Honoring Agricultural Roots While Growing What’s Next

Some of Mariana Robles’ fondest childhood memories include spending time on her grandfather’s farm, where she saw firsthand how working the land helps feed communities. Those early experiences inspired her to pursue a career in the next generation of farming.

Today, as a head grower at Cox Farms’ BrightFarms greenhouse in Macon, Georgia, Mariana carries her family’s legacy forward in a very different kind of growing environment. Instead of tractors and open fields, her daily work centers on monitoring sensors, irrigation systems and climate controls that use technology and data to bring greater precision and consistency to the growing process.

“When I first saw this type of agriculture, it was like, ‘wow, I want to be part of it,’” she says.

As the largest greenhouse operator in North America, Cox Farms is helping make fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables more accessible year-round. With a growing network of climate-resilient greenhouses strategically located near major cities, produce from BrightFarms and Mucci Farms can reach store shelves in as little as 24 hours after harvest.

The tools and methods may look different from the ones Mariana’s grandfather used on his farm, but the heart of the work remains the same: helping crops thrive to feed a growing population.

“All the inputs that we use in conventional agriculture, we are reducing that usage and making it more efficient in creating the same, if not more, output that we would do in a conventional way,” Mariana explains. “It is something that is going to impact the current generations, but it will also impact the future generations in a big way.”

By combining her lifelong connection to agriculture with a passion for innovation, Mariana is helping shape a more sustainable and resilient future for farming.

“I love to share my story and how Cox Farms and BrightFarms have been impactful in my life,” she says. “I feel like I can make a huge change in agriculture just by being part of this process.”

Want to learn more about life at Cox? Explore our workplace experience here and see job openings here.