Ron Aprile, Aprile Farms, Inc., Hillsborough County
Ron Aprile: Changes in the dairy industry, fishing and the ‘Mooternity Ward’
Ron Aprile is a second-generation dairy farmer, whose father, Jimmie, started the family’s first farm in 1943 in Tampa, near the current location of the Florida State Fairgrounds. With brothers Joe and Dan, the three own and operate Aprile Farms Inc. in Riverview, milking about 500 cows. The family business also includes a beef cattle operation with more than 800 head in a few locations, including outside of Tampa and Plant City and in Pasco County. In addition, the Aprile brothers own some commercial real estate properties in the Tampa, Clearwater and St. Petersburg areas. Ron, 52, has been a member of the Florida Dairy Farmers board of directors since 2004. He and wife Debbie, 51, have two children, Ronnie, 27, and Francesca, 23. For about a dozen years, Aprile cows have been the star attraction at the Florida State Fair’s “Mooternity Ward,” where fairgoers can witness the birth of a calf. Dairy Matters caught up with Ron to ask him a few questions about the fair and the dairy industry.
Dairy Matters: How did you get started with the “Mooternity Ward” at the State Fair?
Ron Aprile: The fair asked us to do this exhibit at about 12 or 14 years ago. There had been a birthing exhibit, but when we took it over we brought in more cows. Typically, we’ll keep five cows at the fair that are expected to give birth. When one has a calf at the exhibit we will swap her out for another expecting cow the next day. When a cow goes into labor, the news is spread by word of mouth among the crowd, and the bleachers start to fill up. Then someone will announce on the PA system that a cow is about to give birth. Before you know it, you’ll have a large crowd in the bleachers waiting for the cow to give birth. I’ve seen folks wait several hours.
DM: What do you like most about working at the fair?
RA: It’s great to see people’s reaction to a cow giving birth. A lot of the kids and grownups have never been on a farm, much less seen that. They can’t believe it. It’s really something for them to see.
DM: What is the most unusual thing that has happened to you at the fair?
RA: Going to visit the fair with the family and having to stop in and give a helping hand to help deliver a calf.
DM: How and when did you start in the dairy industry?
RA: I worked part-time while attending school and on summer vacations while I was growing up. In the late 1970s I started working and managing full time. In the early 1990s we owned and operated three dairy farms, milking about 1,300 head. Today we have one farm in Riverview.
DM: What is the most rewarding aspect of being a dairy farmer?
RA: It’s great to be able to be around nature and produce such a nutritious commodity. What’s better than that? You are producing food.
DM: What is the most challenging?
AP: Dealing with all of the developmental and environmental pressures around us because we are close to a lot of residential areas.
DM: How has the industry – and your role in it – changed over the years?
RA: The milk market is much more volatile than it was years ago. The price of milk never fluctuated as much as it does today. It makes it tough when it goes down, and you can’t make any money. Another big factor is the cost of feed, which has skyrocketed in the past couple of years. Dairy farms are almost extinct in Hillsborough. They are down to three or four from about 60 to 70 in the 1950s and 1960s.
DM: If you were not a dairy farmer, what career would you choose?
RA: That’s a tough question, but I suppose I would run a beef cattle operation. It’s way less stressful that a dairy farm. It’s kind of peaceful even though you are working. You are out with nature, rounding up cattle on a horse.
DM: When you are not working, what do you do in your spare time?
RA: I enjoy saltwater and freshwater fishing. I fish a lot in Tampa Bay and offshore in the Gulf of Mexico. I also enjoy some hunting.
