The latest news, trends, analysis, interviews and podcasts from the global food and beverage industry
Bowery Farming has opened its "largest, most technologically advanced" vertical farming facility in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The Bethlehem Farm is powered using 100% renewable energy and houses 15% more efficient LED lighting. It also features a custom-built water recapture and filtration system designed to harness water from plants, ensuring high-quality food safety standards. Irving Fain, founder and CEO of Bowery Farming, said: "If we've learned anything from the past two years it is that we are in a period of unprecedented disruption and uncertainty across our climate and geopolitical circumstances, which unfortunately is going to persist. We are also seeing firsthand that our global food system is inextricably tied to these dynamics." He continued: "At Bowery, wherever food is needed, we can grow it. We are addressing the challenges in our system by growing food smarter for more people in more places – and that work, securing food for our future, continues today with the opening of our Bethlehem Farm." The smart farm will provide freshly grown produce to 50 million people within a 200-mile radius of the farm via retail outlets including Whole Foods Market and Giant of Landover, as well as ecommerce partner Amazon Fresh. Bowery has partnered with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on the redevelopment project of the site, formerly the Bethlehem Steel Corporation, which will create more than 70 full-time jobs. In January, the company announced plans to open two new smart indoor farms that would serve the Atlanta, Georgia, and Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, areas.