SONORA, MEXICO - Bridges Produce partner Rico Farms had a big celebration on hand. The organic grower recently held a grand opening for its BioFactory, built and designed to ensure the company’s growing practices of creating healthier soil.

“Rico Farms continues to push forward with radical innovations to improve soil and plant health, disease resistance, and productivity. The results of the new biofactory will have tremendous results that will advance the productivity and profitability of organic growers while minimizing impact on the environment,” said Ben Johnson, Bridges Produce President.

Bridges Produce is the exclusive sales agent for Rico Farms. According to the press release, the new BioFactory will advance Rico Farms’ mission to take care of the planet by nurturing its fields as well as supplying high-quality organic nutrients to other agricultural operations. The Tapia family, owner and manager of Rico Farms, will be able to achieve more fertile farmland with a higher content of organic matter, which allows the company to have greater CO₂ retention while growing its organic summer and winter squash, cucumbers, eggplant, green beans, melons, and chile peppers. Located at its Hermosillo farm, the press release states it is the first Biofactory of its kind in northwestern Mexico.

“We want to create a robust R&D team with university researchers and our BioFactory team so that we can develop new sustainable and organic materials for the overall industry,” said Francisco Tapia, Owner of Rico Farms. “We have a top product that no one is selling, it is a liquid biofertilizer called BIO-AMINO. It is high in nitrogen and essential amino acids. The benefit of this product is that it can be used in drip irrigation and is much cheaper than fish fertilizer with twice the nitrogen content.”

Bio-amino has been tested on the grower’s organic zucchini and yellow squash. Since the switch, Rico Farms is seeing healthier plants with yields up between five and fifteen percent. This spring season, it will be tested on all its organic crops.

The Tapia family is strong believers in the triple bottom line, producing over 100 products with three already in production: bacillus subtilis microbial inoculant, trichoderma harzianum microbial inoculant, and fertilizer with a high content of free amino acids. Rico Farm’s short-term objective is to identify endemic plant growth and biocontrol growth strains that they can then adapt to the soil and climatic conditions of the area and develop biological insecticides and biofertilizers. The second phase of development will focus on vermicompost and an insectarium to breed beneficial insects.

“The Tapia family is unrelenting in their pursuit of continuous improvement. The biofactory is an exponential leap forward!” commented Johnson.

Congratulations to Rico Farms and Bridges Produce on this exciting development! For more news and advancements in the industry, keep reading AndNowUKnow.

Bridges Produce Rico Farms