This transcript is AI generated; there may be mistakes.
We value the business that my father and grandfather started.
It's a family legacy.
My name is Ron Sant from George Sant and Sons Greenhouses.
We're located in Kleinburg, Ontario, which is just north of Toronto.
I am general manager of Young Plants and co-owner along with my brothers Rick and Dan.
George was my dad.
The business was started in 1947 with his father.
We have been a Young Plant producer since the mid-80s, starting off with Ball Superior when they were in the Toronto area located in Port Credit.
We have been a gold supplier for Ball Seed for 30 years.
Our customers are primarily the eastern part of Canada, but we do ship in other parts of Canada as well as the U.S.
Our focus is on Young Plants, but we do some finished items as well.
We're constantly investing in improving our structures, whether it's equipment or the environment we're working with.
My name is Miguel Sant.
I'm part of the fourth generation of the grower team here at George Sant and Sons, and I'm a production supervisor.
One of the main aspects that we focus on here at George Sant and Sons is our lighting that we provide for the plants during Young Propagation.
Due to our low levels of natural light during January and February months, we have to pay close attention to this, and recently we've invested in LED growing lights to supplement for that low light level.
We've also begun the process of converting our double poly greenhouses over to diffused glass so there's better levels of natural light during sunnier periods of the year.
Another aspect that we highly focus on is our water quality.
We've recently invested in nano bubble technology.
This improves the oxygen levels in the water that we use for propagation as well as getting rid of any contaminants that we might have in our water.
Additionally, we're also conducting soil testing frequently, and most importantly, we're maintaining relationships with our Ball partners, including tech team, quality assurance, and Ball's partner farms to make sure that we're bringing in the best possible product for our customers.
My name is Amanda McFadden, and I am the office administrator here for the programs that we offer to Ball.
I have daily contact with Ball, my supply manager, our supplier specialist, and the sales reps, and sometimes also our customers.
We continually strive to bring new and innovative products to our Ball programs.
I'm Mark Sant, and I'm manager of seed production here at Sant's.
I oversee all of the propagation that's done by seeding.
That involves the ordering of the seed, the management of stock, and the stock of the plants, the plug trays themselves out in the greenhouse.
We always like to trial material in-house to ensure that we can successfully grow it so that we can then offer it confidently to our customers.
We're monitoring those trays on a daily, even hourly basis.
In regards to the patching of the trays, we already have a built-in overstart in the system, so we will sow extras and then have either a machine or humans patch the trays to ensure that the trays are in fact full.
Not only the plant count, we're after the plant quality.
One of the main investments in production efficiency that we're engaging in now is implementing some sort of automation and AI.
We've recently acquired an ISO cutting planter, and we've also acquired a TTA cutting edge that is on its way.
We're excited to work with both teams as we start to integrate this more into our business model.
We deal electronically with Ball, so everything is done through our software on a day-to-day basis.
Wherever possible, we use our own trucks.
We have a fleet of trucks as well as smaller straight trucks, sprinter vans, so we can deliver product with our own drivers to ensure the product gets there safe and sound.
Working with Ball Seed is a true partnership.
They run their business like a family business, much the same as we do.
I have worked with Ball for almost 25 years.
I have spent the last 18 here at George Sant and Sons.
I treasure the daily interaction with the Ball Seed team.
The thing that I most value about my job is just the relationship that I have with the Sant family.
I've watched their fourth generation grow up from young children to now, so that's very heartwarming to me to see them progress and take an interest in the business.
I've been growing up in the greenhouses all my life.
I explored outside of the business before coming back to it, and I really value the family-oriented business here.
I think there's something to be said for legacy and doing my family proud, especially my grandfather, who we were all very close to.
He was really an amazing person, so to try and make him happy wherever he is now, it means a lot to us.
I also value the passion for plants.
I've grown up with plants since I was very young, and I really enjoy working with them.
Lastly, I value our staff.
Without our staff, we'd be nothing.
We have a good group of passionate people that help us along the way, and without them, we would not survive.