Published: Thursday, March 22, 2007 | 2:22 PM ET

Canadian Press: JUDY CREIGHTON

(CP) - Sometime in the future, food shoppers may be able to buy green beans, broccoli and other vegetables in the winter months that have been grown in Canadian greenhouses rather than relying on produce imported from the southern U.S.

That is the ultimate goal of the greenhouse industry, says Shalin Khosla, greenhouse specialist for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, based at the Harrow Research Centre in the Lake Erie region of southwestern Ontario.

"We have growers looking at growing green beans and other crops such as eggplant, but it has to be economical," he says.

Unfortunately, Khosla says, "with the low light levels in winter we can't really have winter production unless we install artificial lights, but is the consumer willing to pay for that?"

And therein lies the problem. Energy costs.

Kristen Callow, general manager of the Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers, says that the problem is growers don't have enough sunshine to grow their crops.

Paul Deroose, known as the King of Bromeliads, looks over flowers in a temperature-controlled greenhouse at his nursery in Apopka, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

"It is the biggest factor that affects production," she says. "If it is really cold out but it's sunny, it is a great day for us. When it's milder in the winter, it is actually worse because of the cloud cover."

There are about 300 greenhouse operations in Canada. Ontario has the largest area devoted to growing vegetables under glass or plastic, followed by British Columbia and Quebec. Alberta has a small industry, as has the Maritimes.

One of the largest operations is run by James Cornies at his six-hectare facility in Kingsville, Ont., west of Leamington, Ont. Cornies Farms, founded by his grandfather in the early 1960s, grows seedless cucumbers, which are sold across Canada and into the U.S.

"Our energy costs have escalated enormously, which is a challenge," as is aggressive marketing by competing producers in Mexico, says Cornies.

In other greenhouses, growers are producing tomatoes, sweet peppers and cucumbers as well as herbs and hydroponic lettuce almost year-round.

"The industry wants to ensure that the consumer has a high-quality fresh product," says Khosla. "Sweet peppers are red, yellow and orange with some green, and growers are experimenting with different sizes, trying smaller ones with a slightly different flavour."

So far, hot and spicy peppers haven't caught on, but he says if there is a demand he is sure it will be met.

Greenhouse produce can be found in supermarkets and other outlets now, Khosla says. Look for "Grown in Canada" labels to ensure the vegetables are homegrown.

All the produce is shipped to every province as well as exported to the U.S.

Almost all greenhouse vegetable production uses various forms of hydroponics. The most common systems use rockwool slabs as the growing medium. Hydroponics uses mineral nutrient solutions instead of soil containing silt and clay.

One of the pluses of greenhouse production is that because of the controlled and enclosed environment, they are much less susceptible to outbreaks of diseases and insects.

Biological control of insects using predator insects has become a very common management practice recently.

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Judy Creighton welcomes letters at 9 Kinnell St., Hamilton, Ont., L8R 2J8, but cannot promise to answer all correspondence personally. She can also be reached by e-mail at jcreighton(at)golden.net.