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level is down significantly. Sure, we
can grow here in the summer for
a couple months, but with us, you’re
getting 100 percent local year-round.”
Legault explains that the
Burlington warehouse is home to
7,500 square feet of growing area,
and each square foot produces 17
times more than the traditional
farm, thanks to its innovative
vertical layout. The crop growth
cycles, too, are significantly reduced
due to optimal conditions, he says.
“We will be able to produce half a
million pounds of produce per year,”
he says.
“There are two ways of vertical
farming: shelves that go as high
as possible in warehouses, but you
need scissor lifts, and that can be
a bit dangerous. Also, people need
to be trained and certified, which
is an added cost. Instead, we use
towers that are eight feet and grow
the produce out of the tower,”
explains Back40growers president
Scott Byers. “It might sound
unconventional—produce growing
sideways—but it works quite
effectively, and our people can do
everything standing on the ground.”
Plants are tucked into towers
filled with a recycled plastic bottle
medium, which allows more oxygen
to reach the roots and provides
a habitat for beneficial micro-
organisms. A wick runs all the way
down, carrying water from the top
of the tower to the bottom, where
water is collected, UV treated,
filtered and recirculated. As for the
aquaponics system, it’s made up of
11 tanks and 6,600 fish.
“Running an aquaponic system
is expensive now—the startup costs
are high—but it will be cheaper to
operate in the long run,” says Byers.
“We’ll use less than two percent of
the water a normal farm our size
uses. We also came up with a system
that uses 50 percent less electricity
for lighting.”
Right now, the company is
growing a number of items for
retailers and local restaurants, but
packaged herbs and microgreens
is its main focus for retail—that
and portion size. “Food waste costs
Canada $30 billion a year. Portionsizing helps with food waste and
people throwing out what they
don’t need or don’t use. Our portion-
size bag helps with food waste,”
says Legault.
For now, Back40growers
retailers include some smaller
chain stores and independent
businesses. The team includes a
head grower, John Hattingh, who
specializes in organic farming,
and an aquaculture specialist,
Michael Pfundt. Both come from
the University of Guelph. “There’s
no program on indoor vertical
farming with aquaponics, so we’re
trying to affiliate ourselves with
the university and might start an
apprenticeship or co-op placement
program in the future,” says Byers.
While the growth of the cannabis
industry has delayed the arrival of
some materials, “The biggest issue
we have right now is selling live
fish,” says Legault, who explains
that there aren’t many buyers who
can take live fish, as they don’t have
the room or the ability to process
the fish. “After a fish gets a certain
size, we have to get rid of them.
Eventually, they stop producing a
good amount of waste. They also
get too big for the tanks.”
Down the road they plan to
have a hatchery, but right now
they are buying their fish from an
organic fishery called Sandplains
Aquaculture in Mossley, Ontario,
approximately one hour from the
farm. “We try to buy everything
local,” says Byers.
With the opportunity to have
locally grown produce that
offers a tastier, more nutritious
product year-round, it’s no wonder
producers are getting so excited
about indoor urban farming. From
vertical growing to aquaponics, the
industry is just getting started, and
we, for one, can’t wait to see where
it goes. HFOOD & RECIPES: AQUAPONICS
At Back40growers, plants are tucked into towers that are eight feet high and filled
with a recycled plastic bottle medium that allows more oxygen to reach the roots.BOB LEGAULT