Village Farms employees inspire heartfelt song, award-winning music video

For almost 30 years, Village Farms has been focused on the art of growing the freshest vegetables with the utmost reverence for the environment in the great state of Texas. The company is now happy to boast it is versed in the art of musical video production as well. Marfa, TX, resident and dual citizen Rámon Vega Navarro recently launched his first music video, which pays tribute to the company’s employees in his song “Doble Nacionalidad,” which translated to English means “Double Nationality.”

Navarro’s song lyrics and video imagery tell the story of a group of resolute Village Farms employees who travel to the company’s greenhouses each day in Marfa.  The greenhouses are in the far west region of the state close to the Mexican border and just across the border is the town of Ojinaga, Mexico, where these employees have their homes. The project was a collaboration with Marfa Live Arts and film director Tina Rivera. A jury of playwrights chose Navarro’s music video, winning him second place in the Marfa Live Art 2021 Short Playwriting Contest.

The song and video pay tribute to Village Farms employees. “This is a huge honor for the company,” said Derin Gemmel, vice president of human resources administration and compliance for the company’s Texas-based operations. Gemmel also noted it was a successful collaboration for the company with the artist, the film director and Marfa Live Arts for the entire project, which was supported by the company.

“For almost three decades Village Farms has had a presence here in west Texas. We are one of the largest employers among the three adjacent counties, and the biggest taxpayer within two of the countries where the greenhouses operate. A sizable portion of our facilities’ dedicated employees travel the distance each day from Ojinaga, over the border in Mexico where they make their homes and raise their families. It is touching to hear the sentiments expressed in this song and the imagery illustrating the day-to-day commitment of these men and woman to their jobs. Because of our employees' dedication we can successfully bring the highest quality Texas-grown fruits and vegetables to market,” said Michael A. De Giglio, president, CEO and founder of Village Farms.

The company has recently faced many challenges, given the pandemic and labor shortages, struggling with enough employees to fulfill the company’s mission to consistently supply retailers across the country 365 days a year. An impressive 60 million pounds of U.S.-grown tomatoes are grown, harvested, packed, sold and distributed annually from the Village Farms Texas facilities located in Marfa, Fort Davis, Monahans, as well as from a distribution center in Fort Worth. 

Village Farms hopes to attract more employees to its Texas facilities from the Ojinaga area, particularly in preparation for, and anticipation of, favorable legislation that will propel Village Farms into further health and wellness product opportunities for growth. “The future of Village Farms is looking bright in Texas and Village Farms plans to continue to shine brilliantly in the state and grow as long as we are able,” said DeGiglio.