Photo courtesy of Prospiant
Prospiant, a North American provider of controlled environment agriculture greenhouse solutions, has appointed Burk Metzger as its new president.
Metzger will report to Gibraltar CEO Bill Bosway; Prospiant is the agriculture technology portfolio of Gibraltar Industries.
Metzger joined Prospiant in April 2021 as general manager of Prospiant Canada, where he's strengthened the company’s position in the produce end market and improved overall business performance.
“Burk is an accomplished and successful leader in the controlled environment agriculture industry with a long history as both a grower and owner-operator,” Bosway said. “Given this experience, Burk truly understands the various opportunities for our customers. He knows what is needed from Prospiant to help them achieve the highest return possible on their investment.”
Prior to Prospiant, Metzger served as general manager of protected agriculture at Lipman Family Farms, where he oversaw operational management, location acquisitions and integrations, and managed independent contract growers. Before that, he founded and led Suntastic Hothouse Inc./Huron Produce for 24 years before selling the business to Lipman in 2018.
“I am excited for the opportunity to lead and continue the growth of Prospiant together with our teams in the U.S. and Canada,” Metzger says. “Having been in our customers' shoes and understanding their operational challenges allows us to offer better solutions every day of the week.”
Metzger will relocate from the Detroit area to Prospiant’s headquarters in Cincinnati in the near future.
“With our new headquarters and manufacturing facility in Cincinnati, Ohio, coming online this year, significant investments in our Kingsville, Ontario, facility, and the broadest offering of solutions in North America, our experienced team is set to lead the way,” he added.
Metzger holds a degree in agricultural engineering from Nuertingen-Geislingen University in Germany. He has experience in strategic planning, project and construction management, food systems, organizational integration, and operations leadership.
Prospiant was formed from the combined expertise of legacy companies Rough Brothers, Nexus Greenhouse Systems and ThermoEnergy Solutions. Gibraltar Industries is a manufacturer and provider of products and services for the renewable energy, residential, agtech and infrastructure markets.