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USA: Nebullam Launches Farm-To-Door Program For Central Iowa Residents
“In the span of six days we decided to pivot from selling to restaurants to going from farm-to-door, offering fresh lettuce and microgreens direct to consumers weekly or bi-weekly,” said Clayton Mooney, co-founder of Nebullam. “We put up an e-commerce site, got everything set up, and launched.”
Screenshot from the shop section of Nebullam's website.
Nebullam, an emerging indoor farming company based in Ames, has launched a delivery service of its fresh food products to Central Iowa residents, to ensure that Iowans have access to locally grown lettuce, herbs, and microgreens during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as year-round.
“In the span of six days we decided to pivot from selling to restaurants to going from farm-to-door, offering fresh lettuce and microgreens direct to consumers weekly or bi-weekly,” said Clayton Mooney, co-founder of Nebullam. “We put up an e-commerce site, got everything set up, and launched.”
Since pivoting, Nebullam has had its best month of revenue to date and is growing at almost ten percent month over month, Mooney told Clay & Milk.
“In some ways, the change has really been a blessing in disguise for our business model,” said Mooney.
Nebullam was founded in 2017 with a primary focus of improving indoor farming technologies to help indoor farm owners and operators become profitable, faster. Today, Nebullam owns and operates its own indoor farm within the Iowa State University Research Park.
“Prior to COVID, about 3/4 of Nebullam’s produce was going to Central Iowa restaurants with the remain 1/4 going to grocery stores,” said Mooney. “In early March, we began talking to friends on the west coast who are indoor farmers about restaurants shutting down there and felt like it was inevitably going to happen here as well.”
Nebullam’s indoor farm produces red butterhead lettuce and microgreens such as broccoli sprouts and micro radish. Through Nebullam’s site residents from Ames, Boone, Nevada, Ankeny, and Des Moines can subscribe to have fresh produce delivered directly to their door, every week or every other week. In addition to Nebullam’s website options, you can always find fresh Nebullam lettuce and broccoli sprouts at Wheatsfield Co-op in Ames.
“We do have two restaurant partners that have come back online. When our other restaurant partners are able to get back up and going again, we’ll have the production to meet their weekly needs,” said Mooney. “As for the direct-to-consumer, we’re pretty excited to continue to pursue that.”