Shipping Containers Offer New Way To Get Fresh Produce In Western NY
DEC. 19, 2023
"Right now, there's two types of lettuce, and I have arugula growing and Jamaican callaloo," said Rickey Fleming, director of farm operations at Buffalo Go Green, as he pointed to rows of produce, flipped and housed in a shipping container.
"This is a vertical hydroponic farm," he explained.
From seed to harvest, the process takes just under two months.
"I'm harvesting something every couple of days," Fleming said.
For him, it's about conserving water and providing for local communities in urban settings.
"It's hard to get fresh fruits and veggies in winter. Locally, a lot of stuff that we're getting is from California," Fleming noted. "This is 40x9, and I can produce up to 5,000 heads of lettuce in here. If that were to be laid out in a farm, that would be six or seven large greenhouses to produce all that, which is probably almost an acre of land."
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The project is expanding.
"Unfortunately, we have a very short growing season in Western New York," added Allison DeHonney, executive director of Buffalo Go Green. "But people need food 365 days a year."
The group is launching a second hydroponic farm, along with some greenhouses, in East Buffalo. It’s supported by the New York State Power Authority, which is looking into electricity usage for indoor food production.
"We all know that there's a direct correlation between diet and health outcomes. So if folks eat local food, number one that cuts down on transportation [and] helping the climate, but also when produce is packed in ice, it loses its nutritional value," she said.
Once it gets going, some of the food will go to local pantries and some directly given to the community, potentially helping combat food deserts.
"To have a functioning equitable, strong local food system, you need a variety of grocery outlets, you need a variety of local farms, you need diversity in what the farms grow, and in the way the farms grow," explained DeHonney. "That creates a very strong hyper local food system."
As the new unit starts to look more like the one they already have, Fleming can’t help but to be excited.
"There's no pesticides being sprayed on this. Anything I use is organic, nothing but baking soda, neem oil," he said. "I look at it...it's way better, more fresh, tastes better."
It could allow farming to reach new heights, literally and metaphorically.
"[There's] really no other way but to grow inside and grow indoors to get fresh produce that's local," Fleming said. "So this was definitely going to be the future."
Buffalo Go Green says they will have local students come to this new site, with a goal to get more youth interested in farming. With the average age of the American farmer around 55 to 57 years old, there is a need for a new generation to step up.