Category Archives: General

ACGA Winter Meeting 2014

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This week the American Cranberry Growers Association once again held its annual winter meeting. The ACGA winter meeting is always a good opportunity for growers to listen to research findings from experiments during the previous growing season and the researchers’ recommendations for the 2014 growing season. In addition, it’s a great chance for the local cranberry community to catch up to each other after the busy harvest season.

For their part, the Marucci Center researchers like the chance to get together, as well. Dr. Cesar Rodriguez-Saona always puts together an informative program, with a wealth of information covering a range of topics from disease management, breeding, frost protection, heat stress, weed control, insect pest management, among others. “The ACGA meetings are important because they provide cranberry growers an update on current research being conducted at Rutgers University and other universities,” Cesar says. “And it’s always helpful for us to get feedback from growers.”

CEO Bill Haines has always maintained that it’s a wonderful chance to have all the growers and key researchers together in one place to have a discussion. Local growers Shawn Cutts and Joe Darlington are on the same page. “I’ve been to grower meetings in other regions and it’s a lot more about regulations and the political end,” Joe says. “Here, we get much more grower info, which is what it’s about, as far as I’m concerned. It’s a chance to get together with the rest of the industry, because we really don’t get to do that very often.” Shawn agrees: “It’s valuable to hear the latest research from the people who are working to help us grow more berries and do it even better. There’s a lot of good practical info that’s helpful in many ways.”

New Pine Island COO Bryan vonHahmann was pleased to attend. “All of this is new to me, so I really got a lot from it. You really do get a lot of great information, and it was a fantastic opportunity to meet with other growers and industry people. It gives everyone a chance to share knowledge and experience in a non-competitive environment.” It’s even given him some ideas for community interaction based on his past experiences with the equipment industry, and he’s looking forward to working more with our neighboring growers.

GM Fred Torres and PIICM manager Cristina Tassone especially like the collaboration with the scientific community. “It’s great seeing all of these individual projects working together,” Cristina says. “It’s really everything we’re dealing with in the field. Nobody is working in a vacuum; everyone has real hands-on experience and can see how the research directly affects the growers. It’s especially good to see the grad students getting involved; the presentation on the window for fruit rot control was particularly interesting and is going to end up being really useful for the cranberry industry as a whole.” Cristina also enjoys the opportunity to hear from researchers in other regions. “They’re not just bringing in people from New Jersey,” she says. “We get to hear from the people working in Massachusetts and Wisconsin, too.”

Pine Island Team Profiles – Mike Haines and Eric Gonzalez-Perez

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The new year also brings us new team members! Two former part-time team members have gotten their full time start at Pine Island this month: assistant manager Michael Haines and team member Eric Gonzalez-Perez.

Mike, a graduate of Fordham University and CEO Bill Haines’ youngest son (making him the fifth generation of the Haines family to join the business) comes to us from two years at Integrity Propagation, where he gained nursery experience and began to truly learn a lot about the cranberry industry. “Working with Abbott [Lee, owner of Integrity Propagation] was a tremendous help,” Mike says. “I worked at Pine Island over the summers, but was only really seeing the small scale. I was scouting, setting out traps, all the summer things, but I didn’t realize the implications. I just did what I needed to do when I needed to do it. Abbott helped show me the big picture; I got to see the growing season unfold over the course of a year, and then I got to compare and contrast the following year. Abbott explained everything; if I had questions, he answered them. And now I can bring that with me to learn the big picture on the commercial side.”

His education here, as with everything else in cranberry production, starts with the water. “Water is complicated!” Mike says. “It’s a long process and I’m always going to be learning it.” However, he has a great instructor in Gerardo Ortiz. “I go out with Gerard every day. The first thing he taught me was all the practical things that apply across the entire farm: how to take out and put in boards, which direction the water goes, how much has to move through.” The next step is going out on his own, starting at the top of the farm, and following how the water is flowing in order to make a plan.

