New CEA Facility Opens in Wisconsin
Square Roots, a technology company in controlled environment agriculture, and Gordon Food Service, a food distributor in North America, recently announced the opening of a new climate-controlled, indoor farm in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
“Our partnership with Gordon Food Service, combined with our modular, smart-farm platform, means we can rapidly deploy new indoor farms in strategically located cities like Kenosha,” Tobias Peggs, co-founder and CEO of Square Roots. “We are also able to create exciting jobs in the community, while making locally-grown food available, all year round, to new consumers in nearby Chicago and Milwaukee, significantly expanding our reach in the Midwest.”
The facility “accelerates our shared vision to build indoor farms together across the continent,” said Rich Wolowski, CEO of Gordon Food Service. “Together with Square Roots, Gordon Food Service is enabling local food at a global scale, meeting increased demand for produce that is fresher, responsibly grown, and traceable from seed to shelf.”
Kenosha will be home to the fourth Square Roots farm in North America, and the largest growing facility the company has built to date. It has the capacity to produce more than 2.4 million packages of herbs and leafy greens annually. Square Roots already operates two commercial-scale indoor farms in Michigan and another in Brooklyn, New York.
Square Roots growers in Kenosha will soon be harvesting long-lasting herbs such as basil, cilantro, dill, and parsley, alongside nutritious salad mixes and chef-favorite microgreens. All Square Roots produce has at least 14 days of extended shelf life and is completely free of pesticides and GMOs.
Square Roots has recruited locally in Kenosha with the aim of opening new pathways for more young people to enter the high-tech agriculture industry. The company offers extensive ongoing training opportunities for employees, in addition to full benefits, ownership in Square Roots, and accelerated career paths to propel professional growth.
Square Roots’ fresh produce is available in more than 250 retail locations around the country including Whole Foods Market, FreshDirect, Fresh Thyme Market, Meijer’s market format stores, Morton Williams, Busch’s Fresh Food Market, SpartanNash corporate stores and Gordon Food Service Stores.
First harvests are scheduled for spring 2022, reaching local consumers in Kenosha and the broader Chicago and Milwaukee metropolitan areas. Photo: Square Roots
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