G&R Farms a trailblazer in the onion industry setting the standard for sustainability and innovation

Getting it right is a year-round job. It’s not luck, it’s generations of experience in decision making and cultivation. G&R will tell you being a farmer is more than just knowing the right variety and season to plant. It’s a plan that has the right onion, for the right time, for the right field, for all the right reasons. For the real leaders, right reasons is also about looking ahead and seeing the value of sustainability and innovation in your operations.

For over 75 years, G&R Farms has gone above and beyond to improve the quality of our onions, not just by good production practices and varieties, but with advanced production techniques, new packing equipment and marketing programs and investments in conservation and sustainability programs that will pay dividends for generations to come.

This work isn’t new, in 1945, on a small farm in Southeast Georgia, Walter Dasher helped put the Vidalia onion on the map. His efforts helped grow not just G&R Farms, but the entire Vidalia onion industry. Today, G&R Farms spans three generations and year-round sweet onion availability.

G&R talks relentlessly about “advancing quality.” It means reflecting on what improvements can be made that improve quality, accuracy and efficiency. That quality might come from new varietal testing, production techniques, post production harvest and handling programs or new packing equipment. Each step is vitally important in creating the consistency that provides sweet onion category leadership and keeps consumers coming back for more.

Every day, G&R Farms accepts the challenge to rise above and beyond with their goal to “improve the ecosystem.” These efforts around sustainability include planting more than 4 million trees and participating in the Georgia Alabama Land Trust, to preserve forest lands, create buffer zones and prohibit development while maintaining and restoring natural habitats.

For G&R, advancing quality and improving the ecosystem go hand-in-hand, and Cliff Riner, vice president of agricultural and grower relations is leading the charge. Riner has more than a dozen years of experience leading the Vidalia Onion research and breeding program before joining G&R and he brings a depth of experience in sweet onion production, seed trials and new variety testing and planning. Through his efforts, G&R has set the precedent that every onion should be curated with the best technology and sustainability initiatives to ensure every consumer gets a consistently high quality sweet onion.

To learn more about G&R Farms and to schedule your own private field and education tour for a first hand look at G&R’s sustainability and conservation programs, email Cliff Riner at [email protected].