Meet the Team

Woman in artichoke field

Jane Hayes

Jane Hayes is the founder and president of Monterey Farms since 2000. After working in the culinary field for over 25 years, her entrepreneurial spirit came to life. Exploring new ideas, she began R&D in her home kitchen using locally grown, central coast artichoke farm artichokes and developed a unique, hands-on process that provides fresh tasting artichoke hearts to her customers. Always the innovator, Jane collaborated with Janet in 2022 to create Chef Butter.

woman holding a basket of vegetables and butter

Janet Melac

Janet Melac studied at the Cordon Bleu in Paris, France where she graduated first in her class. She went on to own two award winning fine dining restaurants in California. In 2012 she joined Monterey Farms as Research and Development Chef and Quality Assurance Manager. In 2022, collaborating with Jane, Janet created Chef Butter, drawing from her knowledge of unique flavor combinations. She invites you to add a burst of flavor to your dining with Chef Butter.

North America's only Artichoke Heart Producer

California Artichoke Hearts

The incredible edible flower™