As a new decade is upon us, I find myself reflecting on the fact that 20/20 vision does not mean ‘perfect vision’ but more accurately, it defines the standard baseline for sharpness and clarity.
Perhaps the thing I am most proud of in my 40-plus year career is the teams that I have been proud to assemble and lead. I’ve often said that the produce industry requires a passion and personality unmatched by any other industry in the world of those who venture into it. Our industry is truly unlike any other.
The nature of the business requires efficiency without any guarantee of conformity—neither in the product nor in the environments surrounding the ability to grow, buy, and sell it. Perhaps, it is why I long ago came to conclude what attributes it takes to support this notion for any member of our industry. Those individuals that I believe are primed to succeed possess two key attributes. The first, is “attitude,” and the second, is the “ability to learn.” You may be surprised to learn that these two attributes can be easily measured using modern assessment tools. In my mind, these two attributes are the “buckets” that many of the qualities associated with successful people seem to fall into, be it leadership, perseverance, resiliency, flexibility, or even just plain hunger for knowledge and self-improvement.
In my life, I’ve been privileged to work alongside my family in my earliest days in the Toronto, Canada, wholesale environment while also cutting my teeth in the upper management of the largest retailers in the country. In addition, my professional career brought me into the leadership groups of some of the industry’s top-tier suppliers, guiding me currently to this most recent role in modernizing and shaping the next era within the OGVG community. At a time where a clear vision forward seems daunting, I’ve never been surer that our industry has attracted the talent to rise to both the opportunities and challenges. I like to think that creating high performance teams is at the root of what I am about…my purpose if you will.
"...To be a part of the produce industry is not only rewarding work but incredibly meaningful as well."
Joe Sbrocchi, General Manager, Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers
We enter this new decade with consumer interest at an all-time high, not only in their desire to eat healthier but also in caring to learn and know more about their food. The need to know where and how consumers’ food is grown has never been greater. The demand for fresh, flavorful, safe, and sustainable products are continuously being demanded of us, and we are committed to rising to the challenge. But make no mistake—it is an opportunity! It can seem a tall order, but what draws so many of us over the years to the produce life is the ability to revel in such meaningful work.
The home I have found in the Ontario greenhouse sector, in many ways, culminates in the best of what I think the produce sector has to offer. In the same small towns where, generations ago, new Canadians brought with them a taste of home, this emerging sector has since paved the way for families, businesses, and communities to grow around these farms. People, flavors, and technologies from around the world have shaped the course of greenhouse farming over a very short while.
The tables that we gather around to enjoy the spoils of harvest have also grown over those years. Perhaps most importantly, our sector has allowed many to stay, live, and work in the remarkable rural areas of our region. First and foremost, as a coach and mentor, the most exciting prospect to me is that the future of farming continues to create space to welcome more people with an ever diverse set of skills and experience to find a place in this important work, feeding families both near and far. There can be no nobler an endeavor than ensuring our next generations have an abundance of nourishing food.
My advice to those assembling the produce teams of the future is simple:
1. Provide a vision. A “team” starts with forming the right cultural environment
2. Look for diversity of thinking styles and skills, don’t hire solely in your own image
3. Like in sports, ensure that all play their roles, aligned to the vision
4. Lastly, celebrate the wins as well as thoroughly analysing and correcting the missteps. Never lose an opportunity to learn from your mistakes and course correct—in a positive manner—on a go-forward basis
We begin this new decade in an era of unprecedented change, at an ever-increasing rate. I have seen how the Ontario greenhouse growers and marketers have not shied away from this incredible pace and evolution. In fact, it could be argued they have often led the way in innovation and meeting these challenges while feeding more families increasingly fresher and safer produce. We’ve embraced our role and responsibility to be a partner in not only dealing with issues surrounding sustainability, unnecessary and problematic plastics, and the reduction of food waste, but also our commitment to provide to families where fresh food isn’t easy to access.
The generosity of our members, helping to build up the communities we serve, is a constant reminder that to be a part of the produce industry is not only rewarding work but incredibly meaningful as well.
I believe that so much of our promise lies in the roots of this sector—a handful of farm families who have evolved and grown to include over 13,000 people, and that’s in Ontario alone. In both traditional and new roles, the greenhouse sector continues to build an incredible community of people committed to the mission of leading our industry into a new era of farming.
As we embark on this new decade, I have never been more optimistic that while our 20/20 vision of the future will not be perfect, those finding their way into our industry will be ready to lead with a clear intent always to be moving forward and to be growing. 
