Seed Award Spotlight: Sommerfeldt Farms    

In our “Seed Award Spotlight” series, we asked the Fall 2024 Seed Award winners about their experience as a food or farm entrepreneur, including the passion behind their business, and their vision for positive change in their community. This January, 18 Seed Award winners were chosen to receive seed funding totaling almost $250,000. These grants represent not just financial investment, but an acknowledgment of the vital role farms and food distributors play in advancing Michigan’s food value chain.

Among the esteemed recipients is Sommerfeldt Farms, a longstanding family-owned farm in Benton Harbor, Michigan, since 1954. The Sommerfeldt family has transformed their once modest peach orchard into a thriving hub of agricultural productivity, renowned for its commitment to honesty, hard work, and fair pricing. With a vision firmly rooted in the principles of sustainability and community service, Sommerfeldt Farms is dedicated to providing fresh, affordable produce and promoting a healthy lifestyle through education on sustainable farming practices and home gardening.

Keep reading to learn more about Sommerfeldt Farms and how their dedication to innovation and community well-being is cultivating a brighter future for local agriculture.

Name: Amber Rodriguez

Business Name: Sommerfeldt Farms

What does being selected as a Seed Award winner mean to you personally, and how does it reflect on the journey of your business so far?               

This award is a great honor for us. We are happy to represent the Michigan Good Food Fund at our farm. Receiving the grant shows how far we have come as a business. We are now better able to provide more for our community.           

In what ways will the Seed Award funding support your immediate and long-term business goals?

The Seed Award will help us support one of our main goals, which is to make our business viable in the winter months. Hopefully, being open in the winter can help us gain another demographic as well as being open for our regular customers.        

Can you share your vision for the positive changes this award will enable you to make in your business and the broader community?               

We hope that this award will have many positive effects on our farm and our community. By being available in the winter months, we can offer our clientele some of the great produce we have in the summer. We also hope to offer other uses for the market, such as event space. 

What led you to start your business? What motivates you to do what you do?

Our farm was started in the 50’s and has been family-owned and operated ever since. As third-generation farmers, we realize how important farming is to our lives, community, and world. We are motivated every day to continue our family’s legacy in southwest Michigan and be an example to other young people contemplating the farming business.

Want to try “Bob’s Super Sweet Corn” from Sommerfeldt Farms? Visit their website to find their Benton Harbor location and learn more about their products. Be sure to follow them on Facebook and Instagram.