Urban Farm DB
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Building interiorInactiveSince 2009

FarmedHere

Bedford Park, United States · Operator: FarmedHere (Here Holdings)

Overview

A Bedford Park (Chicago) operation once billed as the world's largest indoor vertical farm; ceased farming in 2017 and pivoted to branded foods.

Citizen participation

Company-run mass production; no public participation.

Operating model

Commercial model growing USDA-organic greens and basil in an indoor vertical farm, supplying ~100 Chicago-area stores.

Impact

High labor and energy costs, inconsistent yields and rising competition led it to give up farming; judging ROI better elsewhere, it dropped the farm for branded products like dressings. Lesson: indoor growing could not beat conventional farming on labor/energy cost and yield consistency.

Crops

  • leafy greens
  • basil

Scale

8,361 m²Ceased farming in 2017; ~90,000 sq ft (≈8,361 sqm) Bedford Park facility, once the largest US indoor vertical farm

Sources(2)

Related cases

FarmedHere — Urban Farm DB