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GoodLeaf Farms Launches Aggressive Expansion Plans
GoodLeaf will bring its innovative and proprietary controlled-environment agriculture technology to more Canadian markets over the coming year
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McCain invests in a national network of vertical farms to bring tasty, local food to Canadians
GUELPH, ON, - With the closure of a successful new funding round, GoodLeaf Farms is embarking on an aggressive growth and expansion plan to build a national network of vertical farms that will bring fresh, delicious, nutritious and locally grown leafy greens to Canadians across the country.
Backed by a sizeable investment from McCain Foods Limited — which has increased its total investment in GoodLeaf to more than $65 million — GoodLeaf will bring its innovative and proprietary controlled-environment agriculture technology to more Canadian markets over the coming year, providing more Canadian consumers with year-round local food that is typically imported from the Southern United States or Mexico.
"From our start in Truro to our first commercial farm in Guelph, GoodLeaf has built a strong foundation for future growth," says Barry Murchie, Chief Executive Officer of GoodLeaf. "We want to be a global leader in vertical farming. Our first step to accomplishing that is ensuring we have a strong footprint in Canada, giving Canadians access to top quality, nutrient-dense, sustainably grown and pesticide-free leafy greens 365 days a year."
GoodLeaf opened its first commercial vertical farm in Guelph, Ont., in the fall of 2019. By the end of 2021, GoodLeaf is planning two more indoor vertical farms — one to serve the grocery and foodservice networks in Eastern Canada, and one for Western Canada.
The exact locations will be announced shortly.
"It is our intention to build farms that support the Canadian grocery store network, foodservice industry and consumers," says Mr Murchie. "We want to change what people are eating by providing a fresh, healthy and local alternative that, until now, hasn't been available in Canada. We are driving a new way to grow food, with disruptive technology that brings consumers leafy greens from their own backyard. This is a fundamental game-changer."
GoodLeaf's vertical farm grows to produce on hydroponic trays stacked in multiple horizontal levels. A proprietary system of specialized LED lights is engineered to emulate the spring sun, giving plants the light they crave to maximize photosynthesis. The indoor controlled environment is almost clinical, meaning there are no pesticides, herbicides or fungicides used. It is also immune to weather extremes, such as summer droughts or late spring frosts that can be lethal to crops.
Furthermore, having a local source of year-round food is vital to Canada's food security and sovereignty, concerns that were in the spotlight at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic as shoppers were faced with rapidly dwindling supplies on grocery store shelves.
At its 45,000-square-foot Guelph farm, every day GoodLeaf is harvesting microgreens (Spicy Mustard Medley, Asian Blend, Micro Arugula, Micro Radish and Pea Shoots) and baby greens (Ontario Baby Kale, Ontario Baby Arugula and Ontario Spring Mix) for Ontario grocery stores, ensuring a local supply of fresh, nutrient-dense leafy greens all year long.
GoodLeaf produce is exceptional in a salad, as a topping for burgers and sandwiches, as a kick of nutrients in a smoothie or as an ingredient to elevate your favourite dish.
Follow GoodLeaf Farms on Instagram @goodleaffarms and Like it on Facebook at /GoodLeafFarms.
About GoodLeaf Farms:
With a passion for delicious, nutrient-rich greens, GoodLeaf was founded in Truro, NS, in 2011. Using innovative technology and leveraging multi-level vertical farming, GoodLeaf has created a controlled and efficient indoor farm that can grow fresh produce anywhere in the world, 365 days of the year. The system combines innovations in LED lighting with leading-edge hydroponic techniques to produce sustainable, safe, pesticide-free, nutrient-dense leafy greens. GoodLeaf has ongoing R&D Programs in collaboration with the University of Guelph, Dalhousie University and Acadia University.
Learn more at goodleaffarms.com.
About McCain Foods (Canada)
McCain Foods (Canada) is the Canadian division of McCain Foods Limited, an international leader in the frozen food industry. McCain Foods is the world's largest manufacturer of frozen potato specialities, and also produces other quality products such as appetizers, vegetables and desserts that can be found in restaurants and retail stores in more than 160 countries around the world. In Canada, the company has eight production facilities with approximately 2,400 employees and, in addition to its famous French fries and potato specialities, makes frozen desserts, snacks and appetizers.
SOURCE GoodLeaf Farms
For further information: Michelle Hann, Senior Consultant, Digital and Communications, Enterprise Canada, mhann@enterprisecanada.com, 613-716-2118
Why We Believe Vertical, Urban Farming Can Help Save The Planet!
Conventional industrial farming contributes significantly to issues such as deforestation, biodiversity loss and the release of carbon emissions
Sophie | 2020
Our vertical, hydroponic farm based in Paddington, London.
