Griffin III to be inducted in Florida Agricultural Hall of Fame

Ben Hill Griffin III of Frostproof is one of four men who will be inducted next year in the Florida Agricultural Hall of Fame, the foundation announced Friday.

Also being installed during the 32nd annual awards celebration Feb. 9 are Richard Alger of Homestead, Rudy Hamrick of Madison, and the late Dan McClure of Bradenton.

"Florida agriculture owes an immense debt of gratitude to these outstanding leaders," said agriculture secretary Charles Bronson. "Their dedicated service in the areas of research, education, business and government helped make Florida agriculture into the remarkable industry that is known and admired around the world."

Griffin III is the son of legendary Florida land baron, citrus grower, and state legislator Ben Hill Griffin Jr. He has expanded his father's empire, diversifying the family agribusinesses and continuing his father's well-known tradition of philanthropy. As the head of Ben Hill Griffin Inc., one of Florida's largest citrus producers and a player in the Florida agribusiness Alico, Griffin III is one of the most influential people in the citrus industry.

Griffin was born in Lake Wales in 1942. He graduated from Frostproof High School and Central Florida Community College.He grew up working in his father's citrus groves and cattle ranches. He has three grown children, Ben Hill IV, Candace, and Kathryn.

Griffin III is chairman of the board and CEO of Ben Hill Griffin Inc., a private citrus and cattle company with 10,000 acres of citrus groves and 85,000 acres of ranch and timberland in Central Florida. Company holdings include Lake Wales Country Club and Griffin Fertilizer Company, one of Florida's largest producers of agricultural fertilizer.

Griffin chaired the Alico board from 1990 to 2004. In the 1970s, when Alico owned over 200,000 acres in Southwest Florida, the land was used primarily for citrus, timber, and cattle ranching. Griffin III diversified Alico to include sugarcane, sod, rock mining and real estate development.

In 1992, he acquired a controlling interest in Orange-co, a juice and beverage company that operates a large processing plant in Bartow.

Griffin became one of the few men personally involved in every aspect of the citrus industry - from planting, harvesting, and packing to processing and marketing.

He is a past chairman of the Florida Citrus Commission. Griffin is a member of Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association, Florida Agricultural Council executive committee, and Florida Agricultural Museum board of directors. He was recently inducted into the Florida Citrus Hall of Fame.

Ticket info: Hillsborough County Farm Bureau at 813-685-9121.

More hall of fame info: http://www.florida-agriculture.com/halloffame/index.htm