Canada's greenhouse sector continually find ways to innovate

In the heart of the tomato capital of Canada, Pure Hothouse has an unlikely vegetable growing on the vine: baby eggplant. When the Leamington, Ont. company first commissioned its greenhouse grower, Five Star Farms, to grow baby eggplant in 2008, it started out with just one row. With steady growth in sales in this niche market, the company now has 2.5 acres of purple, graffiti and white baby eggplant.

It’s small potatoes compared to Pure Hothouse’s massive tomato, cucumber and pepper operation, but illustrates the company’s innovative mindset. Pure HotHouse trials 50 to 100 new varieties each season, with the goal of improving its existing products and finding new ones.

“We’re not afraid of testing several ideas to see if they’ll work in the marketplace,” says Jamie Moracci, president of Pure Hothouse, which markets and distributes its products under the Pure Flavor brand. “We understand that not everything we try will pan out, but it’s necessary to go through the steps in order to find new products that will give us an edge with retailers and consumers.”

Read the complete interview Moraci of Pure Hothouse and Chris Veilon of Mastronardi at Canadian Manufacturing.com