Strawberries grown indoors will soon be planted at the upcoming Plenty campus in Chesterfield. County leaders and Plenty hosted an event to celebrate the ongoing construction of its indoor vertical farming site, which broke ground within the past two weeks.
The agritech company announced the development in September 2022, promising the campus would be the largest of its kind in the world. It’ll start off growing Driscoll’s strawberries and plans to expand to leafy greens and snacking tomatoes.
At the event, speakers highlighted the technological and environmental strengths of indoor vertical farming. Produce can be grown year-round at peak season quality with increased efficiency and no need for pesticides. Once picked, Virginia’s position on the East Coast means strawberries will also be on shelves sooner compared to other items.
“This doesn’t look like most farms you’ve seen,” Plenty CEO Arama Kukutai said. “But it’s a farm of the future.”
