The winds of fortune can carry a business only so far toward success. But ask Joseph Okray Jr., president of Okray Family Farms, why his family's operation has been successful for more than 90 years, and he says, "We've been extremely fortunate."

But if luck were the only reason for the success of the Plover, WI, American Vegetable Grower Top 100 Grower, its sole crop would have to be four-leaf clovers. Instead, the Okrays grow 2260 acres of potatoes, 2300 acres of sweet corn, 1000 acres of field corn, and 900 acres of snap beans with a little luck and a lot of mechanization.



A History Of Success

Joseph's father started a potato dealership in 1905 and sold a few vegetables on the side. In 1917, Joseph's father and uncles joined together to incorporate, and fortune stepped in not long afterwards.

The founder of Okray Family Farms, Joseph Okray.

When the Great Depression hit, it brought them opportunity, not poverty. The faltering economy allowed the Okray brothers to buy land from the government for $5 an acre. They bought all they could afford and built the foundation of the present-day farm.

As years went by, and the farm's acreage continued to grow, Lady Luck took a backseat to foresight and more wise investments, this time in the form of machinery.

Gearing Up For Production

Mechanization has allowed the operation to take advantage of its size. Now at about 6500 acres, Okray Family Farms employs only 45 people year-round and an additional 25 at harvest time. "It's amazing how few people we need thanks to machines compared to 25 years ago," Joseph says.

Joseph's nephew Ed, whose emphasis in the operation is on engineering, says the machinery and equipment not only allows Okray Family Farms to employ less people, it also allows them to increase production.

"I've worked here 15 years. We have less workers than we did when I started, but we work 800 acres more," he says. "Mechanization is the only way we've been able to keep up."

All of the Okrays' crops are direct seeded and harvested mechanically. Most of their potato harvesting is accomplished with Lenco harvesters. Equipment also plays a large role in making sure there will be a crop to harvest. Fertilization is accomplished with the help of the Okrays' fleet of John Deere tractors.

"Equipment innovations are what's made this central sands area a premier vegetable growing area," Joseph says. "With our center pivot irrigation systems, we now have ample irrigation for the size of all our fields."

As fate would have it, the Okrays also have a virtually inexhaustible water source for their Reinke Electrigator irrigation system. Part of a 60- by 30- mile underground lake was discovered below their fields. They once relied on water from nearby creeks and lakes, but now the Okrays get all the water they need from Glacial lake Wisconsin, which they can tap into from 10 to 50 feet below the ground.

But relying heavily on equipment is not without its price. "The equipment is getting bigger, better, and much more expensive," Joseph says. Okray Family Farms' $10 million investment in equipment (which does not include maintenance costs) is testament to the rising costs of mechanization. But it's a necessary expense.

"Labor savings in itself offset the machinery," Ed says. The productivity of the machinery allows the operation to give its employees more time off."

And mechanization doesn't stop in the fields at Okray Family Farms.

Mechanization Aids Packing And Selling

The Okrays have a 60,000-square-foot automated packing/storage facility. The packinghouse is equipped with Affeldt automated baggers and sizers which the Okrays use to pack almost all of their potato crop. The packinghouse has the capacity to store 800,000 cwt. of potatoes. An outside shipping service trucks a variety of their labels across the U.S. and Canada.

Okray Family Farms packs many brands of
potatoes - including the Okray brand - in its
60,000 square foot automated packinghouse.

Most of the Okrays' potatoes are sold to the fresh market, but some lower grades are sold to dehydrators. All of the operation's sweet corn and green beans go to processors as well. Almost all of the Okrays' green bean crop is sold to the Del Monte processing plant in Plover, which is one of the world's largest green bean processing plants.

The "Family" In Okray Family Farms

Machines may have lent a boost to the Okrays' vegetable production, but mechanization and automation can only go so far. "You've got to have good people," Joseph says. Nine of those "good people" are Okray family members.

"We've always been a close family," Ed says. "We socialize together as well as work together." To keep family members in the operation, he says they find out what people like to do and then try to place them in those positions. Of course there are jobs that no one likes to do, but those are evenly dispersed.

Another key to success is being progressive. One new venture the Okrays are embarking upon is cranberry production. They are in the first year of a three-year process that will create a 60-acre cranberry bog. Being progressive has allowed Okray Family Farms to continuously expand, and has helped maintain succession so that the operation keeps the family touch. That has been important in helping Okray Family farms maintain long-standing customer relationships, which have helped the farm survive and thrive through 90 years of the ups and downs of agriculture.

But customer relationships aren't built by the family member's just working day after day on the farm. The Okrays are very active within the industry.

Joseph, who is a former United Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Association board member, says it's important to be involved in the industry locally and nationally. "We feel we should support local universities and extension services, as well as promote cooperation within the industry," he says.

But being active in the industry, maintaining succession, investing in machinery, being progressive, and having an adequate supply of luck are not the only reasons for the success of Okray Family Farms. According to Joseph, experience plays a major role. "People know that the old timers are usually the best because they have a lot of experience," he says. "That's why we think we're the best."

About Okray Family Farms...
Location: Plover, WI.
Founded: 1905, Inc. 1917
Size: 6460 acres
Crops: Sweet corn, field corn, potatoes and snap beans.
Market: Potatoes to fresh market, lower grades to dehydrators. Sweet corn and green beans to processors. Field Corn for Deer Feed.
Employees: 45 year-round, 70 during harvest time.
Philosophy: Experience is the key to a successful business.

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