Hanson adds cold store for Mich. Blueberries

Hanson adds cold store for Mich. Blueberries Hanson Logistics announced Thursday a two-year, two-phase plan to expand its Hartford, Mich., cold storage facility.
   The company said the initiative is designed to support the West Michigan agriculture business, especially the area's blueberry growers.
   The $2 million improvement, expected to be completed by July, is the first phase of a master plan. The first phase will increase the freezing and long-term storage capacity of the existing Hartford facility. The second phase, scheduled for 2010 at a cost yet to be determined, will include expanded deep-freeze storage space, with additional docks and infrastructure to support higher inbound and outbound volumes, the company explained.
   Hanson's Hartford facility has a current capacity of about 7 million cubic feet, most of which is dedicated to the storage of blueberries and supporting materials. According to Michigan State University, the state is the top producer of highbush blueberries with 575 farms on nearly 18,000 acres.