Planning is Mike’s favorite part, and new COO Bryan vonHahmann is impressed with his willingness to ask questions. This week they’ve started meeting with all of the different managers, starting with Louis Cantafio. “Helping with the facilities plan appeals to my sensibilities,” Mike says. “I really like the organizational aspect; that’s a big help with learning the big picture.” He hopes to apply this to working with other growers; he enjoyed travelling with Abbott to meet growers in Wisconsin, Massachusetts, and even Canada, and thinks it will be even better now that he’ll have experience of commercial production and not just the nursery side. Most of all, he’s excited for the warm weather to see the growing season really get underway.

Former seasonal team member Eric Gonzalez-Perez started full-time with us this week, and we’re glad to have him back with us! Last harvest was his sixth year at Pine Island, where he had previously worked with the fairy ring team, the Blue Harvest team, and planting. Currently he is working with Kelvin Colon on one of the sanding crews.

His adaptability and willingness to step in where he was needed made him a natural choice to move up to full-time. Kelvin was very pleased with his work during the fall planting, especially. “He did a great job out there and pretty much became my right hand man,” Kelvin says. Eric will be taking on additional responsibilities as a full-time team member, including working on the frost team and (thanks to his great work in past planting seasons) getting more involved in new production. His long history with Pine Island makes training a snap, as he already knows how to use a lot of the equipment. And like so many others, Eric’s favorite time of year is the harvest, and he can’t wait to see it again. But in the meantime, he says, “I want to learn as much as I can. I want to know everything.” It’s that kind of drive that made Eric such a valuable team member during previous years, and we’re looking forward to seeing more of it on a full-time basis!

More 2014 Team Targets

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Last week we talked to some of our management team about general goals and targets for the 2014 year. This week, we talk with a couple of long-time team members who have always been ready, willing and able to step up for whatever jobs need doing.

The first team member we spoke with was Junior Colon, a second-generation employee who is also one of our most versatile. If you can name a job at Pine Island, Junior has done it. “I have targets out here every day,” he says. “Right now, what’s important is getting the sanding done. With the ice out there we’re not sanding, so we’ll try to get a little ahead and screen what we’re excavating. That can be tough. You need to make sure it’s dry or else it will freeze and screening it would be a waste; you can’t use any of it.” The real challenge, he says, is building the platform ahead of him as he goes along. “There’s not a lot of room to maneuver, so I have to make little adjustments to the track direction to make it easier. You get used to it after a while, but there’s a learning curve for digging as well. With the long arm, the weight on the bucket can be tricky, so you have to bring it toward you to keep the machine level.” He especially likes projects like this. “It’s fun! It’s something new. And it helps me get better at what I do.”

Junior’s learning through experience makes him an ideal instructor: one of his other targets this year is training other team members on heavy equipment. “Getting everyone familiar is the ideal,” he says. “We’ve rented another long arm and Ivan [Burgos] is out at Sim Place doing what I’m doing here right now. Some of our other guys have been doing some work on it: Wilfredo, Mickey, Joel. But it’s great to get everyone involved in what we’re doing. If everyone is on the same page, everyone can step up when they need to step up.”

Working with Junior this week is Wilfredo Pagan, who is in this thirty-fifth year with us. His current targets include finishing the sanding and working on the current renovation at 11 Acre and Benny’s. “Even when it’s too cold for the sanding team to be out, we’re out here getting the sand screened so they can use it,” he says. Today, though, while Junior is excavating, Wilfredo is helping the renovation team with some clearing and digging.

“My personal goals are the same as they’ve always been,” he says. “Keep doing what I’m doing and keep getting better at it.” Specifically, he says, this means always being willing to learn new things. “I’ve done a lot while I’ve been here. I run a lot of the heavier equipment, I help with the bog renovations, I put in new flood gates…I always have a lot to learn from Junior. Now I’ve been learning all the ins and outs of the laser leveling. Always something new to pick up.”

