Desrochers leaves HydroSerre Mirabel, resigns from DRC
Desrochers leaves HydroSerre Mirabel, resigns from DRC
After serving for 15 years as president of HydroSerre Mirabel, Martin Desrochers has left the firm he founded with his brother, Luc, and his father, Gervais, and also has resigned his position on the board of directors of the Fruit & Vegetable Dispute Resolution Corp.
The Mirabel, QC-based firm, one of the larger suppliers of hydroponically grown Boston lettuce in North America, has over 21 acres of greenhouses in Quebec and is known for its floating raft technology, which Luc Desrochers adapted for commercial use in the early 1980s.
A press release issued by the company said that "recent changes in the company caused by a problem affecting the crop have forced HydroSerre Mirabel to re-evaluate its development plan and internal operations. Over the past 14 years, and particularly the last five, Martin Desrochers devoted his time and energy to business development, consolidating the sales network as well as exploring potential partnerships for his company, HydroSerre Mirabel. During this same period, operations and day-to-day management of the company were under the responsibility of his partner, Sylvain Terrault," who is the firm's executive vice president and general manager.
The release continued, "In this line of thought, a transaction between Martin Desrochers and Sylvain Terrault has taken place, transferring full ownership of HydroSerre Mirabel to Mr. Terrault, who will assume the role of president and general manager. Therefore, Mr. Desrochers will leave his functions as president of the board and president and shareholder of HydroSerre Mirabel with the hope of seeing the pursuit of the HydroSerre Mirabel adventure. Mr. Desrochers leaves with the conviction that Sylvain Terrault will continue to ensure the development of the company while respecting its employees, suppliers and partners."
Mr. Desrochers told The Produce News Oct. 7 that he had "mixed feelings" about leaving the business he helped grow.
"You don't turn the page of 20 years of family history so easily, but with the production problems we had over the past two years, it was tough and stressful," he said. "My first concern was to ensure that the company succeeded in the future, and a few months ago I took an analysis of the situation and decided that the company needed to consolidate and focus on day-to-day operations. For the past five years, Sylvain has been managing the day-to-day, and I think it is better to have one boss instead of two."
He continued, "I think it is good for me and good for the company because Sylvain has succeeded and made the firm grow. It is also good for the consumer because this guarantees the continuum of the company and the presence of our unique product on the market."
Mr. Desrochers said that he has "no specific ideas" on what his future would hold, but he would "like to stay in the produce industry. I really appreciate the people and feel like I'm part of a group. I'm open to many options and I know my strengths."
During his career in the produce industry, Mr. Desrochers has always found time to give back to the industry he loved. He was a founding member and sat on the board of directors of the Fruit & Vegetable Dispute Resolution Corp. He also served as president of the Quebec Produce Marketing Association in 2005, and the organization honored him at its annual convention in August with its Pillar of the Industry Award.
Stephen Whitney, president and chief executive officer of the Dispute Resolution Corp., told The Produce News Oct. 8 that Mr. Desrochers had resigned his post as one of four Canadian board members on Oct. 7, and he was "very sorry to see him [leave] at this point. Martin was in on the ground floor and made a huge contribution to the organization and the industry. He devoted himself to the organizations he was a member of, and he was very actively involved in our regular meetings and he was a lot of fun to work with. He was a personal friend and a unique individual, whom I have a tremendous amount of respect for. We are going to miss him."
The press release went on to say that Pierre Dolbec, the firm's vice president of sales and marketing, "would continue in the role that he has held since 2003. There is no doubt that he will maintain his level of commitment and will continue to draw on his great expertise and knowledge for the benefit of the company and its new president. Furthermore, all key personnel linked to sales, production and human resources remain in place."
Mr. Dolbec told The Produce News Oct. 7 that he would miss working with Mr. Desrochers.
"I have always had a terrific relationship with Martin and he was more of a friend than a boss," Mr. Dolbec said. "Sylvain has been running operations and finances for the last several years. I'm happy working with him and am looking forward to the future at HydroSerre."
