Lompoc, CA — With the magnificent Pacific Ocean nearby, tucked in an east/west valley of fertile soils bordered by Tranquillon Mountain, the PanAmerican Seed production facility in Lompoc is situated in one of California’s most beautiful environments. Therefore it is good to know that the agricultural practices of this 200-acre farm owned
by Ball Horticultural Company are carried out using sustainable methods that are good for the environment.
After the initial year of record keeping and the independent audit of the facilities, the Ball Horticultural Company’s production facility in Lompoc was awarded the highest MPS-A certificate.
Budd LaRue, General Manager of the PanAmerican Seed production facility, is very aware that the residents of the area are interested in knowing what impact the agricultural industry has on their environment. So were the residents of Holland, where MPS has its roots as a result of the concern of Dutch citizens. The MPS system rates growers for their use of energy, water, recycling, fertilizers and crop protection agents, and compares their use to other growers.
Says Budd, “If you don’t have a way to measure yourself, you have no idea where you are in terms of your impact on the environment and use of these inputs.” Budd cites several practices of the Ball Horticultural Company to their high score: Extensive soil sampling, including moisture probes at various levels, and exclusive use of drip irrigation in all of the fields. Their goal is to provide the optimum growing environment for seed production while minimizing the use of crop protection agents and maintaining or improving the ecosystems that they are growing in.
As Budd and his team worked through the first year of record keeping in the MPS System, he was pleased to find the relationship between his team and MPS was a positive one. “We found MPS helpful and interested in our success. Although this is still a work in progress, and we continue to have areas to work on and learn from, we are pleased that we have established a benchmark for this Ball Horticultural facility and can continue to work to lessen our impact on the environment.”
For more information, visit the MPS website: www.my-mps.com. For more information about Ball Horticultural Company, visit www.ballhort.com.
Grower inquiries
MPS is proud to have quality growers such as Ball Horticultural Company in their program and welcomes grower inquires in North America to their west coast coordinator, Charlotte Smit at (805) 524-9685 or c.smit@usa.my-mps.com, or to the east coast coordinator, Sandy Hering at (508)758-3008, s.hering@usa.my-mps.com.
Source: MPS
