October is the month urban farming in Detroit starts to wind down in earnest. The falling temperatures mean there are only a limited number of harvest days left as the growing season wraps up.
The exact opposite is happening at
Artesian Farms Detroit in Brightmoor.
"We're just now getting to the point where we are getting these growing controls right," says Jeff Adams, owner of
Artesian Farms Detroit. "We will be scaling up in the next couple of months."
Artesian Farms Detroit is a vertical farm that grows its crops indoors year-round. It uses a hydroponic system that uses significantly less water than traditional forms of farming.
Artesian Farms Detroit took over an old industrial building at 12843 Artesian last year and turned it into a facility that could support vertical farming. Adams and one worker are currently using 1,500 square feet of the 7,500-square-foot space. Adams hopes to expand to using 5,200 square feet by next year as he continues to scale production. Artesian Farms Detroit is currently growing a couple of small crops, including basil, kale, and a mix of three kinds of lettuces it's calling Motown Mix.
"It's lettuce you normally don't see in a grocery store," Adams says. "It has a unique color and flavor."
Artesian Farms Detroit currently harvests about 16 pounds of kale per week, 12 pounds of basil per week, and 70 pounds of Motown Mix every three weeks. It sells its crops at the
Northwest Detroit Farmers Market and a couple of local restaurants. It is also making its first delivery to three
Busch's supermarkets this week.
"We are harvesting that today," Adams says. "It should be on store shelves tomorrow."
Source: Jeff Adams, owner of Artesian Farms Detroit
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
Enjoy this story?
Sign up for free solutions-based reporting in your inbox each week.