Earth911 talks with Eden Green CEO Eddy Badrina about the company’s vertical greenhouses that will help the world grow locally and end food insecurity. While Americans expect to buy fresh product year-round, flying foods from Central America and Southern Hemisphere carries a heavy environmental cost. Urban farming can fill in critical gaps in local food supplies, providing year-round, locally grown fresh produce.
Eden Green licenses the growing system to urban farmers who can set up in old buildings and warehouses to grow fresh greens, berries, and peppers year-round. The system uses natural light augmented by lighting on cloudy days, along with recycled water to substantially reduce the carbon footprint compared to traditional farming. Badrina discusses the pressing need for food production and security to serve a growing population.
Eden Green Technologies built a research and development greenhouse farm in Cleburne, Texas and is preparing to launch its first commercial farming operation. The farm system includes 18-foot vertical hydroponic growing racks, lighting, and climate management equipment. Only one one-and-a-half-acre urban farm can grow around 900,000 pounds of salad greens or 50 other types of produce. They will allow produce that is “better than organic,” Badrina said, to grow year-round, in any climate.
Badrina explains that urban farms will open new employment opportunities and promote growers to give back to their communities. The Eden Green team will work with investors and local communities to work out the financing, then builds the farm, trains the staff, and To learn more about Eden Green and vertical greenhouses, visit edengreen.com.