An eye-catching 12-storey tower is transforming the city centre’s skyline, built and joined onto the former Woolworths store, ‘stepping up’ the building away from Oxford Street to the rear at Picton Yard.

The project is set to be complete in July, with works now around 70% finished. It will house roughly 120 residents, 350 people working in the commercial office spaces, plus ground floor businesses, an exhibition space, and education zone.

The development will feature a vertical urban farm, a five-storey green house which will produce crops and vegetables, a display aquarium, and a ‘biophilic walkway’.

It will use alternative energy sources, such as smart devices to monitor and help understand consumption levels and ecological footprint, communal residential spaces at rooftops and greenhouses, and the incorporation of greenery on balconies, and art throughout the building.

Babylon Micro-Farms, the leader for on-site indoor farming with over 300 micro-farms across 40 states and 5 countries, today announced the appointment of Marc Oshima as its new Chief Executive Officer, following an in-depth search process. 

“I am delighted to have been appointed CEO to lead Babylon Micro-Farms and build on the original vision of the founders Alexander Oleson and Graham Smith to simplify on-site indoor farming and provide more access to good food,” commented Marc Oshima. “

A local indoor farming company is growing its inventory with the unveiling of a new product with a lower price tag. 

Scott’s Addition-headquartered Babylon Micro-Farms recently introduced its Galleri Lite Micro-Farm, a new iteration of its flagship Galleri Micro-Farm – an automated indoor vertical farm that the company introduced in late May 2022. 

Although it has the same dimensions, plant space and hardware as the original Galleri product, Galleri Lite has removed some technical complexity of the original and comes with a much lower price tag.

Differences include taking away the remote management features from the original Galleri Micro-Farm, which is used to grow food for consumption and is targeted at universities, corporate cafeterias and senior living facilities that want on-site greens options for their menus.

New York City Council Member Rafael Salamanca Jr. presented a $175,000 check to PS 811X: The Academy for Career and Living Skills, in the South Bronx for the school’s new hydroponic classroom.

The check was presented as Salamanca joined students, teachers, parents and faculty at PS 811X for a ribbon-cutting ceremony marking the opening of the new hydroponic lab. Also on hand for the ceremony were members of the nonprofit New York Sun Works, which builds state-of-the-art hydroponic classrooms.

Students at the school will use the new lab to learn about and conduct experiments related to hydroponics, which involves growing plants with water-based nutrient solutions instead of soil.

Fork Farms, an innovator in food access technology, is proud to announce a new partnership with HPS LLC, a Delaware not-for-profit limited liability company that works to strengthen communities by helping its members fulfill their missions.

This two-year agreement, effective February 1, 2025, through January 31, 2027, brings @HPS’ member institutions access to sustainable, hyper-local food production. The HPS reference contract number is 1080 and will reflect the most current pricing and availability.

HPS' membership is made up of more than 4,900 organizations in 36 states. Membership includes: hospitals, medical groups, senior living facilities, schools and educational groups, senior nutritional feeding programs, county governments, religious organizations, camps, jails, and more.

Students at Crivitz Middle School are getting their hands dirty in the science department, learning what it takes to grow their own food -- right inside their classroom.

Thanks to a grant from Provident Health Foundation, the science program received an indoor hydroponic system.

Students at Crivitz Middle School are getting their hands dirty in the science department, learning what it takes to grow their own food -- right inside their classroom. (WLUK)

"They get to see how their food is grown and they are involved in that process. Taking the food and giving it directly to cafeteria where the students see it on display," says science teacher Shane Graves.

The Galleri Lite builds on Babylon’s mission to engage and inspire individuals across industries, including senior living, corporate dining, hospitality, and education while fostering a deeper connection to nutritious food. Designed with accessibility in mind, this system offers a more affordable entry point compared to the flagship Galleri system, ensuring fresh, nutrient-rich produce is within reach for more communities. The Galleri Lite offers exceptional ROI potential, particularly for microgreens, as the system’s yield can offset its initial capital expense.

This unique capability positions the Galleri Lite as not only an accessible and affordable entry point but also a self-sustaining investment, making it an attractive solution for organizations seeking both economic and environmental benefits.

Opened by Josh Smith in March 2024, Neon Greens isn’t your typical café or bistro. It takes the idea of farm-to-table a step beyond with an additional, next-door component: a hydroponic vertical farm.

Inside the farm and its attached “Harvest Capsule,” staff tend to crops like oakleaf, mizuna, sweet crisp, kale and more. Seeds are carefully sown before being placed in the plant nursery to grow; next, they’re plugged into a lush, living wall of lettuce, where water gently trickles down, nourishing the roots.

Living in Canada’s centre has its challenges. We can all attest that temperatures of 30 below can put a damper on many facets of living, including producing and consuming clean, locally grown foods.

What if actively gardening in mid-January was a possibility? What if local households, communities, retailers, and restaurants could grow their own fresh, quality produce, year-round, with affordable hydroponic gardens? Les Verts Living, a Manitoba-owned, innovative agricultural business, in partnership with T&T Seeds, has developed indoor hydroponic systems that do just so.

Owners Rachel Green and her father Kerry have dedicated their lives to agriculture and making nutritious, leafy greens accessible to tables throughout the province.

An urban farming project is sprouting hope in downtown London, with trays of microgreens grown in a simple office space providing fresh, nutritious food to those facing food insecurity, while offering valuable job skills to adults with disabilities.

The PATCH does this all through an unusual setup that demonstrates how easily urban spaces can be transformed into productive farms in a cost-effective way, and how such transformations can stave off hunger in the community.

"It's really funny. We're in an office space, right in the core of downtown London, and we're growing veggies in trays on shelves that we bought from Costco," said Joe Gansevles, the coordinator of urban agriculture with the PATCH program, a Hutton House initiative.

Welcome back to your favorite source of pre-owned hydroponic equipment information!

This month, we’re bringing you:

1. Two exciting listings for the opportunists amongst us

2. A unique case study

3. A tip to sell more efficiently