Canadian greenhouse growers have noticed a greater focus on domestic production. While “elbows up” is a hockey term to protect a player’s personal space, it has become something more personal to Canadians and their shopping habits at the grocery store.
Shift Toward Purposeful Purchasing
Mark Reimer, research and business development manager for Great Lakes Greenhouses, says the “elbows up” mentality has expanded to how consumers connect with the produce grown in the province and country. It is a shift from passive buying to an active preference for homegrown quality, effectively turning Canadian products into the gold standard for freshness and reliability.
“As a family-owned and operated greenhouse, the ‘Buy Canadian’ movement has made it more personal,” Reimer says. “Consumers are actively looking to support businesses like ours, and they’re more aware that greenhouse produce is grown right here at home, year-round.”
He says this has also shifted the conversation away from price to the unique value proposition that Ontario-grown produce provides.
“People are thinking about reliability, food security and supporting local communities,” he says. “That’s helped greenhouse production be seen as not only consistent and high-quality but also something Canadians can feel good about choosing.”
Reimer says retailers have also taken notice and capitalized on that interest.
“We’re seeing more emphasis on highlighting Canadian-grown products, which really helps tell our story,” he says. “Overall, it’s strengthened trust and created a closer connection between growers and consumers.”
Nature Fresh Farms CEO Patrick Criteser says retailers see Ontario greenhouse-grown produce as part of a strong domestic supply.
“Consumers are asking more questions about where their food comes from, and greenhouse growing fits well with what they’re looking for: local, year-round, dependable,” he says.
“We’ve always focused on understanding how people actually shop and eat, and right now there’s clearly more interest in Canadian-grown. It just brings more visibility to what greenhouses can offer,” he adds.
Haven Greens founder and CEO Jay Willmot says this “elbows up” mentality is evolving into a long-term shift in consumer behavior.
“Canadian products are no longer viewed as a backup option but rather the gold standard for freshness and reliability,” he says.
Capturing Market Share With New Commodities
Willmot says there’s a push from consumers for Haven Greens to expand beyond greens — a bit of a mix between diversifying risk and standing out. Diversifying helps protect the operator from price volatility in a commodity but also helps position the whole Ontario greenhouse industry as growers capable of meeting a much broader demand.
“We’re seeing a growing push into soft fruits like strawberries and blueberries, leafy greens and fresh herbs, commodities that consumers want year-round but that Canada has historically imported,” he says. “These aren’t just exciting growing opportunities; they represent a real chance to capture market share that has always belonged to foreign producers.”
Reimer also says Great Lakes Greenhouses has seen interest in specialty or niche items, as well as in premium and value-added segments. This includes snackable formats and specialty varieties. This presents an opportunity for differentiation without shifting to a new commodity.
Criteser says there’s always interest in expanding offerings, but he says a lot of the focus on innovation tends to stem around how consumers use the products at home.
“The real opportunity is in doing something better — better flavor, better and more convenient eating experience, something that stands out,” he says.
Reimer also says there’s growing interest from consumers in convenience, health trends and sustainability.
“Retailers want products that tell a story and bring margin, not just volume,” he says.
And this ability to expand into new crops is possible thanks to advancements in lighting and climate control precision.
“This opens the door to crops that historically couldn’t be grown economically in Ontario,” he says.
Digital Tools and the Human Element
Technology and sustainability play a huge role in both where Ontario greenhouse production is today and where it’s going in the future. Criteser says systems to recycle water and carbon dioxide help support plant growth, but this goes beyond the buzzwords.
“We’ve talked about this for a long time as both a technology and energy efficiency story,” he says. “The goal isn’t just to use less; it’s to use what we have more intelligently.”
Nature Fresh Farms, Haven Greens and Great Lakes Greenhouses also have deployed more artificial intelligence-driven tools to help guide decisions around irrigation, lighting and greenhouse management, which helps the production team see patterns and respond more quickly.
“We see a space for advanced computers and AI to have a significant impact on the industry moving forward as these systems continue to develop at an incredible pace,” Reimer says.
But growers still play a key role in production, even with the ascent of AI.
“Human input is always required when dealing with biological organisms such as plants,” Willmot says. “However, every day we’re finding more use cases for AI to help us run the greenhouse more efficiently. We’re finding ways to optimize crop performance, manage energy use, maximize lighting use efficiently and analyze more data more accurately than ever.”
Willmot says technology has instead amplified the human element and helped Haven Greens scale production and increase yields to grow year-round.
“Things that would have taken significantly more time, labor and resources a decade ago are now done with greater speed and precision. But here’s what people often misunderstand: The technology doesn’t run itself. Behind every automated system, every sensor, every data point, is a skilled human being interpreting it, managing it and making the critical decisions that no algorithm can make on its own.”
And as for whether they work for a technology company that grows fresh produce or a grower who uses technology, Willmot, Reimer and Criteser say it is the latter.
“Technology is a big part of how we operate, but it’s there to support what we do, not define it,” Criteser says. “At the end of the day, it still comes back to how well we grow, how consistent the product is and how it performs for the customer. That’s what matters most.”
Criteser says technology will continue to be more integrated.
“There’ll be more data, more automation, more AI supporting decisions, but the grower’s role doesn’t go away; if anything, it becomes more important,” he says. “It’s really about giving growers better tools to make decisions faster and more accurately, not replacing that expertise.”
Expect to see growing integration of technology, Willmot says, for production tasks from planting to harvesting and sensors monitoring and adjusting variables such as humidity, light, carbon dioxide and nutrients in real time.
“What takes teams of people to manage today will be largely automated, faster and significantly more precise,” he says.
Greenhouse production, too, will run on renewable energy, capture and recycle water and reduce the industry’s carbon footprint.
“Making them not just productive but genuinely green,” Willmot says. “They’ll consume a fraction of the land and water that traditional outdoor farming requires while yielding significantly more.”
Strategic Roadmap for National Expansion
Willmot says indoor leafy greens are growing at a rate of 50% year over year in the U.S. and 80% year over year in Ontario. He says that while Ontario already accounts for two-thirds of Canadian greenhouse production, he thinks the base will continue to expand, but the country’s production will also expand beyond this traditional hub into Quebec and Alberta.
“While Ontario remains the engine, the growth is beginning to decentralize across the country,” he says.
Criteser agrees, saying he expects core regions such as Windsor-Essex to continue to grow infrastructure and labor, but logistics, energy availability and access to new markets will play a big factor in where other growth in the industry will come. He also points out that growth can mean a lot of things, including improving efficiencies.
“Growth isn’t just about building more,” he says. “A lot of it is about improving what you already have — getting better yields, better flavor, more efficiency out of the same footprint.”
Ontario is set to double its acreage in the next 10 years through a combination of expansions in traditional areas. Willmot says he also sees expansion in the form of established operations acquiring smaller growers to fast-track expansion and build newer, more specialized facilities.
“The Greater Toronto area and surrounding regions represent a significant untapped opportunity, particularly for leafy greens and high-value crops where proximity to urban consumers is a genuine advantage,” he says.
Willmot says in the next four to five years, the question won’t be whether greenhouse growing can feed Canada, “it’ll be how we ever managed without it.”
He says by 2030, Ontario’s greenhouse sector could have wide-ranging impacts on Canada’s food supply.
“The greenhouse of 2030 won’t just be a place where food is grown; it’ll be Canada’s most strategic agricultural asset,” he says. “Reducing reliance on imports, stabilizing prices year-round and building a level of domestic food security that outdoor farming alone simply cannot guarantee, given Canada’s climate and harsh winters.”
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