Will lease 60,000-s.f. facility in the FoodPort
FRANKFORT, Ky. (Jan. 28, 2016) — FarmedHere, the country’s largest and longest-running vertical farm, will invest $23.5 million into a year-round indoor farm and food processing facility in the West Louisville FoodPort that will create 40 jobs, Gov. Matt Bevin and Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer announced today.
FarmedHere plans to lease 60,000.s.f. in the FoodPort for its vertical farming operation and use half the space for up to 10 rows of vertically stacked grow beds. The company will dedicate the remaining space to sorting and packaging leafy greens and processing herbs and other plants for inclusion in salad dressings, baby food and additional value-added products.
“Agriculture is one of the commonwealth’s signature industries and we are excited to welcome a company that will help us build upon that success,” said Bevin. “FarmedHere’s unique approach provides an opportunity to boost Kentucky’s local produce output and distribution. We are pleased to welcome FarmedHere to Kentucky and anticipate their fruitful partnership with the West Louisville FoodPort.”
The facility’s location will help FarmedHere quickly deliver freshly harvested, USDA-certified organic and pesticide-free produce. FarmedHere also plans to hire veterans and second-chance employees including refugees and ex-offenders.
“Louisville is an ideal location for a FarmedHere vertical farm as it enables us to deliver healthy, local, organic produce 365 days a year to the approximately 18.2 million people living within a 200-mile radius of the city,” said Matt Matros, CEO of FarmedHere.
FarmedHere opened its first vertical farm in Chicago in 2010. The company works closely with local vendors to get produce from harvest to store within 48 hours, and to ensure distribution remains within 200 miles of the operation. FarmedHere currently sells to many large grocery stores in the Greater Chicago area, including Whole Foods and Mariano’s, a division of Kroger.
The company expects to work with traditional farmers, rather than compete with them, by growing produce in seasons when traditional farmers cannot, and by offering produce not supported by the Kentucky climate. FarmedHere’s vertical growing technology and local distribution methods help reduce time to market, energy use and overall costs. By growing entirely indoors with complete control of all variables, FarmedHere eliminates many of the obstacles traditional agriculture faces, including bugs, diseases, pesticides and weather.
FarmedHere is one of several businesses to commit to operating at the FoodPort. Other businesses include The Weekly Juicery, Piazza Produce and Just One Organics. Construction is expected to begin in August and businesses will begin their operations roughly 14 months later.
“FarmedHere’s sustainable practices and compassionate hiring policy make it an ideal community partner in west Louisville,” Fischer said. “The addition of this innovative company to the West Louisville FoodPort affirms our commitment to giving every citizen an opportunity for a healthy lifestyle by making locally grown food easily accessible.”
To encourage the investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority preliminarily approved FarmedHere for tax incentives up to $400,000 through the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based incentive allows a company to keep a portion of its investment over the agreement term through corporate income tax credits and wage assessments by meeting job and investment targets.
In addition, FarmedHere can receive resources from the Kentucky Skills Network. Through the Kentucky Skills Network, companies are eligible to receive no-cost recruitment and job placement services, reduced-cost customized training and job training incentives. Last year, the Kentucky Skills Network trained more than 84,000 employees from more than 5,600 Kentucky companies.
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