Risk & Business Magazine McFarlan Rowlands Spring 2017 | Page 29

CLIENT FEATURE: EZ GROW & HOMETOWN BREW CO.
I
n the midst of Ontario’s Garden
— Norfolk County — is a fourth-
generation farmer with a passion for
his community and his trade, and he
also has a desire to strive for excellence
and make a lasting impact on his family
farm (EZ Grow Farms) and the surrounding
community.
On the home farm outside of Langton,
Ontario, Dusty Zamecnik is swiftly taking
on his parents’ strawberry propagation farm
and blueberry crop and putting his stamp
on it.
Ontario Greenhouse President where he
got wind of the news that greenhouse
strawberries would be beginning production
in Canada. Knowing his farm would be a
perfect fit to produce these strawberries,
he quickly jumped at the opportunity to
join in the venture. Seven days later, he
found himself on a flight to Holland to
meet with strawberry propagators and do
some research on bringing greenhouse
strawberries to Canada.
Educated in Nova Scotia at St. Francis
Xavier University, Dusty found himself as
class valedictorian upon graduation and
with a desire to build a career in the fruit
and vegetable industry. Although his path
might not seem extraordinary, like many of
us, it was only due to a series of events and
impeccable timing that he found himself
back on the home farm in 2014. Yet, with
his entrepreneurial instincts and a whole
lot of ambition, he has an unwavering
determination to take this traditional family
farm to the next level.
The Zamecnik family grow 30 acres of
high bush blueberries and specialize in
strawberry propagation. Ranging anywhere
from three employees in the low season to
120-strong in high season, the Zamecniks’
will turn 300,000 strawberry plants into
tens of millions of plants that will then be
sent to the southern United States. Once
these plants ar e harvested, the strawberries
are sent to grocery stores throughout the
Eastern Seaboard and Canada. Currently,
Dusty manages the domestic and European
contracts for EZ Grow Farms.
He won’t say he has a formula for success, but
he definitely focuses on a few key personality
traits that he knows will help him achieve his
goals. He keeps himself open to opportunity,
he does not fear venturing into unknown
territory, and he makes deep connections
with meaningful contacts. In all, it seems
to be a mix of luck, opportunity, motivation,
and ambition that has elevated Dusty and EZ
Grow Farms above a small family operation
to its position as the largest wholesale
producer of blueberries in Ontario.
Speaking of venturing in to unknown
territory, while at a meeting in Ottawa
representing Ontario blueberries for the
Canadian Horticular Council, Dusty
happened to sit at the table with the
The Zamecniks’ journey in the fruit and
vegetable industry didn’t start there, and
neither did their farming ventures. Lacking
no diversity on their farming resume,
the Zamecniks’ have grown just about
everything: tobacco, potatoes, rosebushes,
watermelon, and blueberries to name a
few. “You name it. We grew it.” says Dusty.
The family takes pride in being stewards of
the land and sharing their knowledge with
others. Nineteen years ago, they received
their first order of 200,000 plants, and it took
Dad, Mom, and the team a few years to work
out an efficient system to meet the order.
Once they had it figured out, they found
there was something to the fruit business as
they surpassed 14 million plants sold in 2016.
Just as Dusty set out to make his mark on
the family farm, this year he is proving true
to his intentions. An expansion is underway
at EZ Grow Farms with the construction
of a multi-million dollar greenhouse on
the property that will be used to grow
greenhouse plants. Soon enough, consumers
in Canada will be able to purchase
Canadian-grown strawberries in grocery
stores in the winter months.
path by producing, distributing and selling
homemade local beer with a close-knit team
consisting of his two cousins, Tom & Matt
Devos and Brewmaster, Simon Glassier. After
seeing the rise of the craft beer industry,
they thought they would try their hand at
it. Knowing their strengths, they decided
to make a unique beer featuring a product
from the family farm—the blueberry. Using
two select varieties of blueberries, the team
has created two brews: their flagship beer, a
Southern Ale, and their signature Blueberry
Saison.
The company is rooted in Southwestern
Ontario, and strives to maintain an
“approachable, local brand.” Dusty’s brew
team always uses local ingredients and
facilities while brewing a prime beer at a
good rate. The team is truly invested in
preserving a local flare and aims to brew
their love of Southwestern Ontario in every
bottle. After much hard work in launching
their company and perfecting the brews,
Hometown Brew Co. came to fruition in
2016. Knowing from personal experience the
hold your hometown can have on you, Dusty
says his outlook in spreading Hometown
Brew Co. to the masses is quite simple:
“Everybody has a hometown. Everybody
wants something to cling onto. We want to
be known as the brand from Southwestern
Ontario.”
Working hard to preserve a local flare and
to operate within its means, Hometown
Brew Co. is considered a contract brewer,
partnering with Ramblin’ Road Brewery out
of Delhi, Ontario. You can find Hometown
Brew Co. beers on tap at restaurants in
Norfolk County, London, and the GTA.
Dusty envisions his future in the propagation
and beer industries as one of education and
growth. After four generations of farming,
his family is still learning about their crops,
and he wants to make sure that they still
are 20 years from now. Dusty says that
whether he is “completely naive, or an eternal
optimist,” he always invests in his adventures
fully committed. Humbly admitting he
has the “motivation not to fail,” Dusty is
determined to bring the goodness grown in
Norfolk County to the rest of Canada.
You can find out more about EZ Grow Farms
at www.ezgrow.ca and Hometown Brew Co.
at www.hometownbrew.com. +
As if he isn’t busy enough, Dusty has
decided to venture down an alternative
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