Each morning of cranberry harvest, nearly two million gallons of water (six acre-feet, to be exact) flood across a small sector of the vast marshes that lie near Tomah, Wisconsin. The crimson fruit floats to the liquid’s surface, buoyed by its air-filled internal chambers. Slow-moving machinery plucks the cranberries from their vines and deposits them into small boats. The delicate fruit is then trucked to Habelman Bros. headquarters, where it is rinsed, sorted and stored at a precise 38 degrees. There it sits until an order is placed, sending the fresh fruit across the country or globe.
The Habelman family has been in the business of cranberries since 1907, when Edward Habelman started a modest enterprise on 13 acres. It has been handed down from generation to generation, with great grandson Ray now at the helm of what has become the world’s largest fresh cranberry grower and packer.
For six weeks starting in mid September, the fruit spread across the company’s 670 acres is harvested. Procuring the produce — up to 15 million cranberries depending on the success of the growing season — makes for long, laborious days involving some 160 people. Unpredictable autumn weather poses a particular challenge as temperatures can dip near freezing come
late fall.
The water required to keep the crops healthy throughout the year (the marshes are flooded in the winter to protect the vulnerable buds and again in the spring to help with pest control) resides in the company’s more than 250 acres of reservoirs. Otherwise, the cranberries tend to be low-maintenance until autumn nears. “We get nervous as the days get shorter,” explains Ray. “It means it’s getting close to crunch time.”
But it certainly is a labor of love. Several Habelman employees have been on the payroll for 30-plus years, and 97-year-old Uncle Bob (Ray’s great uncle) has held tenure for more than eight decades. These days, he spends less time working the marshes and more time motivating the staff and handling behind-the-scenes work. “These people have dedicated their lives to the cranberry industry,” says Ray. “We’ve been quite lucky.”
The fourth generation grower has been on board since 1997 and was named CEO in 2008. He lives on the original marsh where more than a century ago his great grandfather embarked on this adventure. As for his title? Ray doesn’t take it very seriously: “At the end of the day, I’m just a cranberry grower.”
