Leighton Martin, President

2005 Business Excellence Award, Environment
Kitchener-Waterloo Chamber of Commerce

Martin's Family Fruit Farm has been growing apples -- and an export customer list from Britain to Belize -- for 30 years. Now one of Canada's largest producers of apples, the Martin family also demonstrates a growing commitment to environmental sustainability. They have invested in state-of-the-art energy efficient cold storage facilities and automated packing lines that use less energy. They compost all food waste, recycle packing material, re-plant intensively, and voluntarily use Integrated Pest Management techniques to reduce the amount of pesticides used.

An advocate of the "Buy Local, Buy Fresh" program, Martin's has also donated land in their Port Burwell orchard as a "wind farm", hosting wind turbines for energy generation. Yielding a proudly Canadian product, Martin's Family Fruit Farm has proven that using sustainable methods and building in environmental responsibility can help companies succeed, while competing both nationally and in the global marketplace.

Award of Merit for Market Export Expansion (Product) at the 7th Annual Ontario Global Traders Awards, Southwest Region.

Pictured: Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Economic Development and Trade Tony Wong (left), Sales Manager for Martin Family Fruit Farm Ltd. Tom Westerveld (centre), and Jim Babirad (right), Senior Business Development Manager, Export Development Canada.