US(CA): Phase 3 and 4 of Windset Farms expansion in full swing

Not everything came up smelling like roses last year for North American tomato growers, and it had little to do with growing vegetables.They fought a pair of legal and diplomatic battles with Mexican growers over what they called unfair pricing and labeling practices. The U.S. Department of Commerce and representatives from both sides of the border eventually worked out a tentative agreement to address both issues, which should make the tomato field a little more level for domestic growers.

“The tomato industry had a tough year last year. It was a very challenging year for everybody,” Windset Farms President Steven Newell said. Despite the challenges, Newell said that while Windset Farms California “didn’t defy gravity,” it certainly did well. So well that the company, with its twin 32-acre greenhouses and packaging plant in Santa Maria, began construction of its Phase 3 and Phase 4 greenhouses.

The two new phases at Windset California will double the size of the current greenhouse footprint, giving it 128 acres under glass — equivalent to 90 football fields. Project Director David Wesley said it will be the largest facility of its kind in North America when it’s complete.

Framing of Phase 3 is nearly complete and Phase 4 will follow soon.

Wesley said the company’s expansion plans are moving more quickly than he expected, mostly because of the climate of the market and the company’s working relationship with Santa Maria city administration.

“This is more aggressive than we had originally been scheduled for,” said Wesley, who has been with the British Columbia-based company for five years. “We thought there was going to be a three- to four-year gap, but that didn’t happen because of the way the climate is and the way the city has interacted with us. We couldn’t have asked more from the city.”

Windset Farms’ high-tech greenhouses are the model of efficiency, using 25 to 30 times less water than traditionally grown fields. The certified organic produce uses a hydroponics system to fill greenhouses with a variety of tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, eggplants, endives and lettuces.

Tomatoes are the vegetable of choice in the Santa Maria greenhouses, but Newell said cucumbers will be grown in one of the new phases.

The Dutch-designed greenhouses recycle both rain water and condensation and use such little energy the company received a $2.7 million check from Southern California Gas Co. for its efforts to conserve resources. It was the largest such award in the Gas Company’s 145-year history.

Source: santamariatimes.com