Ken Corbett Farms, LLC

Ken Corbett Farms, LLC

In 1972, my father, Louis Corbett and his brother, Mac Corbett were the first farmers to grow bell pepper and eggplant commercially in the Lake Park area. Our summer days would start off with a crew of cousins, aunts, uncles and neighborhood children picking bell pepper and eggplant and loading it into the bed of the pickup trucks. These heaping loads were then taken to the shade of the large sycamore trees in front yard of Granny and Grandpa’s house. The produce was rinsed with a garden hose and graded into wooden crates on the tailgate of the trucks.
The “crew” enjoyed Granny’s fried chicken at lunch, which was almost payment enough for our labors. After our long day of work, we would make the trip to the Thomasville Farmers Market. Uncle Mac would stop and buy us kids ice cream. These are my fond memories of growing up on a family farm.
As I was older, one of my duties was to haul the “hands” to and from work. One of those “hands” became my wife. Thus, the building of my own farm began.
In March 1987, while transplanting bell pepper, Kim began to have labor pains. We say our oldest son, Justin, was nearly born in a pepper field. That must be why he loves it so much. Our next two children, Jessica and Jared, did not get their beginnings in a pepper field. However, they spent many hours in a playpen with a makeshift shade of produce boxes.
A lot has changed since my father packed his vegetables beneath the canopy of those sycamore trees. Today, our tractors can steer themselves. Plastic mulch and drip irrigation help us conserve water. Our grading is done with state of the art imaging technology. Packing is done in a climate controlled environment. Trips to the Thomasville Farmers Market have been replaced with “on the farm” marketing and direct shipments from the farm to customers throughout the United States and Canada.
One thing that has not changed is the “Corbett Commitment”. At 80 years old, Papa Corbett still comes by to make sure things are being done properly. Uncle Chester and Harry ride by to look at the crops and occasionally do a taste test. Our kids have all chosen to continue to work on the family farm with Kim and me. We are 100% committed to providing high quality and safe produce to our customers.