Joel Schipper

May 31, 2023

SHEPHERDSVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- When you think of farming, the first thing that comes mind is probably a barn that overlooks low, flat fields.

But a Shepherdsville company is vertically farming with the help of 20 repurposed shipping containers. It's called Square Roots, a tech-based farm company that grows herbs and micro greens in a fraction of the time as traditional farming.

No pesticides are used, and more than two dozen employees work get produce to the table as fresh and safely as possible.

"Our goal is reduce our carbon footprint," said Joey Hightower, general manager of Square Roots. "So a facility like this — if we were to lay it all out on the ground — would take up much more space than you see here."

The amount of produce grown in each shipping container would equal about 1 acre of land. Inside, they can use 90% less water as they would on a traditional field.

"With different factors that are going to traditional farming like weather and other different factors, we don't have to worry about that here," Hightower said. "We control the entire process."

The idea is similar to one undertaken by AppHarvest who for years has grown tomatoes at a facility in Morehead, leafy greens at a 15-acre facility in Berea and vine crops at a 60-acre facility in Richmond. But recent financial struggles have thrown its future into serious doubt.

Square Roots is located on the property of Gordon Food Service in Shepherdsville, a partnership that gets produce to tables faster.

"It helps us provide food to cities like Nashville, Indianapolis, and St. Louis all from this facility here," Hightower said.

The growing process is a high-tech one but it's efficient. It all starts in the germination room. Inside, the goal is for seeds to start to crack. Then in the nursery, the plants go from seed to stem.

From seed to table, it takes just 26 days. Each package has a QR code to track how the herbs got to where they are.

It's a new way of farming for a new generation of those eager to carry on a tradition, one that is now just a little taller.

"For the most part, this is done by hand," Hightower said. "So we are creating a new environment for a whole new group of farmers that never thought anything about farming."

PHOTOS: Square Roots is vertically farming with the help of 20 repurposed shipping containers in Shepherdsville. May 31, 2023. (WDRB Photo)