Interview with Valérie, general manager at Les Cultures de chez nous farm

After my interview with Louis‑Marie Jutras, president and founder of Les Cultures de chez nous, I had the pleasure to chat with his eldest daughter, Valérie, now the company’s general manager. This interview reveals an extraordinary, dedicated woman who grew up on the family farm.

Memories of growing up on the farm

Serge: What is your most vivid memory of growing up on your parents’ vegetable farm?

Valérie: My parents bought the farm in 1980, and I was born here in 1981. So, I’ve been in the business since I was a little girl! I wasn’t born in the fields but was very close to them! 3 memories come to mind.

1. When I was about 5 years old, I would tag along with my dad to make deliveries in Montreal in our little red truck. We’d deliver little garlic pots because we weren’t making leeks back then. I really enjoyed it, probably because we’d stop at Harvey’s restaurant by the 20 Highway on the way back to the farm. It was our little father‑daughter secret moment!
2. I’d also go with my parents out in the fields to harvest leeks by hand, and I’d always fall asleep on the tractor roof!
3. When I was a little older, around the age of 8 or 9, I started picking strawberries and raspberries. I loved my summers serving people and working in the field. I wasn’t big, but I had a bit of a temper and wanted to show that I could hold my own. I wanted to work the till, and I knew how to count! Customers were doubtful: they always counted their change. But I was beaming with pride when they realized I gave them the correct amount 😊.

Serge: What was it like growing up on a vegetable farm?

Valérie: For me, it was simple and easy. I liked the proximity of being in the house and being able to join my parents, who worked on the farm right around the corner. I also liked all the space we had for playing or when my cousins came to spend a few weeks at the farm in the summer. We’d go ATVing and fishing, and they’d work with us in the fields, helping us pick berries.

Serge: When you were young, did you ever think of taking over the family business, or did you want to do something other than farming for a living?

Valérie: I always thought of taking over the family business one day. Honestly, I’ve never had another job except at Les Cultures de chez nous. However, I used to give Step aerobic classes in the evenings!

Family work on a vegetable farm

Serge: How is it working with your father and brothers?

Valérie: Family is really important! But for us, family is more than just immediate family (father, mother, brothers, cousins); it’s family in a broad sense. We’re close with each and every one of our employees. Working with family members brings its own set of challenges. We may have different points of view, but we evolve, and we grow individually and together, too. The important thing is to communicate, listen to each other, and take time to discuss things together. You have to keep a balance between business and family.

Serge: Family is really important at Les Cultures de chez nous. And it goes even beyond your immediate family. What’s the atmosphere like at the farm?

Valérie: It's a privilege to have such an amazing and passionate team of dedicated colleagues who take the business at heart. Being surrounded by so many good people is a privilege and a source of pride. Most tell us they hope to retire with us! The sum of everyone’s strengths makes the company successful; I'm so happy about that.

We’re also lucky to have such caring and passionate colleagues who support us daily. They’re part of our great big family!

Serge: What does a typical day at the farm look like for you as the general manager?

Valérie: We’re a small company, so you must wear many hats to be a general manager! I plan my day in the morning, but unexpected things arise. I have meetings, I analyze production costs, and I talk to the different teams. That’s all very important to me. It’s not an 8 to 5 desk job, and I like it that way. You never know what will happen each day!

Serge: What are the biggest challenges the farm has faced in recent years?

Valérie: Well, of course, there was the pandemic, with all the constraints and measures we had to implement. Those were pretty demanding years in terms of day‑to‑day management and logistics. There are also issues with the labour shortage. And, of course, we also have to adapt to Mother Nature, who sometimes plays tricks on us and surprises us more each passing season!

Serge: What is your proudest achievement at the farm?

Valérie: I’d say all the progress we’ve made and all the steps we’ve taken in terms of advertising, social networks, Web presence, and trade shows to promote leeks and get people to cook them. We even had a billboard on the Jacques‑Cartier Bridge and an article in La Presse called “Le poireau se paie le pont!” (Leeks get a piece of the bridge).

It’s a great source of pride to see our progress and to stay at the forefront of advertising as a market garden farm. It’s really a team effort and a credit to the company.

Also, even though the company has expanded, we’ve kept it human and have grown close to our team and employees. We take the time to meet everyone and keep this big family together.

The future at Les Cultures de chez nous

Serge: How do you envision the future of the family farm?

Valérie: For us, it’s really about increasing leek consumption. We want people to become “completely crazy about leeks” 😉. We want to offer more Quebec leeks in grocery stores for a longer time, and we also want to increase the production of organic leeks.

We also want to diversify by producing even more squash and increasing our asparagus production. We also want to continue the successful farm ownership transition from my parents to my brothers and me, and perhaps eventually to a third generation! We even have employees’ children who are interested in continuing their parent's work, and we’re very open to that.

Serge: How is the new generation involved on the farm?

Valérie: Our children are still young, but they’re mainly involved in berry picking and our famous Festi‑fraises (strawberry festival), a family event in the summer with inflatables, food trucks, and activities for children.

My brothers’ children also help out on the farm, shadowing their fathers or grandfathers and relentlessly asking questions! My children work at our fruit and vegetable stand in the summer and are studying business administration. There are many areas and opportunities to work on the farm. So, who knows, maybe my kids will join the family farm one day!

