World Record Indoor Farm

World’s Largest Indoor Vertical Farm: world record in Newark, New Jersey

World Record Indoor Farm

Newark, New Jersey, United States–AeroFarms®, a Certified B Corporation and the pioneer in vertical farming, uses aeroponic technology in their farms; the 69,000 square foot farm uses 95% less water than a traditional farm thanks to its specially designed root misting system, and sets the world record for being the World’s Largest Indoor Vertical Farm, according to the WORLD RECORD ACADEMY.

“AeroFarms award-winning delicious leafy greens can be found at major retailers like Ahold Delhaize, Amazon Fresh, Harris Teeter, The Fresh Market, Walmart, Whole Foods Market, and more,” the company says.

World's Largest Indoor Vertical Farm: world record in Newark, New Jersey

“AeroFarms is a sustainable indoor agriculture company based in Newark, New Jersey and uses a patented aeroponic growing system to grow produce. The company currently owns and operates four farming facilities in and around Newark.

“AeroFarms uses aeroponic technology in their farms. Unlike hydroponics, aeroponics utilizes a closed loop system to mist the roots of the greens with nutrients, water, and oxygen. The growing cloth medium is made out of BPA-free, post-consumer recycled plastic. The cloth can be fully sanitized after harvest and then reseeded with no risk of contamination. Acting as a barrier between the mist and the plants, the cloth allows for a clean, dry and ready to eat product.

“LED lights are engineered to have specific spectrum, intensity, and frequency which controls the physical and flavor components of the produce. The controlled indoor environment disrupts the normal cycle of indoor pests. This pest resistant design does away with the need for pesticides, herbicides and fungicides.” (Wikipedia)

“New York startup Aerofarms has built the world’s largest vertical farm in Newark, New Jersey. A former steel factory was converted to house the 69,000 square foot farm,” the Global Citizen reports.

“250 different kinds of greens and herbs grow in plant beds stacked in 12 layers from floor to ceiling. The beds are lit with LED lights that mimic natural sunlight and sensors track the plants’ growth. Oxygen is circulated through mini-fans at the end of every plant bed. Seeds are poured onto a tray covered with a recyclable cloth made from recycled plastic bottles.

“The vertical farm doesn’t require any soil, pesticides, or sunlight to grow crops. Aerofarms uses a method called “aeroponics,” conceived by a Cornell professor who works with the company, that leaves plant roots exposed so they can be sprayed with a mist filled with nutrients. They claim to use 95% less water than traditional outdoor farming.”

“Today in the U.S., vertical farms of various designs and sizes exist in Seattle, Detroit, Houston, Brooklyn, Queens, and near Chicago, among other places. AeroFarms is one of the largest. Usually the main crop is baby salad greens, whose premium price, as Ed Harwood realized, makes the enterprise attractive,” the New Yorker reports,

“The willingness of a certain kind of customer to pay a lot for salad justifies the investment, and after the greens get the business up and running its technology will be adapted for other crops, eventually feeding the world or a major fraction of it. That is the vision.

“AeroFarms supplies greens to the dining rooms at the Times, Goldman Sachs, and several other corporate accounts in New York. At the moment, the greens can be purchased retail only at two ShopRite supermarkets, one on Springfield Avenue in Newark and the other on Broad Street in Bloomfield.”

“As a Certified B Corporation, we use the latest breakthroughs in indoor vertical farming, artificial intelligence and plant biology to fix our broken food system and improve the way fresh produce is grown and distributed locally and globally. We have built a proprietary agriculture platform to grow a wide array of products, delivering superior flavor, better quality and improved nutrition with the most sophisticated levels of traceability and food safety in our industry.,” the official website says.

“We have pioneered large-scale commercial indoor vertical farming with world class operations to enable local production all year round with elevated traceability from seed to package. To date, we have grown over 550 different varieties of fruits and vegetables, leveraging our deep understanding of plant biology.

“We have developed our own cutting-edge growing technology platform and have over 250 invention disclosures. We are constantly innovating and elevating our proprietary mechanical, operating, environmental and biological systems. Our fully-connected smart farms with sensor network feed a vast library of data insights, collected over 15 years of operations, giving us the ability to understand plants in ways they’ve never been understood.”

“AeroFarms’ crops are grown entirely indoors using a reusable cloth medium made from recycled plastics. In the absence of sun exposure, the company uses LED lights that expose plants to only certain types of spectrum,” The Kids Should See This reports.

“AeroFarms claims it uses 95% less water than a traditional farm thanks to its specially designed root misting system. And it is now building out a new 70,000 square foot facility in a former steel mill. Once completed, it’s expected to grow 2 million pounds of greens per year, making it the largest indoor vertical farm in the world.”

“AeroFarms, which has other facilities in Newark, has continued to turn heads with its cutting-edge setup at its flagship facility, where a closed-loop, aeroponic water circulation system uses 95 percent less water than field farmed-food, yet yields a whopping 390 times higher per square foot,” the Patch.com reports.

“Since it’s much easier to control the environment indoors, the company is also able to avoid using pesticides on its crops, which include watercress, arugula and kale. It’s all done with a colorful array of LED lights, allowing the company to defy traditional growing seasons and produce their produce all year-round.

“But don’t plants need dirt to live? Nope, AeroFarms says. They only need water and nutrients – which are traditionally stored and provided by soil.”

“AeroFarms patented, award-winning indoor vertical farming technology provides the perfect conditions for healthy plants to thrive, taking agriculture to a new level of precision, food safety, and productivity while using up to 95% less water and no pesticides ever versus traditional field farming. AeroFarms enables local production to safely grow all year round, using vertical farming for elevated flavor.™

“In addition, through its proprietary growing technology platform, AeroFarms has grown over 550 varieties of plants and has developed multi-year strategic partnerships ranging from government to major Fortune 500 companies to help uniquely solve agriculture supply chain needs.”