Mr. Dolbec stressed that the firm's recent production problems have stabilized and that it had no food-safety problems during that time. The difficulties stemmed from "the crop not reacting well to its nutritional solution," he said. "We've put new preventative measures in place and have backup plans as well. We are back to about 85 percent of capacity and think the problem is behind us."
The Mirabel, QC-based firm, one of the larger suppliers of hydroponically grown Boston lettuce in North America, has over 21 acres of greenhouses in Quebec and is known for its floating raft technology, which Luc Desrochers adapted for commercial use in the early 1980s.
A press release issued by the company said that "recent changes in the company caused by a problem affecting the crop have forced HydroSerre Mirabel to re-evaluate its development plan and internal operations. Over the past 14 years, and particularly the last five, Martin Desrochers devoted his time and energy to business development, consolidating the sales network as well as exploring potential partnerships for his company, HydroSerre Mirabel. During this same period, operations and day-to-day management of the company were under the responsibility of his partner, Sylvain Terrault," who is the firm's executive vice president and general manager.
The release continued, "In this line of thought, a transaction between Martin Desrochers and Sylvain Terrault has taken place, transferring full ownership of HydroSerre Mirabel to Mr. Terrault, who will assume the role of president and general manager. Therefore, Mr. Desrochers will leave his functions as president of the board and president and shareholder of HydroSerre Mirabel with the hope of seeing the pursuit of the HydroSerre Mirabel adventure. Mr. Desrochers leaves with the conviction that Sylvain Terrault will continue to ensure the development of the company while respecting its employees, suppliers and partners."
Mr. Desrochers told The Produce News Oct. 7 that he had "mixed feelings" about leaving the business he helped grow.
"You don't turn the page of 20 years of family history so easily, but with the production problems we had over the past two years, it was tough and stressful," he said. "My first concern was to ensure that the company succeeded in the future, and a few months ago I took an analysis of the situation and decided that the company needed to consolidate and focus on day-to-day operations. For the past five years, Sylvain has been managing the day-to-day, and I think it is better to have one boss instead of two."
He continued, "I think it is good for me and good for the company because Sylvain has succeeded and made the firm grow. It is also good for the consumer because this guarantees the continuum of the company and the presence of our unique product on the market."
Mr. Desrochers said that he has "no specific ideas" on what his future would hold, but he would "like to stay in the produce industry. I really appreciate the people and feel like I'm part of a group. I'm open to many options and I know my strengths."
During his career in the produce industry, Mr. Desrochers has always found time to give back to the industry he loved. He was a founding member and sat on the board of directors of the Fruit & Vegetable Dispute Resolution Corp. He also served as president of the Quebec Produce Marketing Association in 2005, and the organization honored him at its annual convention in August with its Pillar of the Industry Award.
Stephen Whitney, president and chief executive officer of the Dispute Resolution Corp., told The Produce News Oct. 8 that Mr. Desrochers had resigned his post as one of four Canadian board members on Oct. 7, and he was "very sorry to see him [leave] at this point. Martin was in on the ground floor and made a huge contribution to the organization and the industry. He devoted himself to the organizations he was a member of, and he was very actively involved in our regular meetings and he was a lot of fun to work with. He was a personal friend and a unique individual, whom I have a tremendous amount of respect for. We are going to miss him."
The press release went on to say that Pierre Dolbec, the firm's vice president of sales and marketing, "would continue in the role that he has held since 2003. There is no doubt that he will maintain his level of commitment and will continue to draw on his great expertise and knowledge for the benefit of the company and its new president. Furthermore, all key personnel linked to sales, production and human resources remain in place."
Mr. Dolbec told The Produce News Oct. 7 that he would miss working with Mr. Desrochers.
"I have always had a terrific relationship with Martin and he was more of a friend than a boss," Mr. Dolbec said. "Sylvain has been running operations and finances for the last several years. I'm happy working with him and am looking forward to the future at HydroSerre."
Mr. Dolbec stressed that the firm's recent production problems have stabilized and that it had no food-safety problems during that time. The difficulties stemmed from "the crop not reacting well to its nutritional solution," he said. "We've put new preventative measures in place and have backup plans as well. We are back to about 85 percent of capacity and think the problem is behind us."
