Meet the faces behind the Ontario produce on your plate! Each year thousands of migrant farm workers make their way to Ontario to work on fruit and vegetable farms around the province. While for many of them this experience is relatively new, some workers have been returning to Ontario farms for over 20 years! From trumpet players to carpenters, they all have a unique story to share. Click the profiles below to learn more about the women and men who play such an important role on our farms.
Meet Vidal, Seasonal Agricultural Worker from Mexico
I am Vidal and I am from Veracruz, Mexico. I have been working for nine seasons here in Canada. In the four seasons I have been on this farm, I have mainly worked packaging potatoes. It was excellent that Brenn-B Farms (the farm) put in a team for the soccer tournament. For me it was excellent because we had a lot of fun and we did an activity that we normally don’t do.
Meet Evaristo, Seasonal Agricultural Worker from Mexico
I was told about the worker program by some friends back in Mexico. Years passed before they started promoting it in the state of Veracruz (where I am from) but when they did, I joined. Now I have been coming here 23 years and I have been all over Canada. I have been coming to this farm for eight seasons. At home I have my aunt and my partner, Alicia.
Meet Esteban, Seasonal Agricultural Worker from Mexico
My name is Esteban Pérez García and I come from Mexico, from the State of Tlaxcala. I have been working in Canada at the same farm for six seasons. Each season I come over here for eight months. I arrive in January and start to pack onions and potatoes. Later in the year we prepare the seed to plant the potatoes, then we will plant onions, do weeding in the onion fields and right now we are harvesting cilantro and dill.
Meet Sheldon, Seasonal Agricultural Worker from Trinidad and Tobago
My name is Sheldon Edwards. I’m from the countryside in Trinidad and Tobago. I have been coming to Canada since 2001. I have worked all over Ontario on lots of different types of farms. I have worked with flowers, potatoes, asparagus, berries and now apples, pears and cherries. I also do farm work back home, like gardening.
Meet Kellon, Seasonal Agricultural Worker from Trinidad and Tobago
My name is Kellon, I am 31 years of age and I am from Trinidad and Tobago. I have been coming to Canada since 2015 and this is my second year with Schuyler Farms. I am captain of the football (soccer) team here at Schuyler Farms. Having a football team here is great. Football keeps you away from trouble and being negative; you take the time away from being negative and put it into football.
Meet Rattana, Temporary Foreign Worker from Thailand
My job on this farm is picking and packing the strawberries. Sometimes, I care for the plants, like collecting the runners from the strawberry plants and de-leafing (removing extra leaves).I enjoy picking strawberries, but the best part of being here is that I have good coworkers and a good boss.
Meet Nan, Temporary Foreign Worker from Thailand
My name is Wassana, but most people here call me Nan. I come from Thailand. This year makes it seven years since I have been coming to Canada. My job here is picking and packing strawberries, but my favourite part is picking them. This is because it is a beautiful fruit; looking at the strawberries as I pick them makes me feel calm and cool, even on hot days.
Meet Kunanon, Temporary Foreign Worker from Thailand
I have been working in Canada for eight years. My first year in Canada was in 2013. My job as a farmworker includes picking and packing strawberries. I am happy to be here because I have a great boss and coworkers. The boss is very kind to us, and the team is really strong. That makes me proud.
Meet Kim, Temporary Foreign Worker from Thailand
I planned to work in Canada; it was the first place that I wanted to come to work. My cousin was working here and recommended that I come to work with him, and I said yes right away. I feel really happy that the program can help people and not cost any money from us. I’m confident being here; my cousin had experienced the program before me.
Meet Josh, Grower at TamBerry Farms
Here at TamBerry, we have around 30 employees in various programs. They are how we can provide strawberries year-round. Many people don’t realize how critical seasonal workers are to the day-to-day operations of a farm like this. The workers are dependable; they are a part of the team.
Meet Jodi, Grower at TamBerry Farms
My name is Jodi; I work in the office at the farm, and right now, I do everything: HR, payroll, receivables and payables. HR is my favourite, as is getting to know the workers, their backgrounds, their stories, why they are here, and what they gave up to come here. My dad has been involved with greenhouses for around 15 years now. We started with a pig farm, sold that, and got into the greenhouse industry.
Meet Eddy, Seasonal Agricultural Worker from Jamaica
My name is Edward Gayle, but most people call me Eddy. I am from St Elizabeth, Jamaica, which some would call the bread basket of Jamaica. Most households in St Elizabeth would have a farm around them. It is natural to be involved in farming because we see our grandparents or our mother or father doing some form of cultivating food.