Let’s just be frank and say that without our people, we wouldn’t have a business. We recognized a long time ago that a business must be built from the ground up. The people that support that business by coming to work each and every day and toiling away, in what at times can be considered less than favourable conditions, is what makes Hotchkiss Produce work.

Most people that receive Hotchkiss Produce have met Megan L-J. She is our delivery driver that can keep pace with the best of delivery personnel. Some would even say that she has adopted the Mailman’s mantra to ensure that our veggies get delivered through sleet and hail and whatever road conditions that Calgary has to offer. In addition to making sure that our produce arrives at your doorstep Megan L-J helps pick and package the veggies that you receive.

We add spice to our lives by also having some gentlemen from Mexico work with us on a seasonal basis. Through the Mexican Seasonal Agriculture Workers’ Program, Victor, Mario, Leonel, Manuel, Antonio and Rosario work with us for 8 months each year. They leave their families to come and hand-pick spinach, dig up and wash carrots, remove stems from crops of arugula and literally spend hours picking beans. They truly are the backbone of our company.

Lindsay, our Greenhouse Manager, is that optimum “third leg of the stool”. In the business she helps Paul and Tracy run the show. After having graduated from Olds College, she gained plenty of experience over the years working with many varieties of plants and brings her technical knowledge to the operation. She orchestrates the planting and harvesting schedule while monitoring all of the inputs to ensure that Hotchkiss clients receive only the best produce. This, while maintaining a very calm demeanour.

Megan C., the gal in charge of growing our microgreens, wheatgrass and shoots does so with great pride. Coming to our greenhouses in October of 2010, she brought a lot of experience in growing plants. Her quiet and gentle ways allow for Megan to create a very harmonious environment in which she grows our quality greens. This is contrasted by the bumper sticker you can find on her car “Be All You Can Be: thrown, dragged, kicked, bitten, slimed, trampled, stomped on...”. Megan not only is a plant lover but also a huge horse enthusiast.

Sandra, having joined us in December of 2010, is our outdoorsy girl. Hailing from Manitoba, when she’s not camping or hiking, she can be found enjoying other aspects of what nature has to offer. Sandra concentrates her efforts, to a large extent, in being our tomato plant caretaker. Each week she endeavours to tame the plants of their unruly vines, finding the rewarding challenge of whipping them into shape so that our clients can enjoy our proprietary Heirloom tomatoes.

Ben also joined us in December of 2010. While he is a talented music man, we’re fortunate in having him working with us and lending his many other talents to our greenhouses. While we haven’t convinced him to play his guitar for the plants, he helps in so many ways. He wears many hats by helping with our pest control program, preparing beds for seeding, setting up irrigation systems and even harvests a mean bag of spinach.

Tracy is a person found to wear many hats. While most of the time she can be found buried under paperwork, she does come out to orchestrate the huge task of harvesting. She’s the person that customers contact when placing orders, expressing concerns and just basically when something is needed to be known about what’s fresh in the garden.

Paul is our quarterback. He is the visionary that continues to come up with the ideas that move Hotchkiss Produce forward. His passion for both growing things and the science related to this process is what keeps Hotchkiss Produce in the grocery stores and fine dining establishments.

This is our little team and you’d be surprised at how much work gets done around the farm. We believe firmly that it is because we have surrounded ourselves with people that share a common passion...growing veggies that are good for you!