Allan Baugher wins Maryland hort award

The Maryland State Horticultural Society gave Allan Baugher of Westminster, Maryland, its Harry Black Distinguished Service Award during the Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention in Hershey, Pennsylvania, in February. The Baugher family operates Baugher’s Farm Orchard Market.

The award was presented by his son Dwight who said his dad encouraged him and his siblings to learn about the fruit business by bringing them each year on “the Baugher family vacation” to the educational meetings at ­Hershey.

The operation, started in 1904 and incorporated as Baugher Enterprises in 1966, includes orchards and vegetable production, the market, a restaurant, bakery, cider mill, entertainment features such as a petting zoo, wagon rides, tours, and nearly 100 varieties of fruit and vegetables, many of them offered as pick-your-own.

The award is named after Harry Black, another Maryland farm marketer who discovered the apple sport Autumn Gala.

Brad Hollabaugh outstanding Pennsylvania grower

The State Horticultural Association of Pennsylvania selected Brad ­Hollabaugh of Hollabaugh Brothers, Biglerville, Pennsylvania, as its ­Outstanding Grower of the Year.

The 500-acre farm, started by twin brothers Donald and Harold in 1955, is a complex family farm of siblings and cousins, with three young adults of the third generation—Bruce, Wayne, and Ellie Vranich—joining the operation since 2000.

Brad said the support of his family allowed him to participate in the hort association activities. He held several offices in the hort association, including the presidency in 2006-2007, and is an active leader on the legislative front. He writes monthly legislative updates in the Pennsylvania Fruit News, travels to capitals Harrisburg and Washington, and organizes growers in lobbying activities.

The operation includes a greenhouse in the spring, a produce market in the summer, and a pumpkin patch in the fall. They grow stone fruits, apples, and pears, conduct orchard tours, operate an e-store, and also have a large wholesale packing operation.

The award was presented during the Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention.

Phil Neary wins National Peach Council award

The National Peach Council recognized Phil Neary, director of grower ­relations and operations for Sunny Valley International, Glassboro, New ­Jersey, with its 2011 Achievement Award.

The company sells fruit for 15 peach and nectarine growers and 14 blueberry growers, plus members of the Jersey Fruit Cooperative. In the off ­season, it imports blueberries to maintain its East Coast distribution business, Neary said. The company also markets table grapes, pears, apples, Spanish clementines, and avocadoes.

“We work locally with growers who commit 100 percent of their crop to us,” he said. The arrangements are not contractual but represent long-term, multiyear ­relationships.

Neary came into the fruit business as general manager of Jersey Fruit Cooperative in 2000, then moved to Sunny Valley in 2004. He was once an extension educator for Rutgers University.

He’s a past president of the National Peach Council, which is managed by Kay Rentzel, Dillsburg, Pennsylvania.

The award was presented during the Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention.

Grape association honors members

The Washington Association of Wine Grape Growers named Tedd Wildman of Prosser as its Grower of the Year/Erick Hanson Memorial award during its recent annual meeting for his years of service to the industry. Wildman has spent the last 20 years involved in state and national grape affairs, from serving as chair of the grape association, founding member of the Washington State Commission on Pesticide Registration, and board member of the Washington Wine Commission, to board member of the National Grape Clean Plant Network, National Grape and Wine Inititative, and part of revitalizing the state foundation block and creating the Northwest Grape Foundation Service.

Wildman and partner Mark Wheeler planted Stone Tree Vineyard on the Wahluke Slope in Mattawa in the early 2000s as Wildman transitioned from being a vineyard and pest management consultant to grape grower.

Rick Small, owner of Woodward Canyon Winery in the Walla Walla Valley, received the Industry Service award. Small, who is credited with creating and managing one of the state’s most successful wineries, planted his first vines in 1976. Woodward Canyon Winery was launched in 1981. He was the first president of Walla Walla Wine Growers, helped established the Walla Walla Valley appellation, and served many years on the Washington Wine Commission.

Katya’s restaurant in Richland, with an extensive wine list of Washington wines, received the group’s Restaurant Appreciation award. The restaurant, in business for six years, is owned by Jim and Maryna Hartley.

Moffitt heads WAPA

Kevin Moffitt, president of Pear Bureau Northwest, has been named president of the World Apple and Pear Association to succeed Alessandro Dalpiaz of Assomela, the Italian association of apple producers.

Moffitt was previously vice president of WAPA for two years. Peter Beaven of Pipfruit New Zealand is the new vice president.

The association, which is based in Belgium, was formed ten years ago to foster collaboration between the world’s apple and pear producers in order to boost global demand and ensure a fair return for growers. Moffitt has been involved with WAPA since its inception.

At its annual meeting in Berlin, Germany, in early February, a representative from China attended the meeting for the first time. China is the world’s largest apple and pear producing country.