US (VA): Red Sun Farms breaks ground for new operations this week
After researching the park and speaking to a few Virginia Tech experts, Red Sun decided the region sits at the right altitude, with the right climate and market conditions. Jeff Burr, the manager of the Virginia Tech horticulture department’s greenhouses, said more light reaches the ground because the New River Valley has one of the highest elevations on the East Coast. The region also has a large deviation between night and day temperatures, which makes it ideal for vegetable growth.
The area is also suitable from an entomology standpoint, according to Thomas Kuhar, a Virginia Tech entomologist. In an email to The Roanoke Times, he listed a variety of pests that have devastated tomato crops in other parts of the country but don’t exist in the New River Valley.
Gov. Bob McDonnell spoke at the Red Sun Farms announcement ceremony in March. A short distance from the podium sat a colorful bouquet of bell peppers showcasing some of the vegetable grower’s work.
They expect to start moving dirt at the Commerce Park in the coming weeks. The first of three phases should be finished by next summer, according to Carlos Visconti, chief operating officer of JemD Farms, which, along with Red Sun, is a subsidiary of Agrícola El Rosal.
The high-tech greenhouse will be computerized with everything from the temperature to the feeding process monitored constantly. It will produce only tomatoes at first but plans to eventually grow cucumbers as well.
According to Visconti’s calculations, it should accommodate 10,000 tomato plants on each of its 50 acres. Each plant produces about 65 pounds of produce, meaning the facility expects to put out more than 32 million pounds of tomatoes each year.
Visconti said Red Sun Farms is excited to be the first tenant at Commerce Park, but the work isn’t finished yet. Before they can be fully operational, he said, the park will need to be outfitted with all the basic utilities.
“Hopefully we can get some special treatment and have all that utilities ready on time,” Visconti said.
According to Red Sun’s contract with Virginia’s First, the entire $30 million project must be up and running by the end of 2016. It will employ 205 full-time workers, 15 of whom must be in management positions with salaries greater than $40,000 per year. The average wage for the rest of the company’s work force must be at least $12 per hour.
Source: roanoke.com
