Matthew Compton
Matt Compton was born and raised on his family farm, just outside of Summerside. Every since he was a young child all he wanted to do was be a farmer, and he certainly followed his passion and currently he is the 4th generation owner/ operator of his family farm, that grows mostly strawberries, sweet corn, mixed vegetables, pumpkins, wheat and straw sales. Matt truly focuses on connecting with consumers to educate them and actually show them where their food comes from by opening up his business to the public with corn mazes, U-Pick Berry Patches, and a roadside stand. When Matt is not on the farm he thoroughly enjoys tractor pulling, everything that Matt does is associated with agriculture, and he wouldn’t want it any other way.
Matthew Compton
Owner/ Manager, Compton’s Vegetable Stand and Hy-Croft Farms
Manage our crops and farm operation, which could be anywhere from human resources to crop or pest management, to planting and harvesting crops, to being a salesman of our products. For me, I am as much of a salesman of my product as I am a farmer, because I deal directly with consumers compared to a dairy farmer for example they deal directly with ADL and then ADL deals with the consumer. A significant portion of my job is making connections with consumers.
My whole life, for the past 35 years I have memories of being involved and doing stuff on the farm.
I went to Olds College in Alberta where I took Agricultural Mechanics, and I am a red seal mechanic, and certified heavy equipment technician.
For me I find it difficult to find time to volunteer because I am very busy with the farm, so my way to give back is to support and give to the community as much as I can. I try to be a good ambassador for our community, when we can our business tries to support local functions, benefits, fundraisers, etc. I am also a board member of the PEI Federation of Agriculture and our farm has been a farm host for PEI Open Farm Day.
In my opinion there is no better way to eat a strawberry than to go into the field and eat one right off the plant.
A farmer, every since I was young farming is the only thing that I wanted to do.
The food that you buy from your local producer, that homegrown food is the safest and healthiest food that you can buy. You can come to the farm and actually see where your food comes from; you can come to the field to pick your strawberries; you can see exactly what happens on our farm. There is nothing that we hide from our consumers. We are transparent and honest about everything that takes place on the farm.
To provide my family, neighbours, and fellow Islanders with wholesome locally grown food, food that doesn’t come from a fast food restaurant or package. Real, genuine food in it’s most wholesome form.
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