A farm worker picks apples in October 2022 at the Wittenbach Orchards in downstate Belding. (AP file photo)

EAST LANSING — In 2013, funding challenges were at the forefront for Michigan State University AgBioResearch, weakening the ability to support efforts at its research stations around the state.

The organization was still enduring the residual effects of the Great Recession, making difficult decisions imminent.

As a result, AgBioResearch leaders assembled a committee to evaluate how significant decreases in funding support for its centers was affecting needed research that drives Michigan agriculture forward.

The troubles were particularly acute at the centers supporting tree fruit production, which at the time included the Clarksville Research Center, Northwest Michigan Horticulture Research Center, Southwest Michigan Research and Extension Center and Trevor Nichols Research Center. All are located near or within the Fruit Belt, Michigan’s primary fruit-growing region along the eastern shore of Lake Michigan in the Lower Peninsula.

The committee included MSU leaders, Michigan agriculture stakeholders, tree fruit commodity executives and growers. What they discovered was that immediate action was needed to preserve the four centers. Like with many commodities in Michigan, growers stepped in to meet that need.

Groups such as the Cherry Marketing Institute, Michigan Apple Committee, Michigan State Horticultural Society and Michigan Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Association recommended that a grower-led tree fruit organization be formed. From those talks, the Michigan Tree Fruit Commission was born.

The MTFC was created in 2014 as a partnership among apple, cherry, peach and plum growers, along with MSU and the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. It’s one of the only organizations of its kind in the country uniting tree fruit industries, which are big business in Michigan.

According to Michigan Farm Bureau, the state ranks second in apple production in the U.S., with an estimated economic impact of more than $700 million annually. Michigan is the largest nationwide producer of tart cherries, an industry that contributes more than $108 million to the state’s economy each year.

While peaches and plums occupy a smaller market segment, they contribute significantly to Michigan’s agricultural diversity.