Drawing on its advantages as a pioneer and innovator, Ontario is taking protected agriculture to new dimensions in the North American greenhouse capital. Learn how the industry continues to leverage technology to increase yields, broaden product offerings, and maintain high quality—all while besting the inherent challenges of growing perishables.
Greenhouse cultivation in Canada, as well as the rest of the world, continues to gain popularity as consumers demand high-quality produce year-round. With over 165 million square feet devoted to greenhouses, Ontario accounts for over two-thirds of Canada’s output, with an acreage hike of more than 30 percent over the last several years.
Separating Fact from Fallacy
Greenhouse technology is all about controlling the growing environment to optimize production—something conventional growers are unable to do with the seasonal vicissitudes of Mother Nature.
Ray Wowryk, director of business development at NatureFresh Farms Sales, Inc. in Leamington, reiterates the most obvious advantages of greenhouses: not only do they protect plants from outdoor elements like storms, extreme heat, or excessive rain and snow, but “we can control temperature, we can control sunlight, and we can control applications for nutrition, feeding, and watering.”
Greenhouses also avoid possible cross-contamination from nearby field crops, brought by irrigation or animals, or carried by the wind. When added to the scope of integrated pest management techniques, including sophisticated biocontrol agents such as beneficial insects, parasites, or pathogens to keep diseases and pests at bay, there is much to laud about the process. Unfortunately, despite all the pros associated with greenhouse growing, there are a few cons—including general confusion about growing methods and the sterile environment.
Among the more common misconceptions is that seeds used for various crops have been genetically modified. Shalin Khosla, greenhouse vegetable specialist for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs in Harrow, says it’s important for consumers to know seeds are bred traditionally, without genetically modified processes. “People think that because greenhouses are so efficient, they must be doing something different than traditional farming.”
Chris Veillon, chief marketing officer at Pure Hothouse Foods in Leamington, discusses another somewhat surprising downside. He says when people see workers in white hazmat-type suits, they think the worst rather than in the most simple or obvious terms, that the suits protect the crops from outside contaminants. “These plants grow in an environment made just for them,” he stresses, “so we need to maintain certain protocols to respect this optimal growing environment.”
Drawing on its advantages as a pioneer and innovator, Ontario is taking protected agriculture to new dimensions in the North American greenhouse capital. Learn how the industry continues to leverage technology to increase yields, broaden product offerings, and maintain high quality—all while besting the inherent challenges of growing perishables.
Greenhouse cultivation in Canada, as well as the rest of the world, continues to gain popularity as consumers demand high-quality produce year-round. With over 165 million square feet devoted to greenhouses, Ontario accounts for over two-thirds of Canada’s output, with an acreage hike of more than 30 percent over the last several years.
Separating Fact from Fallacy
Greenhouse technology is all about controlling the growing environment to optimize production—something conventional growers are unable to do with the seasonal vicissitudes of Mother Nature.
Ray Wowryk, director of business development at NatureFresh Farms Sales, Inc. in Leamington, reiterates the most obvious advantages of greenhouses: not only do they protect plants from outdoor elements like storms, extreme heat, or excessive rain and snow, but “we can control temperature, we can control sunlight, and we can control applications for nutrition, feeding, and watering.”
Greenhouses also avoid possible cross-contamination from nearby field crops, brought by irrigation or animals, or carried by the wind. When added to the scope of integrated pest management techniques, including sophisticated biocontrol agents such as beneficial insects, parasites, or pathogens to keep diseases and pests at bay, there is much to laud about the process. Unfortunately, despite all the pros associated with greenhouse growing, there are a few cons—including general confusion about growing methods and the sterile environment.
Among the more common misconceptions is that seeds used for various crops have been genetically modified. Shalin Khosla, greenhouse vegetable specialist for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs in Harrow, says it’s important for consumers to know seeds are bred traditionally, without genetically modified processes. “People think that because greenhouses are so efficient, they must be doing something different than traditional farming.”
Chris Veillon, chief marketing officer at Pure Hothouse Foods in Leamington, discusses another somewhat surprising downside. He says when people see workers in white hazmat-type suits, they think the worst rather than in the most simple or obvious terms, that the suits protect the crops from outside contaminants. “These plants grow in an environment made just for them,” he stresses, “so we need to maintain certain protocols to respect this optimal growing environment.”
The Leamington Advantage
As an early entrant to greenhouses in North America, Leamington began its growing odyssey in the late 1970s and early 1980s, according to Wowryk. “There’s a lot of history,” he says, as well as industry firsts with “technology that has been introduced and evolved through the Leamington area.” Growers in the region truly have it down to a science—with the right climate, the right location, and plenty of experience and leadership to back them up.
The clustering of older and newer greenhouses in the region provides a base of experience, knowledge, and marketing élan to the sector. In response, manufacturers and suppliers catering to the industry have set up shop too, and a wealth of expertise and advice can be gleaned from the nearby Harrow Research Station as well.
Add three major terminal markets (the Ontario Food Terminal in Toronto and two markets in nearby Detroit, Michigan), as well as plentiful transportation options, and Leamington is rightfully a mecca for greenhouse-grown product.
One might classify the rising minimum wage in Canada as a drawback to greenhouse production cost ratios, but Ontario’s pay has tended to be higher than other provinces anyway. This in itself is not a major threat as much of the process is automated, with a move toward more in the near future.
