The 120,000-square-foot farm will provide locally grown salad greens and herbs to supermarkets in the Dayton, Cincinnati and Columbus metro areas.
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With greenhouse farms outside of Chicago, Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia, the Wilmington farm will be the fourth greenhouse for the company.
“We have seen demand for our salad greens climb sharply as the market for local has grown,” Paul Lightfoot, BrightFarms chief executive, said in the company’s announcement. “The salad greens on shelf in supermarkets are grown on the West Coast and typically spend up to a week in transit to the Midwest. Growing inside of a greenhouse allows us to supply Ohio supermarkets with local produce on a year-round basis.”
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“The company is proud to note that its Wilmington facility will be creating 30 permanent ‘green-collar’ jobs for local residents, each paying a living wage and offering health benefits,” Bright Farms said.
Salad greens will include spring mix, spinach, baby kale, romaine and arugula.
All of the company’s salad greens are pesticide free and are certified non-genetically modified, it said.
New York-based Bright Farms describes itself as a company that finances, builds and operates local greenhouse farms in partnership with supermarkets, cities, capital sources, and vendors.
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