The Arkansas Colleges of Health Education Research Institute Health & Wellness Center expanded its hydroponic gardening efforts this summer by equipping area teachers with the tools and knowledge to bring hydroponics directly into their classrooms.

It’s a win-win as Lima City Schools and the West Ohio Food Bank partner to provide fresh produce while addressing food insecurity in the area.

The West Ohio Food Bank used grant dollars to purchase five hydroponic growing towers for the program. Students plant, care for and harvest leafy greens, including lettuce, arugula and collard greens.

What began as an idea for a few hydroponic towers has grown into something much bigger at Melrose schools. The student-run operation now includes hydroponics, aquaponics, a traditional garden, chickens, composting and plans for even more.

They call it Buffalo Farms.

Most schools stop at "we'd need a grant." There are five other ways to fund a container farm, and one of them probably already fits your calendar. Answer five questions and find out which.

Officially founded in Toronto by Christopher Klich and Justin Cheng, the startup joined the University of Waterloo’s Velocity incubator in mid-2023 to scale its AI-driven gourmet mushroom farms in shipping containers. 

This summer, the Arkansas Colleges of Health Education (ACHE) Research Institute Health & Wellness Center (RIHWC) expanded its hydroponic gardening efforts by equipping area teachers with the tools and knowledge to bring hydroponics directly into their classrooms.

The hydroponic farm is designed by Growcer, an Ottawa-based company that was initially founded in response to high food costs in northern communities. It’s a serious need — according to Statistics Canada, 60% of Nunavut (Canada’s northernmost territory) residents are food insecure, and food prices have risen by 22% (as opposed to 12% across the rest of the country) in recent years.

What began as a singular machine in 2021 has blossomed into a state-of-the-art hydroponics hub operated by the Boys and Girls Club of Detroit Lakes.

STEM Garden™ by Babylon Micro-Farms brings the benefits of indoor growing into schools, senior living communities, libraries, community centers, wellness spaces, and shared environments where people gather, learn, and connect.

When schools grow food on-site, they're creating opportunities for students to connect with where food comes from, supporting healthier meals, and turning classrooms into living laboratories.”

— Alex Tyink, CEO of Fork Farms

The Howard County Food Council has installed Gardyn Hydroponic Systems at seven county schools to grow fresh vegetables, herbs, and flowers through hands-on instruction with students.

Fork Farms, an indoor hydroponic farming company based in Green Bay, Wisconsin, helps people grow their own food. Company founder and CEO Alex Tyink believes in the importance of building resiliency and access to fresh produce in communities.

“The whole purpose behind what we're doing is we're trying to get fresh food more within reach to everybody everywhere,” he said.

The Howard County Food Council (HCFC) has installed Gardyn Hydroponic Systems at seven County schools to grow fresh vegetables, herbs, and flowers through hands-on instruction with students.

Cherry Street Farm and Lab features raised beds, solar panels that power the site, a youth food education "lab" featuring a large kitchen, and an outdoor plaza.

Its centerpiece is a hydroponic trailer that can grow up to two acres of fresh food at a time, using just five to six gallons of water per day.

A $730,000 multi-university initiative is helping researchers rethink how food is produced and delivered to improve access to fresh produce across region

"We also have four converted shipping container farms at a neighboring research site," he said. "Later this year, we'll be able to conduct indoor growing trials and study how different light types and wavelengths affect crop production and quality."

Launched: January 2025, the Bronx, New York

Goal: Bring year-round local food production and cross-disciplinary, place-based learning to an independent school campus in New York City

Students at Lanigan School will soon get their hands dirty while learning about food production and agriculture.

Horizon School Division and Nutrien announced this week a partnership that will see the installation of a hydroponic grow container at the school.