{"id":2551,"date":"2020-10-16T20:31:00","date_gmt":"2020-10-16T20:31:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/fitadelphia.com\/?p=2551"},"modified":"2020-10-16T20:31:00","modified_gmt":"2020-10-16T20:31:00","slug":"bright-farms-takes-local-produce-model-nationwide-with-hydroponics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fitadelphia.com\/index.php\/2020\/10\/16\/bright-farms-takes-local-produce-model-nationwide-with-hydroponics\/","title":{"rendered":"Bright Farms takes local produce model nationwide with hydroponics"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/a>By Mary Ellen Shoup <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"BrightFarms
BrightFarms plans to build 10 to 15 more greenhouses over the next three years.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It wasn\u2019t too long ago when locally-grown produce evoked images of backyard gardens or roadside produce stands many miles outside of city limits. Now, the local produce movement has morphed into an urban-centered industry thanks to the rise of hydroponic greenhouses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One major player in the hydroponic space, BrightFarms, grows local produce nationwide by financing, building, and operating greenhouse farms in urban areas, partnering with nearby supermarket chains, enabling it to quickly and efficiently eliminate time, distance, and costs from the traditional food supply chain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BrightFarms\u2019 locally-grown lettuce and basil are currently in 650 stores including Walmart, Kroger, Ahold, and Albertsons locations. In two years, the brand has grown its distribution by 225%<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Paul<\/a>
BrightFarms CEO Paul Lightfoot says the company has reached 1.5 million households<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

reaching a household penetration of 1.5 million, CEO Paul Lightfoot said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe’re a mission-driven company focused on changing the health of our society and our planet by becoming the first national brand of local produce.<\/em>\u200b We work with the nation’s largest retailers to offer a premium, delicious and healthy product at an affordable price for the average consumer,\u201d<\/em>\u200b Lightfoot told FoodNavigator-USA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And its footprint continues to expand dramatically with a greenhouse set to open in Ohio this summer giving a stronger reach into the Midwest market and another greenhouse opening in Texas in early 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Its route to rapid expansion hasn\u2019t been a solo journey however. Bright Farms has brought in more than $100m in funding having recently secured more than $55m in Series D equity financing from investor Cox Enterprises in late June.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis financing will enable us to continue rapid national expansion of BrightFarms\u2019 network of local and sustainable farms,\u201d<\/em>\u200b Lightfoot said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Future of urban hydroponics<\/strong>\u200b<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Like many other players in the space, BrightFarms\u2019 greenhouses consist of a hydroponic system utilizing a combination of natural and artificial light to grow its lettuce varieties and basil. Its distinct advantage is the short distance the company’s produce has to travel to get to stores and eventually in the hands of consumers,  resulting in energy and cost savings.https:\/\/tpc.googlesyndication.com\/safeframe\/1-0-37\/html\/container.html<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the company, its operations use 80% less water, 90% less land, and 95% less shipping fuel than long-distance, centralized and field-grown suppliers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Affordably priced for the mainstream shopper, BrightFarms is able to reach a broader audience \u2013 who have tended to be priced out of the category \u2013 by appealing to their desire for fresh, locally-grown produce, he claimed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLocal is today’s #1 demand trend in both restaurants and supermarkets. As consumers demand fresher, local food, more major retailers are turning to BrightFarms to meet this demand,\u201d<\/em>\u200b Lightfoot added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The company\u2019s clear local origins has also helped it compete against organic offerings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, the Food Marketing Institute\u2019s 2017 Power of Produce report<\/a>\u200b<\/strong>\u200b listed both organic and local as two of the largest trends in fresh food, but noted that consumers have a significant preference for local. Researchers found that when quality, appearance, and price are equivalent, 60% of consumers chose the local option versus just 32% for organic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At retail, BrightFarms is giving big produce brands a run for their money, according to Lightfoot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen we enter retailers, we are replacing the shelf space of West Coast distributors. Our program drives incremental category growth while attracting our retailers\u2019 most valuable consumers,\u201d <\/em>\u200bhe said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor retailers, fresher produce also leads to longer shelf life and helps them eliminate waste.\u201d<\/em>\u200b<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As BrightFarms continues to grow \u2013 targeting the buildout of 10 to 15 more greenhouses in the next three years \u2013 it remains focused on building greenhouses outside of \u201cdensely populated urban cores\u201d <\/em>\u200bas part of its strategic business model of providing access to locally-grown produce at price point where most American shoppers can participate, according to Lightfoot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Mary Ellen Shoup It wasn\u2019t too long ago when locally-grown produce evoked images of backyard gardens or roadside produce stands many miles outside of city limits. Now, the local produce movement has morphed into an urban-centered industry thanks to the rise of hydroponic greenhouses. One major player in the hydroponic space, BrightFarms, grows local<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t Read more<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[118,51],"tags":[215,214,141,216],"class_list":["post-2551","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-environment","category-nutrition","tag-greenhouse","tag-hydroponic","tag-pesticides","tag-sustainability"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fitadelphia.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2551","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fitadelphia.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fitadelphia.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fitadelphia.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fitadelphia.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2551"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/fitadelphia.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2551\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2552,"href":"https:\/\/fitadelphia.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2551\/revisions\/2552"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fitadelphia.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2551"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fitadelphia.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2551"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fitadelphia.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2551"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}