Agtech solutions with The Agrarian Group in Indiana

GREENandSAVE Staff

Posted on Wednesday 22nd June 2022
Agtech Solutions for Indiana

Our GREENandSAVE Team is pleased to share information like this about sustainability solution providers. If you would like to submit information on your company, please contact us. 

An increasingly viable solution for climate change is Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA), implemented across the U.S., in states likes Indiana.

The water, energy, and food security nexus is a real and present problem. 

Here are some highlights from the website of The Agrarian Group:

As a species, we face the most complex and deadly problems we have ever encountered. Erratic weather events caused by climate change destroy crop yields each year. Pesticides have ruined our soil and water scarcity has become a national security issue. 70% of food cost is linked to fossil fuels, and prices are only expected to rise. The average food item travels 1500 miles to reach it's destination. However, despite everything we do, 40% of all food in the United States is thrown away post-harvest. 

Why

The Agrarian Group was started as an answer to a question - How will we feed the projected 9.1 Billion people that will reside on earth in 2050? To achieve this, we need to increase our already stressed agricultural production by 70%. How do we grow better?

To learn more about Vertical Farming for states like Indiana, visit The Agrarian Group

Agtech solutions can help solve the challenges we face.

Here is an example of Agtech Solutions in Indiana:

Indoor vertical farm plans $70M facility, 120 jobs in Indiana

A Faribault, Minnesota-based company that bills itself as the world’s largest indoor vertical aeroponic farm is setting up shop in Delaware County, it announced Tuesday.

Living Greens Farm Inc. said it will invest nearly $70 million to establish a 200,000-square-foot farming, processing and packaging facility in Muncie and create up to 120 jobs by the end of 2024.

The company said the new location will allow it to expand its bagged salad and salad kit offerings to retailers and consumers throughout the Midwest and mid-south regions.

CEO George Pastrana said Muncie is an ideal location to begin the company’s national expansion.

“It will help us to better supply our current retail partners, such as Walmart, Whole Foods, HyVee, UNFI and others, as well as allow expansion into additional leading retail and wholesale operations across the Midwest,” Pastrana said in written remarks. “I wish to thank the fine people of Muncie and Delaware County for the work they put into making this new farm a reality. As we are from a rural town in Minnesota, they made us feel that Muncie would be exactly the environment that would work well for us.”

Living Greens said the Muncie facility will use an advanced farming system that requires “significantly less” water than traditional farming methods. The farm will be able to grow and harvest nearly 5 million pounds of pesticide-free leafy greens annually.

The farming system is expected to save an estimated 103 million gallons of water per year.

The company expects to begin hiring for production, processing, shipping, management, and administrative positions for the Muncie location beginning in the second quarter.

“We are so pleased to have the Living Greens Farm investment in Delaware County,” said Delaware County Commissioner President Sherry Riggin. “Diversification of industry in our community is incredibly important. The leafy greens product is a wonderful addition, and we’re happy to welcome them to the county.”

The Indiana Economic Development Corp. offered Living Greens Farm up to $1.2 million in conditional tax credits, which the company will not be eligible to claim until Hoosier workers are hired and the planned capital investments are made. Delaware County has approved additional incentives.

 

 

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