Setting new targets for 2014

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A new year means new targets, both for Pine Island Cranberry as a whole and for our team members personally. As GM Fred Torres said last year, “You have to have deadlines. If you set targets, and you stick to them, it makes people more organized and focused. If you don’t set targets, you don’t get stuff done.” While meeting targets can be challenging, it keeps our team moving forward and achieving their goals.

“The top target, without exception, is our mission statement,” says Fred. “The rest is everything we do to reach that goal.” In practice, this means analyzing the 2013 harvest for ways to keep improving and fix anything that might have gone wrong. “What we always need to remember is that we’re growers,” says Fred. “The number one goal is always the crop. To hit the number we want this year, we need to grow more acres and more barrels per acre.” And as general manager, Fred has a lot to oversee to help Pine Island reach that goal. “The acreage we have to sand has to be done, and it will be done, by the second week of March. This time of year can be tough; you can set a target but you never know what the weather is going to be. So you have to have a plan and then make a back-up plan.” Other goals include crowning dams as well as the nineteen acres we’re renovating on the home farm. “Those will be planted in the fall,” Fred says. “Not doing spring planting this year is going to help with targets for sanding as well as getting the sprinklers in so we’ll be ready for frost. That’ll be a huge help.” He would also like to have the team do some more equipment training; his target there is improving the operators we already have and training two more team members to be able to run equipment by the summer.

And that’s not even getting into the plans he’s making for this year’s harvest. “We’re going to have Sim Place and a couple other spots on the home farm ready to haul with tractor trailers before the beginning of the season; we’d like to haul all of Panama with tractor trailers this coming year. Even though it’s January we’re getting the wheels turning and getting ready for harvest again come fall. You always want to hit a home run. That’s how we got to where we are: taking big steps.”

PIICM Manager Cristina Tassone has similar goals for the 2014 harvest. “At the end of the 2013 season we decided to hold a series of crop review meetings to cover several different aspects of the harvest,” she says. “These are helping us make better plans, especially since everyone is in attendance and can hear it all at once. Communication is key; if everyone is on the same page, it makes things run much more smoothly.” Then once we’re done the reviews and have the plans made, when the water comes off the ICM team is ready to go. “It’s better to be able to act instead of react,” Cristina says. “With the weather we’ve seen over the past couple of years, we need to be prepared for anything. So we’re working on water management and soil moisture, trying to improve that process with new production as well as with established beds.”

That’s where supervisor Jeremy Fenstermaker comes in. “I’m getting a handle on our irrigations systems: what’s running the right way and what’s not, as well as how it affects the crop,” he says. “We’re improving the process for installing irrigation and drainpipe, starting with the renovation at 11 Acre and Benny’s. Last year we did some work to find out what’s not operating the way it should be, diagnosing any issues and then making it right. It all starts with the new beds; if we get stuff right from the very beginning, shouldn’t have to have to worry about it again.”

In agriculture, just like any other business, setting targets is necessary. On the farm, things have to get done when it’s time to do them, and that’s all there is to it. And our team is always there to help us do whatever it takes to get those things done.

Improvement and Opportunity

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Things are quiet around Pine Island right now, but that doesn’t mean our team’s not hard at work!

Now that the winter flood is complete, our teams remain busy with sanding. Since this time of year is when team members start to take well-deserved vacation time, it falls to those remaining to do whatever it takes to step up and fill in various positions. For instance, Kelvin Colon has been learning to run the sander, while Vincent Arnwine has been learning to run the tractor, to name just two. It’s been a good learning experience for everyone, figuring out how to do everything they do better every day.

Also in the spirit of continuous improvement, Pine Island hosted a class run by Bud’s Auto & Truck Repair of Sewell on the maintenance and repair of Deutz engines, which are what power our irrigation system. “It was a really nice class; we learned quite a bit,” says Equipment Supervisor Carlos Baez. “We learned about the timing and the adjustment, among other things. Now we know better what to look for and we can service it ourselves; we also know what extra tools we’ll need to have on hand. We’re prepared for pretty much anything!”

