We all like to think that the fancy gourmet mushrooms advertised on the menu of our favorite restaurant were foraged in the wild by a grey bearded man with a wooden cane, knee-high forester boots, and a feathered fedora. 

In reality, those mushrooms were likely grown on a farm. But when we say mushroom farm it’s sometimes a climate-controlled shipping container sitting in a gravel parking lot somewhere on the outskirts of town. While this doesn’t sound as glamorous as gallivanting around the woods, the mushrooms are just as good.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the number of Controlled Environment Agriculture operations in the United States more than doubled between 2009 and 2019, from 1,476 to 2,994. As Aliu began to research the motivations behind this growth, he found that the discourse around CEAs was theoretical or promotional in nature–an unhelpful “agricultural techsplaining” approach to an increasingly consequential method in the food system. 

“There was a clear and urgent need for real-world, holistic data, and that was the inspiration for my dissertation,” he says. “I saw the opportunity to, at the very least, foreground and perhaps trailblaze situational and operational approaches to system sustainability in this rapidly evolving sector.”

VIDEO: Scott Massey Explains GRO ANU

Global food systems face significant challenges from climate change, population growth, and deteriorating soil quality, necessitating a 70% increase in food production by 2050. Urban vertical farming, utilizing repurposed shipping containers, offers a sustainable solution that efficiently uses space and resources. These systems produce fresh produce year-round and reduce food waste by minimizing transportation distances.

With innovative practices and renewable energy integration, container farms represent a viable future for agriculture in urban settings, addressing both food security and environmental concerns.

Our global food systems are under siege, with climate change, natural disasters disrupting supply chains, and conflicts affecting agriculture in vulnerable regions.

Ottawa-based modular farming startup now has over 600 new customers from 30 different countries on its plate.

Container-based vertical farming company Freight Farms declared bankruptcy in April after 13 years of operation. Three months later, Ottawa-based Growcer CEO Corey Ellis won a bidding battle in a Boston courthouse to acquire the assets of Freight, his company’s American competitor. 

The $2.6-million USD (about $3.6 million CAD) purchase suddenly adds a lot more than container-grown leafy greens to Growcer’s plate. The startup now has about 600 new customers (including municipalities, food banks, and other community food organizations) and farm containers across 30 different countries, as well as use of Freight’s proprietary software.

A shipping container in the middle of EPIC Campus in Littleton, Colorado, has become an unexpected training ground for the next generation of controlled environment agriculture (CEA) professionals. Inside, high school students grow crops hydroponically from seed to harvest, building technical knowledge and discovering new career paths in a rapidly evolving sector.

The vertical hydroponic farm, built by FarmBox Foods, operates as part of the school's Natural Resources Pathway. Students manage crop production from start to finish, applying lessons in plant physiology, hydroponics, and food safety, while working toward an industry-recognized BASF plant science certification.

Discover how a team at Central Wyoming College is reshaping agriculture using hydroponic technology to grow fresh, local produce—even during harsh winter months.

From LED-lit freight farms to nutrient-rich grow plugs, this innovative method allows for year-round cultivation in some of the most challenging climates.

Join the journey as students and experts work together to advance sustainable farming, train the next generation, and bring fresh greens to communities in need.

This is more than just farming—it's a food revolution.

With food costs top of mind for many charities, Ottawa company Growcer is partnering with the Ottawa Mission to set up an urban vertical farm to provide fresh leafy greens to the charity’s food program. 

With the goal of addressing food insecurity across Canada, Growcer builds hydroponic modular farms and food storage solutions, which were originally designed for remote communities with harsh weather conditions, said Corey Ellis, CEO and co-founder. 

“We’ve got about 120 (vertical farms) across the country and only one in Ottawa to date,” Ellis told OBJ on Tuesday. 

The farm uses three old shipping containers that have been turned into climate-controlled “pods” each with 168 square feet of growing space.

Each insulated container holds seven racks with shelves for plants, tall racks for vine crops, and six 50-gallon tanks with nutrient solutions filtered by ultraviolet light. A large exhaust fan controls carbon dioxide and humidity levels, while a dehumidifier keeps the air just right.

All the power comes from Canada’s northernmost solar and wind setup.

