Gwillimdale Farms
Volm, and partner Wyma Solutions, were recently afforded the opportunity to work with the Gwillimdale Farms team in achieving equipment production efficiencies while increasing their carrot production goals as part of a multi-piece installation.
After the installation, we asked members of the Gwillimdale team if they’d be so kind as to allow us the chance to travel to their Bradford, Ontario facility for an opportunity to tour, capture some video of their equipment in operation and take part in a Q & A with the Volm team of John Moretto (Sales Engineer) and Dan Husnick (Equipment Product Manager).
The Volm team was graciously welcomed by owner John Hambly along with key members of his group including Quinton Woods in Operations Management and Courtney Enns, Marketing Management.
The Gwillimdale Farms story is unique in that they take tremendous pride in their day-to-day in bringing the highest quality of product while also being forward focused to the future of farming through sustainable practices. As John Hambly told us, “It's a very sustainable farm in taking in different technologies and always looking for new technologies from all over the world. Gwillimdale is a very diverse farm. It grows a total of 5000 acres of crops, with 1500 acres of vegetables and 3500 acres of grains and oilseeds.”
Marketing Manager Courtney Enns shared “We value educating consumers on our product, its nutritional benefits, where it comes from, and the industry-leading equipment and technologies that we use before it is put on the shelf in front of them. It is important to us that our customers and consumers know the care, quality, and extra mile we go in everything that we do. Giving back is at the core of our values, and we hope everybody gets to experience the ‘Gwillimdale difference’.”
When asked about the problems and challenges they were facing that led to the search for this equipment for their facility, Woods shared: “So, the reality is we've tried many different pieces of equipment throughout the last couple of years in our facility. We kept going back to the Wyma equipment time and time again.” He also explained some of the pain they endured before making the call to the Volm/Wyma team. “We had pulled a line in and out of our facility three times, and it was at that point where we realized that Wyma was the equipment that we were after.”
A project of this size never comes without some obstacles during the installation and transitioning of processes. Woods spoke to the support and collaboration in working through these bumps to ultimately reach the point of operating with the new line. “Working with Volm and Wyma on the installation was a very thorough process. We had project managers from Volm, and we had a project manager from Wyma. We had a full installation team from WYMA come over from New Zealand.”
“Volm and Wyma met all our needs here at Gwillimdale, and there's no reason why we wouldn't recommend Volm and Wyma’s Total Solution Package,” Woods added.
About Wyma Solutions: Originally founded as a local manufacturer of agricultural and produce handling equipment supporting its local New Zealand produce growers, Wyma now is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of post-harvest fruit and vegetable handling equipment. Through dealer/partner relationships, the Wyma team co-collaborates to match its solutions to specific conditions and requirements.
About Gwillimdale Farms: Family-owned and operated by the Hambly family, the farm is now seeing a 5th generation in the business. The farm plants over 2,000 acres with vegetables and today is Ontario’s largest grower, packer, and shipper of fresh root vegetables. Crops include carrots, parsnips, beets, onions, and potatoes. Gwillimdale Farms prides itself with its high-quality products that are grown, harvested, cleaned, packed, and shipped direct from its farm to the store shelf.
