Fresh, local, and predictable: How "indoor" farms are solving food's biggest problems

I am not advocating for anyone to buy these particular products-but this idea of huge, green, indoor farms certainly has its merits.
I grew up on a dairy farm -and the cows had to be fed and their food had to be grown yearly.
So much depended 'on the weather" for their food--hay, corn, oats.
Lean years when little rain in the spring, or too much--etc.


07-28-2025
BRIGHTFARMS

Fresh, local, and predictable: How “indoor” farms are solving food’s biggest problems
https://www.fastcompany.com/91372475/fresh-local-and-predictable-how-indoor-farms-are-solving-foods-biggest-problems

BrightFarms’ greenhouse-grown produce offers a blueprint for a more resilient, nutritious—and delicious—food chain that looks more like just-in-time manufacturing than traditional farming
Fresh, local, and predictable: How “indoor” farms are solving food’s biggest problems

BrightFarms’ high-tech greenhouse in Macon, Georgia, produces approximately 22,000 pounds of lettuce per day and serves as a regional hub for salad supply in the Southeast.

BY Fast Company Custom Studio
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Inside an eight-acre greenhouse on the outskirts of Macon, Georgia, more than eight million pounds of lettuce are harvested annually, untouched by external weather conditions, pesticides, or even human hands. The produce picked and packaged here is then shipped directly to regional retailers and food banks, skipping multiple links in the typical salad’s supply chain. This facility joins a network of a half-dozen other greenhouses strategically placed around the country by BrightFarms, a pioneer in “controlled environment agriculture.” Together, they offer a blueprint for a more resilient, nutritious, and delicious food chain that looks more like just-in-time manufacturing than traditional farming.

That’s because the average American’s food pyramid has never felt more wobbly. Farmers lost $20.3 billion to weather disasters last year, nearly half of which was uninsured. With fresh produce concentrated in California and buttressed by foreign imports during the winters, the nation’s stomach travels on long-haul trucks consuming fuel, belching emissions, and stretching the time between harvest and consumption, which in turn leads to lettuce with a shorter shelf life. BrightFarms’ localized greenhouses, once dismissed as a niche product for affluent urbanites, have spent the past decade refining their techniques and scaling production to close the cost gap with conventional farming. Now they’re starting to pull ahead. “Indoor-grown salads represent 6% of an $8 billion category, but account for 100% of the growth,” notes Abby Prior, chief commercial officer of Cox Farms, BrightFarms’ parent company.

Most produce is at its highest nutritional value the moment it’s harvested. The faster we get it to consumers, the healthier it is for them.”


This switch delivers produce that is fresher, safer, and more reliable—traits that are especially meaningful to cash-strapped consumers. The unstoppable rise in food prices during the past few years has caused many to re-evaluate their household and caloric budgets. Fresh produce needs flavor, visual appeal, and importantly, the shelf life to compete with hyper-processed foods that busy consumers often choose for convenience. If produce can last longer, the likelihood increases that it will be used and not go to waste. Combined with the added ease of not needing to be washed, greenhouse-grown produce provides much-needed value and convenience.

Only 1 in 10 Americans regularly eats the recommended daily servings of fruits and vegetables—a shocking statistic skewed further by income and demographics. .................


https://images.fastcompany.com/image/upload/f_webp,c_fit,w_1920,q_auto/wp-cms-2/2025/07/250605_JF_COX_BF_MACON_878.jpg
BrightFarms’ high-tech greenhouse in Macon, Georgia, produces approximately 22,000 pounds of lettuce per day and serves as a regional hub for salad supply in the Southeast.