I never really pictured myself starting off a blog with a warning about the water here at Southern Valley. But at this point skirting around it seems unavoidable, and I’ve concluded that something must be said, so here goes: There’s definitely something in it!
Let me explain. Between the months of February and September this year, we will have six new babies added to our Southern Valley family. Yes, you read that right – six little ones. See, I told you there was something in the water!
Needless to say our office is buzzing this Spring with extra excitement, not only for the new life cultivating in the fields but also Read More
It might seem to anyone outside of Southern Valley that the Georgia Fall season is just like the Spring. It’s a fair assumption that in the Fall, we’re bustling with the same Springtime energy and excitement in preparation for another busy season. After all, Fall means we’re back at home, picking, packing, and shipping every single day but The Lord’s Day.
But when the Fall finally hits and along with it comes the first cool breeze of the changing season, the pace around here seems to switch. That very first morning we step outside and the cool breeze hits, we slow down and breathe it in. Morning routines normally characterized by rush-rush-rush Read More
Last Friday, I randomly felt the need to take a drive. It was well before the typical lunch hunger pains start to creep up and sometime past the dew point, when the sun shines just right and the day really begins. I’m not sure what made me want to or even where I would go, but I just knew I needed it. So, I closed my laptop, slipped on my newly worn in ‘field boots’ that I keep tucked away under my desk, and grabbed my camera on the way out the door.
I put my car in drive and hit the gas, squinting past dusty road signs and Read More
I don’t know what it is, but there’s something about being at our Tennessee farm that makes you feel closer to God. Is it the fact that you’re surrounded by sheer remoteness? Is it the breathtaking views? Could it be as simple as just being at a higher elevation?
Whatever the reason, you feel it as soon as you step outside. You feel it when you breathe in that first breath of crisp dewy morning air. You feel it in the afternoon breeze that floats through the hills and in the soft sunshine that falls delicately across your skin. You can hear it when your boots crunch with every step, colliding with Read More
Well, summer has offically started which means that summertime heat is in full force here at the Valley. Evenings that were once spent outside enjoying a nice breeze and a glass of sweet tea are now spent swatting gnats in between running from your truck to your front door. It’s the kind of heat where your upper lip sweats if you even think about walking outside and where you wake up every day thanking God that you live in the era of air conditioning.
Despite the heat, the Valley is still thriving. The crops seem to savor every drop of those afternoon rain showers in the same way that we Read More
Ask a businessman if he believes in a higher power, and his answer could equally be yes or no. Ask a lawyer, a bus driver, your family doctor, a fast food worker, a courthouse clerk, your hair stylist, and they might say yes or they might say no. Ask a farmer — male, female, young, old, new, experienced — if they believe in a higher power, and the answer is almost always yes.
The truth is that farmers can control certain aspects of farming, but there are many other factors that are simply out of their hands. They control things like what seeds are purchased, how many seeds are planted, and harvest methods, Read More
Before stepping onto the soil of Southern Valley, I had never been on a farm. Despite growing up ten minutes down the road, I’d never sunk my boots into the fresh earth before sunrise or plucked a fresh-grown fruit from the vine. Never smelled the farm-truck exhaust or heard the bees buzz about as they pollenate flower after flower, field after field.
This is farm life at Southern Valley.
While the fields are full of muddy boots and fresh-picked fruits and vegetables, the office of Southern Valley works just as hard. The Operations team sinks their boots into the hustle and bustle of packing and shipping while the PACK Logistics team Read More
As spring gets nearer, so does the likelihood of what could be mistaken as a head cold actually turning out to be nothing more than allergies. In the last couple of weeks, South Georgia received its first coating of yellow pollen for the year. We know winter isn’t over yet, but spring has begun its entrance into the area and leaves behind little telltale signs of yellow pollen everywhere it touches.
Despite the fact that the farm in Yucatan is still smack-dab in the middle of winter season, in the words of Dug Schwalls, “When we see pollen on the plastic, we start thinking about Memorial Day.” We know it’s Read More
It’s mud, slick as snot and sticking to your boots.
It’s work days from sunrise to sunset.
It’s riding fields and supervising farm labor.
It’s farm life. And it’s not unfamiliar to Austin Hamilton.
But this is farm life in another culture.
It’s carrying out everyday tasks in a different language.
It’s living in an on-farm apartment with his wife and child.
It’s eating food that is foreign and unfamiliar.
This is farm life in Yucatan.
In the last few years, the trucking industry has seen a multitude of changes. Following the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), signed in 2011- shippers, carriers, and supply chain professionals have been required to follow a list of new strict requirements. The latest of these requirements, and arguably the biggest hurdle, being The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) mandate which requires nearly all U.S. truck operators to use electronic logging devices (ELDs). The mandate went into effect on December 16th of last year and impacts not only truckers, but trucking insurers, carriers, suppliers, and shippers and shipping costs.
The full spectrum of industry-effected areas is much too vast to cover, but there Read More