The Foothill Story
Post World War II, Bob Voorberg made the trek from the Netherlands to Canada to start a new life. Like many of his immigrating countrymen, he landed in the Dutch settlement known as the Holland Marsh. The Marsh is a 20,000 acre pocket of fertile organic farmland and wetland on the North end of the Greater Toronto Area. After spending his first number of years working for other farmers, Bob decided to start his own business growing flowers initially, and later moving on to tomatoes.
When Bob's son Ron was finished his Agricultural Science degree at the University of Guelph around the time of 1979, the company Foothill Greenhouses Ltd. was born. It was also around this time that the switch was made from growing tomatoes to English seedless cucumbers, the product that we are known for today. At this point in the journey, the farm was approximately 1.5 acres in size and had 4 employees.
The 1980's and 90's held big changes and explosive growth opportunities for Foothill. Over this decade, the farm grew to 10 acres in size, with bigger and more well-equipped packaging and irrigation facilities. It was also at this time that Foothill took two of its biggest risks by investing in hydroponic plant systems and wood-burning boilers for heat production.
Since then the farm has continued to expand at a rapid pace. Around the early 2000's, we built our own plant propagation house with flood floors where we are able to grow our own seedlings, rather than purchase them from a supplier. The flood floors allow us to water the seedlings gently by flooding the floor from below, rather than our previous methods of raining water from above. In 2007, the third 5-acre block of greenhouses was built, resulting in a total of 15 acres of production. In 2009, we built a new 20,000 square foot packaging and shipping building to accommodate our growing need for storage, as well as floor space for our advanced equipment. In 2017 Foothill commissioned a Cogeneration plant, enabling us to run a high-efficiency generator to supply electricity to the Ontario power grid when there is high demand for it, while capturing the heat produced in the plant to warm the greenhouses.
In 2018, the family began a succession plan that brought the 3rd generation into ownership. Chris and Trevor Voorberg aim to carry on the family legacy, continuing to provide safe and healthy produce for a growing North American population, while having a positive impact on the community in which they operate.
We continue to look for new opportunities to learn and grow in our expertise and abilities, and each year are faced with new and unique challenges that help push us to greater heights. As we continue to build and grow, we are thankful for God's blessings and for the fruitfulness of our labour, knowing that all good things come from above.