How Field Vegetable Growers Are Dealing With Post-Pandemic Challenges

Posted by Brian Sparks|July 12, 2022

Much like their peers who produce crops in a controlled environment, outdoor field vegetable growers have had to deal with post-pandemic supply chain issues and rising costs this year.

As part of its State of the Industry coverage, the editors of American Vegetable Grower magazine, published by Meister Media Worldwide (Greenhouse Grower’s parent company), reached out to three leading growers to get their take on rising costs, rising demand, labor and more. The growers included:

Bob Jones, Jr. CEO of Chef’s Garden in Ohio, which has more than 10 acres of controlled-environment production and 100 to 500 acres overall, and sells direct to the consumer and to national restaurants.
Bruce Frasier, President of Dixondale Farms in Texas, which grows onions and cantaloupe
Christopher Coelho, Crop Manager at Woolf Farming in California, which produces processing tomatoes and fresh-market garlic on more than 2,500 acres.

“We are in a growth mode, post pandemic. Prior to the pandemic, we were a restaurant-centric operation. We have since added a home delivery model and a retail outlet on the farm. And those additions have caused us to modify and increase many items and to decrease a few as well,” Jones says. “Like many farming operations, we had to diversify our operations as a result of the ever-changing business climate we find ourselves in the midst of currently. We are vegetable growers at heart. And we want to help as many people along our path as possible. Customers, our team, our vendors, and our community.”

Learn more about each operation, how they are handling current challenges, and what you might be able to learn from them, here.