80 Acres Farms began its journey inside a shipping container, as its team experimented with different farming technologies to develop efficient vertical systems. The company’s methodical approach to growth, testing and refining led to a pivotal moment when it launched its first 70,000-square-foot farm in Hamilton, Ohio.

The innovative facility is longer than a football field and includes 10 growing levels stacked on top of each other. The farm’s initial success was followed by further expansion, including the more recent Kentucky facility, which has been in operation since late 2022.

“Our goal from the start was to develop systems that could handle the stresses of population growth, farmland loss and climate change,” says Noah Zelkind, vice president of business intelligence and strategic finance for 80 Acres Farms. “We’ve learned from every farm we built, and now we’re focused on scaling up to bring fresh, healthy food to more people. It’s not just about growing food but about fitting into the community and using what’s already there.”

Not only is it possible to grow food all year long, but it's being done inside a Mount Pearl office building.

Green Farm N.L. runs a food growing operation that produces leafy greens, herbs and microgreens, no matter the season, from a home base in the Donovans industrial park. 

"We're doing this in about 2,000 square feet of retrofitted office space," said founder Scott Neary. 

Hydroponics — the method of growing plants in water rather than soil — has been Neary's solution to the lack of fresh greens in the province for most of the year.

The company serves around 250 households and dozens of restaurants in St. John's and the surrounding areas by delivery and subscription service.

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There are examples of innovations in the space. British Columbia-based QuantoTech Solutions, a vertically integrated ag-tech company, has developed a growing system that features 8 by 12 feet sheds with shelving units to allow for vertical farming, producing 4.8 between 7.2 tonnes of food per year, including leafy greens, strawberries, and cherry tomatoes.