MHD & Sons Farms Named Growers of the Year

mrandolphadvance@gmail.com

Tattnall County Farmer Herschel Durrence was recognized at the annual Vidalia Onion Banquet on February 8, as his business, MHD & Sons Farms, won Grower of the Year.

The Grower of the Year award celebrates the Vidalia Onion producer that has found the greatest amount of success each year. The award focuses on quality, production, and yield of onions. To be named Grower of the Year, recipients must be a registered Vidalia Onion grower, submit their reports and payments to the Vidalia Onion Committee in a timely manner, have very few consumer complaints, and support all that Vidalia Onions stand for.

Each year, three finalists are announced at the banquet; these finalists are then voted on by Vidalia Onion Festival Committee members. This year, those finalists were Hilliard Farms, Bland Farms, and MHD & Sons Farms.

Durrence began his farming operation as a row-crop producer, and eventually added onions to his operation in 2014. Though he only began with 50 acres of the crop, he has continuously added to his operation over the years, until now, onions are his main crop.

He further grew his business in 2022, when he and Michael Cutler purchased a new facility previously owned by Red Sky Ag in Evans County, and began MMH Packing, LLC. During the 2024 onion season, their facility moved 31 million pounds through its almost 47,000 square feet.