Metrolina Greenhouses obtains MPS-A certification during Cultivate ‘17

At Cultivate ’17, the trade show where the “green” sector in North America meets from July 15 – 18, MPS was present again. On Monday July 17th, 2017, the MPS-A certification was presented to Metrolina Greenhouses, the sixth largest grower in the USA, in the booth of MPS.

Metrolina Greenhouses
Metrolina Greenhouses is a family-owned, wholesale plant and services company that started business in April 1972. Metrolina is the largest single-site heated greenhouse in the United States at 162 acres under roof. If you are familiar with the Charlotte region you could note that the size of Metrolina is comparable to 5 Concord Mills Malls which could fit inside the greenhouse! In addition Metrolina has approximately 15 acres of outdoor growing space and is still expanding. A second location in York S.C., mainly focused on production of perennials, has 175 acres of outdoor growing space.

Metrolina Greenhouses is one of the most automated greenhouses in the United States and has many internally designed machines from automatic plant transplanters to mechanical shipping belts. Metrolina employs 725 people year round, and 600 additional people in the spring and fall peaks. They ship to Big Box Retailers, Mass Merchandisers, Home Improvement Chain. During the peak season (March-June) Metrolina ships over 180 trailer loads of product a day.

After one (1) year MPS-A certified
Mark Yelanich, Manager Research & Development at Metrolina Greenhouses is proud of the fact that Metrolina Greenhouses, number six on the Top 100 Greenhouse Growers list in the US, successfully completed the initial MPS-ABC audit and will receive the MPS-A certificate at Cultivate 2017. Metrolina Greenhouses pays a lot of attention to / focuses on sustainability and innovation. For example, Yelanich mentions, they collect rainwater and recycle/re-use the collected rainwater for irrigation. Furthermore, wood burners are being used to generate energy. The MPS-A certificate is, for both customers and employees of Metrolina Greenhouses, proof that sustainability and innovation pay off.

Reliable data in a sustainable world
MPS-ABC is the environmental certification for a sustainable organization/company. By means of registering the usage/consumption of crop protection agents, fertilizers, energy, water and waste it becomes clear how well a company scores on the environmental score card. The MPS-ABC certificate is a unique worldwide company standard that is recognized and used on almost all continents. Besides a monitoring and management tool it is also a social responsibility in the produce chain and a marketing tool for demonstrable performing on sustainability.

For more information:
MPS
www.my-mps.com