Ben LaCross was elected the 17th president of Michigan Farm Bureau (MFB) on Dec. 4, 2024, at the organization’s 105th annual meeting.
A second-generation fruit grower in the northwestern Lower Peninsula, LaCross and wife Kelsey operate LaCross Farms, an 850-acre operation growing tart cherries, sweet cherries and plums with their two sons, Keaton and Cameron, daughter Lauren and his parents, Glen and Judy.
LaCross' Farm Bureau involvement is extensive. At the local level, he belongs to the Northwest Michigan Farm Bureau, which represents farmers in Grand Traverse and Leelanau counties. He has served on his county Farm Bureau's Membership and Policy Development committees.
At the state level, LaCross served four years on MFB’s Young Farmer Committee, including two (2007-08) as its chair, representing Young Farmers on the MFB Board of Directors. He has also served on MFB’s state-level Policy Development committee.
In 2006, LaCross was one of 20 Farm Bureau members who took part in an MFB-sponsored agricultural study tour of Europe, where participants met with their European counterparts to compare farm policies.
Nationally, American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) President Bob Stallman appointed LaCross and Kelsey to a two-year term (2010-12) on the AFBF Young Farmers and Ranchers (YF&R) Committee, where in 2011 his peers elected him chair for a one-year term ending in February 2012.
In January 2025, LaCross was selected by AFBF delegates to represent their 12-state Midwest region on the organization’s board of directors.
Outside Farm Bureau, LaCross serves as vice president of the Leelanau Horticulture Society.
LaCross earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from Central Michigan University. He and Kelsey are members of St. Mary Catholic Church in Lake Leelanau.