New indoor farming operation opens in Kentucky

Indoor farming operation Square Roots and food distributor Gordon Food Service have opened a new climate-controlled indoor farm in Shepherdsville, Kentucky.

Strategic partners since 2019, the two companies have been building indoor farms across the continent, including three this year. The Kentucky farm joins new operations on Gordon Food Service distribution centers in Kenosha, Wisconsin and Springfield, Ohio.

“Working with Gordon Food Service, we’ve tripled our aggregate growing capacity this year while entering three new strategic markets across American’s heartland,” Tobias Peggs, cofounder and CEO of Square Roots, said on the company’s website. “This rapid expansion is purely driven by customer demand for our locally grown food. And it’s been enabled by our scalable smart farm platform, which we’ve shown can be replicated in multiple new locations, quickly and cost effectively.”

The first commercial harvests at the Shepherdsville facility of long-lasting herbs, salad mixes and microgreens are scheduled for spring 2023 and will be available to retailers, restaurants, schools and hospitals across the central Midwest. The farm has been sized to produce more than three million packages of herbs and leafy greens each year using a recirculating hydroponic system.

All Square Roots produce has at least 14 days of extended shelf life, according to the company, is pesticide- and GMO-free and is sold in recycled and recyclable packaging.

Square Roots’ platform increases yields by 30% and features automation technologies for functions including seeding, harvest and sanitization. Its proprietary software helps manage aspects of growing from production planning to monitoring plant health.

All Square Roots farms are USDA Harmonized GAP+ certified for food safety.