And last but not least, Pine Island spent some time giving back to the community. Administrative Assistant Debra Signorelli headed a collection for Feeding 5000, a local program she’s been involved with for the past couple of years. Through Debra’s and the team’s efforts, she was able to bring them four large bags of warm clothing to be distributed to the area homeless population. Well done, Debra!

Winter Routine: Winter flood

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Pine Island has just about finished another important part of our winter routine: the winter flood. Under normal conditions, the temperature steadily drops post-harvest; it is important to wait until the vines go dormant before starting to flood.

In last year’s winter flood entry, we talked about the importance of water level in the reservoirs. If there has no been significant rain to get the reservoirs to flooding level, we have to start our wells, continuing to use them to maintain the reservoirs and the stream needed to get the bogs completely flooded. Team member Matt Giberson, in his second season working with flood management, expressed some relief that this wasn’t necessary. “In some places we worried about not having enough water to flood everything, because reservoirs were so low,” he says. “There was one good storm at Sim Place that helped us harvest. We got about two or three inches to fill the reservoirs, and then it didn’t really rain until we started flooding. In addition to everything else, if we don’t have to run the wells it saves fuel.”

One of the late Bill Sr.’s favorite maxims about just about everything involving cranberries was, “Where is the water coming from, and where do you want it to go?” That can be one of the most challenging things to pick up when you are learning about Pine Island’s system. “I know the water much better this year, especially in the areas where my team was harvesting,” Matt says. “Better than last year, when I was still trying to learn everything. Harvest helped me learn a lot more about the water and how it works. There’s still a lot to learn, but it’s not something where you can pick up everything in a matter of days. It takes hands-on experience.”

The weather’s been a new experience for Matt, as well. “Ice on the gates and all the snow has made it tough to put the boards in. And then, of course, the water is ice cold!” But, he adds, “There’ve been no problems with the ice plugging the gates. That gets to be a real mess, but thankfully we’ve avoided it so far.” While it was very very cold last week, the wind didn’t affect us as much as it might have. “Fred [Torres, Pine Island GM] pointed out one of the problems with the wind, though: if it’s blowing hard enough that you can see the vines, you think you need to get out there and tweak things. You can’t do that; wait until it’s calm and then you’ll see what you really need to do.”

“We also put stems in every bog at Red Road so we can flood as we sand,” says Matt. Stems in the floodgates help get bogs to different water levels. “This means we can flood one and keep other low, then push water into next bog for sanding.” Once the winter flood is done, our team maintains reservoirs throughout the whole winter. “Ox Pasture, for example, has to stay high so we don’t have to run the well.” This is important because Ox Pasture, situated at the northernmost end of the property, is Pine Island’s largest reservoir and the primary source of water for the main farm.

Putting on the winter flood as quickly and efficiently as possible saves time, fuel, and most importantly, protects next year’s crop. It is this attention to the environment and continuous improvement of our processes that help us grow more acres and more fruit per acre with every successive year.

From Bill’s Desk: “Continuous Improvement”

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One in an occasional series of entries by CEO Bill Haines.

Pine Island Cranberry is pleased to announce the creation of the position of Chief Operating Officer (COO). We are also pleased to announce Bryan vonHahmann has agreed to accept those responsibilities. Over the last several years, Pine Island Cranberry has grown in size, productivity and professionalism. As we have grown the business has become much more complex. With the purchase of control of Cranberries Austral Chile, the development of our Forestry business and the pursuit of additional opportunities for growth, we need additional talent and skills to pursue our mission to “continue our tradition of excellence”. After much discussion over several months, the Board of Advisors and I decided to create the position of COO. To help us select the best person to fill that role, we chose the search firm of Heidrick & Struggles. This is a major step forward for Pine Island as it fulfills our core values of continuous growth and continuous improvement.

