How Four Farms Are Focusing on Sustainability
October 29, 2024 So far in 2024, CEAg World has spoken with several CEA companies that have put sustainability at the center of their operations. Since growers in the industry rely heavily on CO₂, electricity, and other critical resources for production, it’s important to conserve them where possible. From battery-operated vehicles to effectively managing waste, here are four companies that have made significant strides towards becoming more sustainable.
Soli Organic partnered with Penske to trial a battery-operated truck in its fleet. | Photo: Soli Organic
Soli Organic
Since it was established nearly 40 years ago in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, Soli Organic has been committed to producing leafy greens sustainably. The company has stayed true to this commitment, making production more sustainable whenever they have had the opportunity. In August 2024, they launched a battery-operated truck in partnership with Penske Leasing. This truck, the Freightliner eCascadia, has distributed high-quality, organic produce to its retailer partners in Virginia in a six-month pilot test.
“It’s a good partnership for both of us,” said Jeffrey Saunders, vice president of national logistics at Soli Organic. “It really allows us to see what the capabilities of electric vehicles are. Penske knows that improving sustainability within our fleet and reducing our carbon footprint is very important. We’ve had multiple conversations with them about that, and they’ve been an incredible partner.”
Learn more about the six-month pilot test and how the battery-operated truck will reduce food miles here.
The inside of a Local Bounti facility. | Photo: Local Bounti
Local Bounti
CEA growers have recently started exploring innovative downstream inputs to reduce their carbon footprint. Local Bounti has led the way in this area of CEA, as they’re projected to have a 75% landfill diversion rate in 2023 once their sustainability report is finalized. In addition to commercial composting, the company has given farmers their organic waste to use as animal feed and green waste to a landscaping company to use as filler dirt.
“There are literally hundreds of employees across the company that know that these initiatives are important to us as a business,” said Laura Hann, Local Bounti’s director of sustainability. “Our employees believe that these actions are important because they value being part of a sustainable company.”
Interested in learning more about Local Bounti’s efforts towards sustainability and the benefits of circularity? Click here.
Bob Jones walking through a greenhouse at The Chef’s Garden.
The Chef’s Garden
Sustainability is essential for The Chef’s Garden in Huron, Ohio, a 400-acre outdoor farming operation that uses protected cropping systems. The company is dedicated to regenerative farming, and prides itself on cultivating healthy soil with healthy plants. In fact, The Chef’s Garden is Regenified-certified, meaning its growing methods restore ecosystems while improving the health of the planet.
“The intersection of CEA and regenerative agriculture is very dynamic,” said Bob Jones, CEO of The Chef’s Garden. “Regenerative is not just an outdoor production concept. The principles are very applicable to indoor growing. They look a little bit different, but it’s about understanding how healthy soils grow healthy plants, healthy people, and a healthy planet.”
Get more background on The Chef’s Garden and its methods of production here.
Finn & Roots’ greenhouse facility in Vermont. | Photo: Libra Design
Finn & Roots
Using the right lighting is another way CEA operations can operate more sustainably. Finn & Roots, a Vermont-based greenhouse producer of leafy greens and herbs, saw record harvests in 2024 after retrofitting their facility with a lighting solution from Libra Design. With new lighting, Finn & Roots was able to demonstrate energy savings throughout the year and install a new solar power array to power their farm.
“We were able to model daily light integral (DLI), [and] show how annual hours of lighting use would result in over 40,000 kWh per year of savings,” said Gretchen Schimelpfenig, senior energy engineer at ERI, an organization that helped Finn & Roots get state and federal funding to reduce their lighting retrofit payback period from six years to two years. “I’m seeing that many folks are working with smart manufactures like Libra to solve the energy problems and reduce that impact on their profitability so they can improve their unit economics.”
Want to learn more about Finn & Roots’ lighting retrofit and how it helped the company cut down on electricity costs? Get the full story here.
Making Production More Sustainable
In CEA, sustainability looks different from farm to farm. Are you a grower trying to make your operation more sustainable? Tell us about your efforts in the comments below.