The extra room is keeping the community stocked with fresh produce.
The bright lights of the Vertical Harvest grow house have been lighting up the Jackson community since 2016, in more ways than one. Since opening, the 13,500-square foot hydroponic farm has been growing lettuce, microgreens and tomatoes year-round, ensuring constant access to fresh, local food in a place where the long winters keep the traditional growing season short.
So when the COVID-19 pandemic hit and food supply chains around the country started to struggle, Vertical Harvest saw an opportunity to step up, both with restaurant supply and direct sales.
“COVID was a wakeup call for a lot of our country to recognize the importance of local food sources as we saw shortages in grocery stores across the world. As our restaurants saw an influx of reservations, and grocery stores have a high volume of tourists, we are growing more greens than ever.”
Kyra Foley, marketing coordinator at Vertical Harvest
Vertical Harvest has upped their growing capacity by 200% this summer, and supplies restaurants like Persephone, Four Seasons, Amangani, Cafe Genevieve, Snake River Grill, Caldera House, and Fine Dining Restaurants, among others, who were able to lean on Vertical Harvest to keep the fresh vegetables coming when national supplies ran short.
During the peak of pandemic shutdowns, Vertical Harvest also realized that there was a need for creative ways to enjoy dinner at home. “We started our direct-to-consumer program where customers could purchase our greens directly from us,” says Foley. “We partnered with other local vendors to create delicious pizza boxes full of fresh ingredients for a stay-at-home pizza night. Even now that our town is back open and grocery stores are stocked, we have kept our direct-to-consumer (we also call this our “harvest boxes”) program running and have seen a ton of excitement from our customers.”
It’s been a busy summer at Vertical Harvest to say the least, and this fall they’re getting ready to start their first ever Fall Farm Share in partnership with Avant Deliveries, all with reusable and sustainable packaging. The 6-week share (open for sign up before October 1st) will include a rotating mix of microgreens, tomatoes, petite greens, lettuce, and edible flowers. “This is the perfect time to sign up for a farm share as our local markets are winding down and most traditional farms are coming to the end of their growing season,” says Foley.