Bryan has 25 years of multiple work experiences. He began his career as an aerospace engineer and then returned to his family business, Empire Tractor, Inc. Through his leadership, the company achieved significant growth, becoming one of the largest agricultural equipment dealerships in the state of New York. Since 2006 he has been a senior executive at Dairy Farmers of America, a national dairy cooperative. His experiences of leading and growing a family business as well as creating a culture of continuous improvement will bring significant value to Pine Island.

Bryan will be officially starting January 1, 2014. I am very excited that we have found such a highly qualified person and I am excited that he has agreed to join the team. All of the Pine Island team looks forward to working with Bryan as we continue to grow high quality, nutritious cranberries for a healthier world.

Winter Routine: Sanding

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Now that the big show is over, Pine Island Cranberry has settled into the winter routine, chiefly the winter flood and sanding. (Though the weather has been so lovely that, as team member Vincent Arnwine says, it’s more like fall sanding.) Sanding is a big part of our striving for continuous improvement. “We are constantly evaluating and re-evaluating what sanding does for us,” says PIICM manager Cristina Tassone.

As we mentioned here last December, sanding is a process where we apply 1/2″ to 1″ of sand on the bog surface every five years on a rotating basis. This year we are scheduled to sand almost 215 acres. This procedure helps improve growth and yield by stimulating the development of new uprights (covering the base of the roots strengthens the root system and creates a more healthy vine) while also suppressing disease and reducing insects (by burying weed seed, spores, and insect eggs). It also improves soil drainage while at the same time absorbing and releasing heat so that frost danger in spring is lessened. This increases our efficiency by lowering the need for extra plant nutrition as well as saving water by cutting down frost irrigation times.

“This year, we’re isolating all variables to see what sanding really does for us and what is really needed,” says Cristina. “To that end, we’re moving to a six-year cycle. A good sanding plan means not having to micromanage the relationship between frost, weather, disease, insects, weeds, and nutrition.”

Also, the sand needs to be as pure as possible in order to prevent soil compaction (which can restrict water and limit growth) so we screen our sand before using it on the barge to take out any clay, stones, or other debris which could cause problems. “It’s important to make sure you’re screening ‘good’ sand and not clay,” says team member Junior Colon.

The process itself is simple: a dump truck is loaded with two or three loader buckets of sand. The dump truck then heads over to the bog being sanded, backs up to the excavator, and drops the load. The excavator operator then loads the hopper of the sander, while the sander operator moves along the cable, adjusting the opening for the sand to fall. Jorge is sanding at 1/2″ for this particular bog. The process is repeated, with the excavator and tractor moving forward the length of the bog together.

Sanding from Pine Island Cranberry on Vimeo.

Cranberry Thanksgiving

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It’s almost inevitable that a cranberry blog would do an entry about Thanksgiving! It’s a holiday which really is a chance for us here at Pine Island to relax and enjoy the fruits of our labor. (Sorry.) Many traditions in the Haines family come from cranberries, both our own and through the Ocean Spray cooperative. And best of all, they’re usually locally sauced! (Really sorry. We’ll stop now.) CEO Bill Haines goes out every year toward the end of harvest and hand scoops several pounds of berries for family use, using a wooden scoop that’s been in the family for generations.

Huge thanks to our friends at Ocean Spray for allowing us to use the following recipes and photographs, as well as posting the information showing us how these recipes are berry good for both you as well as the environment! (We said we were done. We lied. After all, cranberry farming can be a barrel of laughs.)

To start off, of course, you’ll want a cocktail. Vodka and cranberry is a popular combination, but did you know it actually has a name? To make a Cape Codder, you’ll just need the following:

Ingredients:

6 ounces Ocean Spray® Cranberry Juice Cocktail, chilled
1 1/2 ounces vodka
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Directions:

Pour into a tall glass filled with ice. Makes 1 serving.

