Spring has sprung in British Columbia, and Dirk de Jong, VP & regional facility manager for Village Farms' Delta, BC greenhouses–who is celebrating 25 years of service with the company this month– is ready. De Jong and his team are excited for a fresh new season and the new varietals the company is trialing this year. "B.C. has emerged from a long winter, and with the spring weather, we are experiencing excellent light levels and temperatures that the plants love, all helping us to produce a healthy, vibrant crop."
A look at some of the tomatoes Village Farms is harvesting currently.
De Jong says Village Farms is currently harvesting small fruit tomato varieties such as Heavenly Villagio Marzano®, Good Day Sunshine®, Cabernet Estate Reserve®, and Cherry no. 9®, Lip Smackn' Grape®. "We are also beginning to harvest our larger varieties, including cocktails such as Sinfully Sweet Campari® and Sensational Sara®, which is an internal red large cocktail," he says. "Our tomato on the vine variety we call Delectable TOV®, Exquisite Heirlooms® in many colors, and our Juicy Beefsteak® variety are also ready to pick."
With the Canadian Produce Marketing Association Convention & Trade Show being held in Vancouver this year, April 23-25, Village Farms Fresh has much to celebrate, given this coincided with the initial harvesting of its new local B.C. Grown crop.
Some of the Village Farms team.
"The plants look strong and vibrant, and the juicy fruit is ready for picking," says Maurice van der Giessen, Delta's greenhouse site manager.
The company will showcase its line of BC Grown tomato, pepper, and cucumber products offered in a variety of pack sizes at its booth, #241. "CPMA is always a wonderful networking event where we get to engage with our customers while highlighting all our fresh and full-of-flavor local BC-grown products. We will be celebrating the spring crop and all of our growers in the area to highlight our locally grown 'BC Grown' program.' We will also have local Chef Darren Brown serving up some really tasty treats for our visitors."
The company's varieties of tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers are available 365 days a year coming from three growing regions: Canada, U.S., and Mexico.
The Sinfully Sweet Campari tomatoes are just beginning to harvest.
Village Farms Fresh customers can look forward to promotional opportunities that will help to expand its businesses with locally grown BC product and drive category sales. Ask about these opportunities when visiting Village Farms Fresh's booth during CPMA.
For more information:
Helen L. Aquino
Village Farms International Inc.
Tel.: +1 (407) 936-1190
www.villagefarms.com