Increasingly, we are all becoming aware of the negative impact of our food system on the environment. As individuals many of us are taking action to reduce the environmental impact of our diets, whether we’re reducing our meat and dairy consumption by trying out ‘meat-free Mondays’ or ‘veganuary’, buying zero waste foods, trying to buy more locally produced food or even growing our own.
Ultimately, we are looking for ways to minimize the negative environmental impacts of our food system. At Square Mile Farms, we believe that urban farming can play an important role in building a sustainable food system. Not only can we reduce food miles and prevent natural habitats from being converted for growing, we can also re-engage people to help them understand how food reaches their plates, which we believe is essential to enact real change going forward.
How does the current food system negatively impact the environment?
Conventional industrial farming contributes significantly to issues such as deforestation, biodiversity loss, and the release of carbon emissions. According to the Food Climate Research Network, the global food system is responsible for around 20-30% of greenhouse gas emissions. The WWF notes that food is responsible for 60% of global biodiversity loss and the UNFAO records that food production accounts for 70% of freshwater withdrawals.
The clearing of forests for livestock or growing crops is doubly concerning: not only do these practices have their own environmental impacts, e.g. methane emissions and issues related to fertilizer run-off, but they are also destroying forests which are important ‘carbon sinks’, absorbing approximately 2 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide yearly according to the UN.
Clearly, our current food system is flawed and this is only set to worsen as demands increase.
Infographic from: FCRN, ‘What is the food system’s contribution to the global GHG emissions total?’
Growing pressures on the food system
By 2050 the UN predicts the world population will grow to 9 billion: this is expected to require 60% more food and increase demand for water by 20% in the agriculture sector alone. So we need to find ways of making the food system more sustainable. We need to increase food production, while minimizing the environmental impact, or ideally making it negligible.
How can hydroponic farming in offices lessen the environmental impact of our food system?
We believe hydroponic, vertical farming is part of the solution to this issue. This method of growing food uses around 90% less water than conventional agricultural systems and can increase crop yields by up to 500%. So we can tackle two key problems in our current food system, the demand for water (by using considerably less) and the spatial impact (growing vertically allows a much more efficient use of space). By using existing urban spaces, such as workplaces, we can grow veg and herbs without converting more land for agricultural purposes.
Growing in offices also has the benefit of reducing food miles. By bringing food production to population centers, and further to that, by bringing it to people’s workplaces we are able to provide fresh produce where people are. If you’re taking home fresh produce once a week from work, there are virtually no food miles involved as you’d be traveling to and from work anyway!
Our office farm installations.
Another important way in which office farming can help improve our food system is by re-engaging consumers in cities. Writing for the World Economic Forum, Ellen MacArthur, a champion of Circular Economy, emphasized the important role cities will have in achieving a sustainable food system, especially because “80% of all food is expected to be consumed in cities by 2050”. She notes that cities should source food locally where possible and that they should avoid being “passive consumers” and instead, use their demand power to reward responsible farming practices. Office farming allows us to bring food production to the forefront of people’s minds, driving engagement, and encouraging conversation around our food system. We believe this is vital in order to educate and to inspire the change that we need to secure a sustainable future.
We believe that individual action is important when it comes to enacting change, but to achieve this we need innovative ideas that make it achievable for consumers to make such changes a reality. That’s why we bring urban farming to offices. We install farm walls and displays to improve employee wellbeing, drive engagement, and of course, provide fresh, nutritious produce. If you’d like to find out more about our offering click here.
You can also sign up for our newsletter to receive weekly tips and advice on sustainable living, as well as a round-up of relevant news.
Sources:
Bradley, P. and Marulanda, C., ‘Simplified Hydroponics to Reduce Global Hunger’, Acta Hortic. 554, 289-296.
Innovate UK, ‘Predictions - The Future of Food’.
MacArthur, Ellen, ‘Our food system is no longer fit for the 21st century’.
FCRN, ‘What is the food system’s contribution to the global GHG emissions total?'
UNFAO, ‘Water’.
UNFAO, ‘Water Use’.
UN News, ‘Climate Change’.
WWF, ‘Why we’re working on food’.
UNESCO World Water Assessment Programme, ‘The United Nations world water development report, 2016’.
US: NEW JERSEY - Will NJ's Million Dollar Investment In Vertical Farming Yield Long Term Growth?
Amidst the growth of urban farming projects in the US, a notable development took place earlier in June with the announcement that Jersey City, New Jersey, is to fund the construction and operation of 10 vertical farms in the city; the first municipal vertical farm program in the country
Written By: Theo Longsdon, Agritecture Intern
Amidst the growth of urban farming projects in the US, a notable development took place earlier in June with the announcement that Jersey City, New Jersey, is to fund the construction and operation of 10 vertical farms in the city; the first municipal vertical farm program in the country.