The origin of sliced, washed and ready‑to‑cook leeks

Serge: How did the idea of making bags of sliced leeks come up?

Valérie: It all started in 1999. We had to throw away leeks that were deemed too small or crooked by grocery chains that didn’t want them. It didn’t make sense for us to throw all those leeks away. People also weren't buying whole leeks because there’s dirt in them, and they take too long to wash. So we decided to make sliced leeks that are already washed and ready to cook! This avoids waste and makes the product easy to cook.

Valérie’s favourite recipe

Serge: What’s your favourite recipe?

Valérie: I was born surrounded by leeks, so I always eat them! They’re part of my daily diet 😊. One of my favourite recipes that I cook every year for New Year’s Day is the leek’s white rolls in ham with béchamel sauce and Gruyère cheese. Leeks and cheese are a perfect match!

The importance of foreign workers

Serge: Where do your foreign workers mainly come from?

Valérie: Our workers all come from Guatemala. In the spring of 2024, we even celebrated the 10-year work anniversary of 5 foreign workers! So they’ve been coming to work with us every year for 10 years. We’re lucky because most workers come back year after year, so we will likely celebrate many 10, 15, and more anniversaries!

Serge: Why do your foreign workers only come from Guatemala?

Valérie: It’s an incredible opportunity for them to come and work in Quebec, and we've really become close! When we needed to hire more foreign workers, those already working with us suggested we bring in their families (fathers, brothers, uncles, nephews, etc.). Since family is important to us, we figured they might as well be with someone they know and love when working here to make things even more enjoyable.

All we want is for them to feel good. Coming to work here while separated from their families is already a huge sacrifice, so when we can make their lives easier by bringing a family member along, we gladly do so.

Serge: Why is the work of foreign workers essential at Les Cultures de chez nous?

Valérie: With the labour shortage issues we faced 10 years ago, we were understaffed and couldn’t do everything on our own. We started by bringing in 6 foreign workers and continued to hire more over the years. If Les Cultures de chez nous still exists today, it really is thanks to them.

Serge: How do you help and support foreign workers when they’re here?

Valérie: Upon arrival, a team member picks them up at the airport and shows them around the worksite and their accommodation. We also guide them through Quebec's laws and rules and introduce them to our grocery stores. They are much different from back home, and the products can be quite different! As members of a family often come to work with us, they help each other out a lot, too.

It’s really important for us to give them as much freedom as possible, so we provide them with a house and a car so they can be autonomous.

We also organize several activities with them so that their stay is not just about work but is also fun. We recently introduced them to deck hockey, which they really enjoyed! In the summer, we go to the water slide parks, and in the winter, we provide them with warm clothes and take them tube sliding at Valcartier. We’ve also taken them on a tour of Old Quebec.

We hold team dinners to connect and share traditional holiday meals at Christmas. We also decorate their homes for the holidays to make them feel part of the village.

Your trip to Guatemala to meet foreign workers

Serge: In January 2024, you and some colleagues visited foreign workers and their families in their home country. What was it like to meet the employees and their families at home?

Valérie: We left for one week to meet as many families as possible. It was a wonderful trip that put things in perspective! It created even more rapport with our employees. It was a touching and emotional trip. We realized what a difference we were making in their lives. We met their children, parents and grandparents, who hugged us in tears because we had really helped them by hiring their sons.

It was genuinely moving to see how generous they were. They don’t have much, but they were so proud and happy to host us. It was one of the best trips I’ve ever made, and I encourage anyone who employs foreign workers to visit them in their own country. I think meeting them in their hometowns is worthwhile, seeing how things are and spending time with them. It’s definitely something we’ll be doing again!

Serge: What was the most impressive thing about this trip?

Valérie: I was struck by the people's generosity and pride. Seeing their eyes light up was beautiful because they were genuinely happy to see us. Family members of one of the workers we visited handed us a piece of handmade embroidery that read: “My thanks to Les Cultures de chez nous for helping us build a better future.” It tugged my heartstrings.

Serge: What inspires you most about foreign workers?

Valérie: It’s a huge sacrifice for them to come and work here, leaving their families every year. They spend more time here working than with their families. If they didn’t work here, they couldn’t buy land, build homes, or send their children to school. On the one hand, yes, we help them by hiring them, but on the other hand, they also help us grow the business and ensure its long‑term survival.

What I learned from my interview with Valérie

Valérie is an entrepreneur at heart. She’s a generous, kind, extraordinary, and dedicated woman for whom family is extremely meaningful. For her, family doesn’t just mean relatives. It includes employees who are members of the Les Cultures de chez nous family. Together, they take great care of the family vegetable farm, and I sincerely wish them many years of success.

When talking with her, you immediately feel at ease and realize how passionate she is about leeks. I had such a good time with her in the fields for this interview, and I feel like I am, too, part of her family. She’s such a caring person. Maybe I’ll be lucky enough to be invited to her family's Christmas party and taste her famous leek’s white rolls recipe. Just discussing it with her made my mouth watery 🤤.

To learn more about Les Cultures de chez nous, browse the family vegetable farm’s website and learn about their fabulous homegrown business. And to find out more about Valérie’s father, Louis‑Marie, check out my interview with the president and founder of Les Cultures de chez nous!

– Serge