After launching the South San Francisco farm this summer, vertical farming company Plenty announced recently that it has inked a deal to open a second vertical farm, this time in Compton. It will take just a few months to get the 95,000-square-foot facility up and running, but the farm is not expected to bring produce to market until late 2020.
Once completed, Plenty will supply produce to dozens of Southern California restaurants, including Nancy Silverton’s Osteria Mozza and Pizzeria Mozza, as well as hundreds of grocery stores.
The farm will be the largest of its kind in the Greater Los Angeles area and one of what Plenty hopes is at least 500 farms around the world in densely populated urban areas with 1 million or more people.
“By doing that, we increase access and availability through high-quality produce, change behaviors and get people to eat fruits and vegetables in lieu of snack food,” Plenty spokeswoman Christina Ra said.
Besides restaurants and grocery stores, the company also hopes to make inroads in local schools. Plenty is in talks with Compton schools to create a partnership that will bring the farm’s produce and technology to kids in the area.