US (MO): MARSfarm inspires urban farming education with classroom greenhouses

MARSfarm, a STEM-education startup based in Overland, designs and manufactures greenhouses that can fit on a classroom desk.

Cofounders Peter Webb and Drew Thomas have been manufacturing counter-sized greenhouses since 2020 and are now in 600 schools across the country. Their goal is not only to impact schools in rural areas where farming is the main economic driver but also urban areas around St. Louis.

“We have Missouri and Illinois, two juggernauts of agricultural production, right on either side of us,” said Webb. He estimates that around 20% of jobs in the St. Louis area are tied to the agriculture, food, and agriculture industries.

MARSfarm aims to help tie students' understanding of food to agriculture in urban areas by bringing the farm into the urban environment. “So now a school that’s in a very dense area that generally doesn’t have the land to build a greenhouse can bring that greenhouse inside and still teach kids that entire cycle of growth,” said Webb.