Of course, you can’t have a turkey without stuffing. Cape Cod Cornbread Stuffing just fits the bill:

Ingredients:

2 cups cornbread stuffing cubes
1/2 pound sausage meat, cooked, drained and crumbled
1 cup Ocean Spray® Fresh or Frozen Cranberries
1/2 cup diced onion
1/3 cup chopped pecans
2 teaspoons thyme
1/2 cup chicken broth

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Combine all ingredients, except chicken broth, in a medium casserole dish. Add chicken broth; mix well. Add more chicken broth for a moister stuffing. Cover and bake for 30 minutes or until heated through. Makes 3 cups.

The following is a classic for a reason; it pairs perfectly with a leftover turkey sandwich! (Or, as some first graders we know have done…mix it with mayo and put it on a hamburger. To each her own.)

Homemade Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 12-ounce package Ocean Spray® Fresh or Frozen Cranberries, rinsed and drained

Directions:

Combine water and sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to boil; add cranberries, return to boil. Reduce heat and boil gently for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cover and cool completely at room temperature. Refrigerate until serving time.

Makes 2 1/4 cups.

This side dish doesn’t contain any cranberries, but who’s to say you couldn’t add some Craisins?

Brussels Sprouts with Toasted Pecans

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds fresh brussels sprouts
2 tablespoons butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted
Salt and pepper

Directions:

Trim stems of brussels sprouts; remove any damaged leaves.

Place brussels sprouts in 3-quart saucepan; add water to just cover. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat; simmer until brussels sprouts are tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain; keep warm.

In the meantime, toast pecans. Place nuts in single layer on baking sheet. Bake in 350° oven 3 to 5 minutes or until light golden brown, watching carefully.

Melt butter in same saucepan over medium-high heat. Add garlic; cook and stir 30 seconds. Remove from heat. Stir in brussels sprouts and pecans; toss gently to coat. Season with salt and pepper.

Makes 6 servings.

Last but not least, we have dessert: a longtime family favorite is a cranberry nut pie that Bill’s mother used to make.

SARA’S CRANBERRY NUT PIE

Ingredients:

Filling:
2 cups cranberries
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup sugar

Topping:
1 cup flour
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup melted margarine
2 eggs
2 teaspoons almond extract

Directions:

Mix the first three ingredients together and spread in the bottom of a greased 10 in pie plate. Mix together the last five ingredients and pour over cranberry mixture. Bake 55-60 minutes in a preheated 325 degree oven. Serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

No photos of that last one…it usually gets eaten too quickly. Happy Thanksgiving, from all of us to all of you!

Harvest Lunch

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Pine Island Cranberry held its annual harvest lunch this week to say thank you to all of our team members who work tirelessly all year round but have really stepped it up this fall for both the harvest and the fall planting. It was also a chance to say good-bye to our seasonal team members, who are heading back home until next year.

One seasonal team member who will be retiring this year is Arturo Vieyra. Arturo has been coming to us for fifteen years; he worked on the Green Team gathering crew and has stepped up to do a thousand other things over the years, wherever he was needed. He has been a living example of Pine Island’s core values, always doing whatever it takes to help us bring in a better harvest, year after year.

Our team has a lot to be proud of this year; we set several production records and had our best harvest yet at Sim Place. Our newly created clean-up team put us ahead of schedule on our winter maintenance. As CEO Bill Haines said to the assembled team: “We delivered 38,000 barrels in two days. You can be proud of that and of everything else you’ve done this year.”

Bill also told the team: “It was a good harvest. It wasn’t a great harvest; we always want a record. But I will say this: everyone worked very hard. We had a very low rot percentage, which is fantastic. Everything was done way ahead of schedule. And that is a credit to organization and how hard everyone in this room worked. It means that if we’re doing the same things we’re doing right now, if we’re all working to improve what we do when it needs to be done, we’ll continue to see better results next year and every year after that. We have a great team here at Pine Island. And I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything you’ve done for this place.”