Despite a report of record-setting hail in Michigan, the produce trade itself is breathing a sigh of relief.

Mitch Brinks, a salesman for Riveridge Produce Marketing Inc. in Sparta, MI, said there was a brief hail storm Aug. 2 within a violent wind storm that struck Michigan’s fruit ridge. The small volume of hail was soft, Brinks said. If there were any damage to the apple crop, it would be so minor that the fruit would outgrow it.

Brinks hadn't heard of any areas in Michigan that were damaged by the storm except for areas farther north near Traverse City.

Aaron Fletcher, sales and logistics associate for Todd Greiner Farms Packing LLC in Hart, MI, which is an hour south of Traverse City, said the firm had experienced no damage from the storm.

“We were fortunate the worst part of the storm hit north of us,” said Fletcher. “We had some heavy rains, and some wind, but nothing that did excessive damage.”

At Applewood Orchards Inc., located in Deerfield in the southeastern portion of the state, Scott Swindeman said, “As far as the Sunday storm, there is some damage in the northern part of the state but overall, we dodged a huge bullet.”

Swindeman said the apple industry probably gained more from the needed rain storm that it lost in a few apples that were blown off the trees in high winds.

“In northern Michigan they were beat up pretty bad” by a hailstorm, he said. But as that violent storm stretched across the state, the hail disappeared and there was virtually no damage.