It includes two six-kilowatt wind turbines, two sheets of solar panels producing 7.32 kilowatts each, lithium-ion battery banks, and a diesel backup generator. This system keeps the farm running all year, even with little sunlight.

National nonprofit organization Impact Justice (IJ) was awarded a $97,000 grant from Power:Ed, the philanthropy of SC Student Loan Corporation, to support Growing Justice, a pilot program in partnership with Amplified Ag, to transform upcycled shipping containers into a fully functional vertical farm behind bars. This first-of-its-kind vertical farm job training program in South Carolina prisons will expand training opportunities, offer new reentry support, and provide fresh produce to the incarcerated residents at Camille Graham Correctional Center, offering transformative potential for incarcerated women and their families across South Carolina.

Bear Creek High School senior Johnny Ngo talks about his experience at the FarmBox Foods campus near Denver for his senior field study.

Our core technology is a modular, self-contained vertical growing container equipped with a glazing wall for natural light optimization, a precision climate control system, and adaptive airflow.

It is built for: Municipalities seeking to improve urban greening and comply with biodiversity net gain targetsCorporates needing verifiable ESG projects for CO₂ sequestration and EU Taxonomy compliance Universities & Schools as a living educational tool to teach about trees, sustainability, and environmental responsibility Construction or infrastructure projects with offsetting or restoration requirement

Last week, Ottawa, Canada–based vertical farming company Growcer announced it had won the bid to acquire the assets of Freight Farms, a US–based company offering a similar type of container-based vertical farm.

Freight Farms ceased operations on April 30 after a period of financial strain that included layoffs and a scrapped merger.

Support and service for existing Freight Farms customers also ended at that time, which the team at Growcer immediately took note of.

“These people have made really large investments into controlled environment agriculture, and they were looking for someone to carry the torch, to offer support, software, parts, and all the things that they need to continue their operations,” Growcer cofounder and CEO Corey Ellis tells AgFunderNews.

The combination of climate change effects together with urban population expansion demands immediate development of food production systems which are sustainable and space-efficient. Vertical farming leads agricultural progress through its capacity to generate significant amounts of pesticide-free food inside controlled environments, which maximises urban area through vertical stacking.

The agricultural future is being reshaped by vertical farming markets which combine advanced hydroponic, aeroponic and aquaponic systems with sustainable practices and smart technologies.

Morgan Community College's Vertical Hydroponic Farm arrived on campus in mid-2024, and it's had a major impact on multiple fields of study.

Bill Miller, Precision Agriculture Faculty & Division Chair for Career Technical Education programming, talks about how it has inspired students and faculty and brought a new dynamic to interactive learning.

Public Act 25-152 includes provisions to increase the statewide municipal property farm tax exemption from $100,000 to $250,000 and permits municipalities to offer additional farm property tax exemptions of up to $250,000 on top of the $250,000 statewide exemption.

It also provides immunity to agritourism operators for any civil action for personal injury or property damage and exempts hoop houses and high tunnels from building permitting or construction standards. In addition, a section of the bill regulates the use of drones for agricultural purposes, establishes a manure management program to be administered by the Connecticut Department of Agriculture (DOAG), provides for the purchase and operations of shipping container farms to grow food for schools and food pantries, and mandates that anyone selling soil amendments must register annually with DOAG.

Update: We've won the bid to acquire Freight Farms' assets.

A few months ago, one of our top competitors filed for bankruptcy, and the Growcer team sprang into action to help their community of farmers keep growing.

One of the options we explored was throwing our hat into the ring to purchase substantially all of the company's assets (such as an inventory of complete farms, spare parts, software, all intellectual property, and subscriptions etc.). We rallied a group of key partners, and I'm thrilled to say that we were able to make it happen.

University City High School's growing agriculture program just grew some more. A shipping container fitted for hydroponics farming arrived at the school this week, bringing with it the potential for students to learn farming first-hand and grow their own food for lunch periods and businesses.

"They'll get to see firsthand how food is produced, starting from seed up to actual harvesting," said Pamela Lester, the teacher heading University City High's Agriculture and Sustainability Program.
The high school added an agriculture class during the 2023-2024 school year and saw a quick and rising interest from students.