The city has partnered up with AeroFarms in a three-year contract worth $987,000 - with just over half of this sum funding the construction of the farm units and the rest covering the project’s maintenance. The farms will use aeroponics to grow a range of vegetables and will be situated at senior centers, schools, public housing complexes, and municipal buildings across the city, taking six weeks to install, and the first vegetables being ready just two weeks after.
The principal motive behind the program is the recognition that there is a growing need to enhance access to locally grown nutritious food and improve the diet and overall well being of citizens. This is in part related to the impact of Covid-19, which according to Steve Fulop, the mayor of Jersey City, has had a “disproportionate impact on people with pre-existing heart conditions, high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes which is directly linked to a person’s diet”. The venture will seek to counter these issues and promote a healthy, sustainable lifestyle through producing 58,000 lb of fresh vegetables over three years – roughly equating to 100,000 servings – and through holding dietary workshops and health screenings for participants. The hope is that a surge in awareness about healthy eating practices, coupled with the distribution of fresh, nutritious produce, will drive a change in people’s eating habits that leads to improvements in the wider, long-term health of the community.
The creation of jobs will be a further benefit of the program. AeroFarms are significant job providers; they have created about 120 jobs through their projects in Newark, and their new indoor vertical farming facility in Danville is projected to generate 92 jobs for the area. Whilst there has been no indication about the exact number of jobs that will be created as part of the program, with the introduction of 10 farms across the city it is clear a number of employment opportunities will arise, thus helping to stimulate economic development in the area.
Yet despite these upbeat anticipations, the cost of constructing and maintaining the 10 vertical farms is high, with the contract worth just under $1m. By AeroFarms’ own estimation the 10 farms will produce around 58,000 lb of produce over their 3 years, meaning that it will cost the city about $17 to produce one lb of produce. This is a colossal sum and represents an expensive economic venture in a time when the city faces a $70m budget shortfall as a result of Covid-19.
In such a climate, an alternative option for the city would be to invest money in supporting local farms and promoting the distribution of their produce. A quick look at local farms in the region highlights how this may be a far more cost-effective option: Alstede Farms, a 600-acre farm based in Chester Township retails a wide range of fresh organic vegetables at a significantly lower price – selling a bunch of their spinach for $2.99; a bunch of kale for $2.99; and a pound of beans for $3.99. Another organic farm in the region – Terhune Orchards - offers similarly low prices, retailing a bunch of their kale for $3.25 per bunch, a Romaine lettuce head for the same price, and a head of green cabbage for $2.95. If the city was seeking a more cost-friendly way of promoting healthy consumption patterns, then taking such an approach may have been the more viable option.
But whilst they may represent the more costly option, vertical farms hold a number of advantages over traditional soil farms. Crop yields tend to be higher, as crops can be grown all year round and conditions can be controlled to maximize growth. Having this controlled environment reduces the susceptibility to climate and local weather conditions that is a major drawback of traditional soil farming. The land area needed to cultivate the produce is far lower, as the vegetables can be stacked vertically – a major benefit at a time of increasing pressure on land. Vertical farms also use much less water as they facilitate the production of crops with 70-95% less water compared to traditional cultivation practices. Finally, the generation of local, year-round farmworker jobs is a clear advantage over conventional outdoor farms in the NJ area that depend primarily on seasonal labor. Taking such factors into account may indeed justify the higher cost of produce associated with the program.
One notable stipulation of the program is that those wanting to gain free access to the produce must partake in healthy eating workshops and quarterly health screenings. This entails the obvious risk that the city has overestimated the demand for education and health monitoring amongst Jersey City residents, which could mean that the uptake is lower than anticipated. If the demand does fall short of what the city anticipates, then issues of distribution may arise and the program’s effectiveness may be undermined. Its success will, therefore, depend to a large extent on the willingness of residents to spend time participating in these workshops and regular health screenings.
Jersey City’s newly launched program represents a pioneering attempt to combat deficiencies in access to locally grown, nutritious produce and awareness about healthy dietary patterns. The decision by the municipal body to step in and sponsor the vertical farms is ambitious and unprecedented in the US, but it also throws up some major questions. For example; will the plan of action lead to a long-term alteration in the diets and lifestyles of those involved? Do the associated benefits outweigh the cost of the program? And ultimately, is it a city’s duty to feed people through its own asset, or should it instead focus on policies, incentives, and programs that encourage the growth and support of local farms?