Nature Fresh Farms uses an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) system to protect our crop from pest damage.

IPM is a broad-based approach that utilizes all available techniques in an organized program to suppress pest populations in environmentally sustainable ways. We have specially trained scouts (our Bug Brigade!) who inspect our plants daily to identify and monitor plant damaging pests such as insects and diseases, as well as the balance of beneficial insects throughout the crop.

We rely on 19 different species of beneficial insects (good bugs) to manage pest populations in our greenhouse.

These good bugs are released into the crop both as preventative and reactive actions at different stages of the crop in response to threats from “bad bugs”. One example of good bugs we utilize are Ladybugs, who control a “bad bug” called Aphids. We also place sticky cards throughout the crop to attract unwanted pests for easy identification and mass trapping.

In order to pollinate our plants, we introduce Bumble Bees into the greenhouse! Nature Fresh Farms has hundreds of thousands of Tomato plants, and all of the Tomato plants' flowers need to be pollinated by our hard working Bumble Bees! Bumble Bees are about five times faster than humans would be at pollinating.