Although it is expensive to invest in high-tech automation, the investment is likely to be repaid as labor costs rise and worker availability falls. “Without adequate offshore labor programs and with a lack of farming labor, growers are looking at all aspects of the operation—whether it’s growing, harvesting, or packing—that they can automate to minimize overhead costs,” observes Wowryk.
Investment & Returns
Although the rewards are plentiful, the initial investment to set up a greenhouse operation can be rather steep, serving as another deterrent. According to Khosla, depending on the type of greenhouse, the initial investment can range from about C$750,000 to C$1 million per acre.
Another factor affecting profit and loss is legislation by the Ontario provincial government to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. “The cap-and-trade program has slightly increased the cost of energy for growers,” admits Khosla. “So now growers have to be more efficient to make that manageable.”
Leamington’s own climate means growers must manage significant temperature variability in winter and summer months. To help deal with seasonal highs and lows and ensure cost-effective availability and delivery of product all year, a number of growers are venturing out of the area and scouting new locations in the United States, Mexico, and Central and South America.
Leamington-based Pure Hothouse Foods, Inc. broke ground on a 75-acre greenhouse facility in Georgia last September, while NatureFresh Food Sales not only expanded its Ontario acreage but recently built a greenhouse facility in Ohio. Red Sun Farms, also based in Leamington, has greenhouses in Virginia and Mexico. All chose locations with ample logistics and natural resources, along with economic incentives to help defray startup and operational costs.
Other locations within Canada are competing for new greenhouse acreage too, as provinces across the country build new facilities from British Columbia to Quebec and nearly everywhere in between. Ontario, of course, dominates, but both Quebec and British Columbia have significant acreage, and Alberta isn’t too far behind.
Facts & Figures
The Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers, based in Leamington, offers a host of information about the province’s thriving greenhouse sector. Here are some interesting facts and figures:
• in spite of the greenhouse sector’s worldwide growth, Leamington’s industry continues to shine as it edges closer to a billion dollars in annual farm gate value
• there are 220 licensed and food safety-audited members from across Ontario
• total acreage in Ontario is over 2,700 acres, tended by 13,000 workers
• tomatoes (beefsteak, cherry, cocktail, grape, Roma, and on-the-vine varieties) account for over 36 percent of acreage
• peppers (bell, hot, and mini peppers) account for 35 percent of acreage
• cucumbers (regular-size, mini, and cocktail seedless varieties) account for the remaining 29 percent of acreage
• a whopping 70 percent of production is exported to the United States.
An added bonus for British Columbia and Quebec is their location, positioned on opposite coasts and, like Ontario, near major metro populations in the United States. As such, their greenhouses can provide product to Canadian and American markets, reducing shipping time and food miles to millions of consumers.
Veillon expects the trend of expanding outside Leamington to continue, because it’s simple math. “The need for more fresh fruit and vegetables is increasing throughout North America; the ability to grow locally is also increasing with the need to reduce food miles.”
Yield vs. Flavor?
For many in the industry, the top attributes of greenhouse production remain a reduction in waste resulting from consistency in yield, color, size, and flavor.
Several innovations are leading the way. First, tinkering with light, natural and artificial, can lengthen the growing cycle and reduce dependence on other markets during off-peak production. Second, using various types of screens can prevent excessive sunlight, and also minimize destructive bugs.
On the construction side, using diffused glass instead of plastic can more evenly distribute sunlight. Lastly, another trend is building taller greenhouse structures, which reportedly can better manage temperature variations.
According to Wowryk, there has been greater emphasis on flavor profile over yields in recent years. “Consumers are looking for better-tasting produce and are willing to support those who are consistent in this area,” he asserts. “The best opportunity for anyone in the greenhouse industry is to pay attention to this trend.”
Although keeping tomatoes on the vine longer enhances flavor, many are harvested due to market demands. Nevertheless, it’s still a fine tomato. “We can take a so-so variety of tomato, and at the end of the day it can perform very well for flavor,” explains Wowryk. “It gathers its sugar and its sweetness on the vine, not trying to ripen up in a box.”
Color & Size Combinations
For tomatoes, in addition to the traditional red color, Leamington growers are cultivating orange, yellow, and even brown fruit. Size can range from small cocktail size to medium Romas to large beefsteak tomatoes. Older heirloom varieties are also back with rising consumer demand. For growers, it’s an expanding rainbow of opportunities.
“As you change the shape and the color, you are also looking at different flavors and tastes,” enthuses Khosla.
Peppers, too, come in a dizzying array of sizes, shapes, and colors—encompassing both sweet and hot varieties. Colors range from red, green, orange, yellow, and even brown, though not many growers favor the chocolate-colored peppers. For cucumber output, growers favor the traditional green but provide multiple sizes and flavors in seedless varieties.
Newer offerings from the Leamington industry are berries and various types of lettuce. Both greenhouse strawberries and lettuce are already on the market, according to Khosla. Some growers are also trying to cultivate caneberries, such as blackberries and blueberries. Depending on how well the berries perform in the marketplace, growers could expand production to keep pace with the highly popular berry market.
Outlook
Though the Leamington greenhouse industry has reason to be proud of its success, growers cannot be complacent. They must deal with the downsides of labor costs (including the alternative to human workers—more automation, which is costly to develop and implement) and provincial regulation (requiring growers to be even more energy efficient than now) and international trade (from NAFTA to global tariffs).
For the moment though, Khosla says, “The greenhouse sector in Ontario has been growing at about 6 percent annually for the last 10 years, and this seems to be continuing. From what I’ve heard, the number of acres going in will be another 6 percent this year.”
