherries.
The CIAB has been the administrative arm of the Federal Marketing Order for tart cherries since 1997.
“Whether any particular tool is working or not. A lot of discussion will take place over the next four months addressing all of those issues.” Eckerle said.
The silver lining of this year is that the import crops were also short, which helped stabilize local markets and raised prices. But now farmers turn to what may happen next year.
“The hope is that we have a full crop and that we can meet our markets. This year, we’re not able to meet all our markets because of the short crop,” Eckerle said.
There’s no question that 2025 was tricky, with an average of farmers only completing a third of their respective harvests. The target for next year is to harvest 90 million pounds of cherries, aiming to make up for the dismal 30-35 million pounds produced this year.
But the weather will determine that.
There is optimism heading into 2026, as inventories are expected to remain similar, possibly even lower, leading to increased demand for tarts and sweet cherries.
Farmers admitted at the meeting that it’s hard to look at “next year” after many years of unsuccessful weather.
The meeting covered several legislative priorities that will heat up in spring 2027 when with eyes on water use regulation; purchases at the state level; the cherry possibly being named the state fruit; prominent Michigan, U.S. grown labeling; low interest loans, among others.
At the federal level, farmers are lobbying for domestic first. Eckerle said they’ve had conversations with Congressman Rep. Jack Bergman and Betsy Coffia of the state House of Representatives, who are “very supportive.”
Farmers encourage lawmakers to keep Leelanau cherries at the forefront when negotiating with countries like Turkey or Poland.
Eckerle emphasized the need for a new farm bill with dedicated line items for specialty crops, such as cherries.
In terms of labor, farmers reported that they obtained all the necessary personnel through H2A and found it to be less expensive than they had thought it might be, according to meeting minutes. However, farmers express that it could be different next year.
Cherry being named the state fruit has been held up at the legislative level due to some pushback from apple growers. Michigan grows 70% of the country’s tart cherries, and the state of Washington grows three to four times more apples than Michigan.
The United States Department of Agriculture has begun distributing payments from the 2023 and 2024 seasons, with some recipients receiving 35% of their calculated harvest costs. If a crop was lost in both years, the farmer would receive funding for both years.
There is currently a negative inventory in the cherry industry, and demand is present, according to Eckerle. Net sales for the 2024-25 period total roughly $218 million.
“It’s up to the weather, but if we can continue to drive the price to stabilize, that’s a key piece,” she said. “It’s just important to support local farmers. Especially in this region, farmers are an important part of our economy. They work really hard, and they need the local support of buying local, whether it’s at the store or at the farmer’s market.”
The apple harvest is underway, as Al Bakker of Bakker’s Acres expects 60-70% of a crop this fall, following a week of dodging rain. The expected harvest was 90%.
“The rain helps fruit grow and may cause a little bit of softening, but for the most part, it helps them grow a little better size, and it depends on timing and variety,” he said. “We did have the spring frost and cold weather at bloom.”
Bakker reports plenty of help with the shorter-than-expected crop, with their operations wrapping up most likely by the third week of October, with a focus on Ida Red and Northern Spies currently.
