LANSING — It was the middle of July, nineteen-eighty-something, and summer in Manistee was in full-swing. My routine usually consisted of a couple hours of pick-up basketball, a couple hours at the beach, maybe mow a lawn or two for some pocket money, and then grab a friend to wander downtown River Street until we ran out of daylight.
The journey always began on the west end, at the Corner Pocket arcade, to do battle with space invaders, centipedes, and the fearsome foursome of Inky, Pinky, Blinky and Clyde. The journey inevitably ended on the east end, at the House of Flavors restaurant, for a scoop of chocolate ice cream. Or Blue Moon. Or bubble gum. Or a triple scoop of all three.
Life was simple, and my universe was small. I had no idea that something as basic as the frozen treat in my hand not only represented decades of family history, but also helped employ hundreds of people in my community and around the state. I mean, it’s just an ice cream cone, right?
Fast forward a couple decades (okay, maybe three), and I find myself inside the House of Flavors production facility in Ludington, Michigan, where they are in the final stages of an expansion that will create 30 new jobs, help them keep up with industry trends, and bring in new customers from around the world.
I’m there with HOF Chairman Bob Neal, HOF President Whit Gallagher, and two coworkers-slash-agriculture development experts from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, which helped get the new project off the ground with a performance-based grant of $100,000. We were there to tour the facility and check out the new equipment. Well, my coworkers were. I was there to hopefully sample some Michigan Pothole ice cream. Which I did.
The House of Flavors story began in 1948, when Bob Neal Sr. purchased 50 percent of Miller Dairy, which produced milk, buttermilk, cottage cheese, and ice cream. Soon after, Al Miller retired, and Park Dairy stopped processing milk to focus solely on ice cream. In 1964, Park Dairy changed its name to House of Flavors. After a series of ups and downs, risks and rewards, House of Flavors eventually emerged as Michigan’s largest ice cream maker, producing 25 million gallons of ice cream every year.
Let me repeat that: TWENTY-FIVE MILLION GALLONS. Every. Single. Year.
That’s the wonder of House of Flavors. Standing outside its Ludington diner in the summer, watching the endless line of people stretch out onto the streets, you’re almost guaranteed to miss the unbelievably compact and efficient production facility crouched just behind it.
Inside this facility is a labyrinth of humming mixers and whirring conveyors creating a ballet of multicolored dessert delights. Dozens of determined yet friendly production workers flow around us seamlessly as we do our best to just stay out of their way.
In addition to updating the existing facility, the project included the installation of a new spiral freezer and new packaging lines. These critical additions will allow House of Flavors to produce a variety of products for domestic and international buyers. I’m not really allowed to mention them by name, but trust me: it’s a pretty big deal.
With a price-tag of more than $5 million, MDARD’s $100,000 contribution to the project might seem just like my triple-scoop ice cream cone did to the entire bottom line of the HOF diner in Manistee, but in reality, it was an integral part of upgrading the city’s infrastructure so that it could support the added production of House of Flavors and pave the way for more jobs in that area and around the state.
It was a lot of fun getting to see the House of Flavors in a way I never knew existed. And I had a blast returning there for day three of WJR’s Pure Michigan Ag Tour with Paul W. Smith and his amazing crew earlier this month.
Life is funny. Thirty years have passed, and I now live three hours away from my home town, but a long career and an MDARD grant showed me something that had been right in front of my face for years. Back then, it was just a simple ice cream cone; but now when I have the chance to get a scoop—or pick up a half-gallon of an HOF-produced brand at the grocery store—I have a whole new appreciation for the people, the families, the partners, and the history that made it possible.
So, if you’re ever in the area, I highly recommend that you stop into House of Flavors and get yourself a scoop. Or three. Oh, and a hot turkey sandwich. They’re unbelievable.
— Jessy J. Sielski, MDARD Deputy Public Information Officer
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