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Brightfarm CEO on Building an Urban Rooftop Farm

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    Brightfarms CEO Paul Lightfoot on building a multi-acre farm on a Brooklyn rooftop.

  • Duration 2:54
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The largest rooftop farm in the world will soon be located right here in New York City -- firm's CEO joins me now to talk about this for -- project to bring local priorities.

To an urban setting.

Thanks so much for joining us pol like but -- but right farms CEO.

-- really Anderson that's because a year small business owner creating jobs in New York City put a rooftop farm does it make economic status.

It does indeed you know Brooklyn was it was an -- for powerhouse in the nineteenth -- -- hard to believe that now but industrialized and and centralized for its operations have taken.

The growing of -- to Canada Mexico California we're looking to bring that back to Brooklyn and bring that economic act activity back to New York City.

He does -- economic sense because we're cutting so much of the length and complexity in the cost.

-- to supply chain but what about the costs of being up on top of the building I -- that's got -- pretty hard to do is it I mean is it expensive to rent the space.

It is he is more expensive on it on a project basis to have a an urban rooftop greenhouse form.

But on -- system basis it's less expensive because we're cutting out the shipping and all the distribution.

Costs and profits that would otherwise be in the supply again.

What do you have outside investors -- -- -- to -- so that there'd be a market for this and that it would work and make sense.

You do it outside investors we have we have several institutional investors and know they were thrilled to still do investments -- the whole time no questions they were origami is this market has announced a lot of questions and -- has -- -- -- believe.

Then local food is the most important trend in food retail why may -- is important at its local who cares where your banana -- consumers the United States want to know where their food comes from.

Right now in New York City to food has been traveling across the country it's wearied it makes it less fresh -- -- -- less safe.

Retailers want and want that customers see where the food comes from and right now local foods is stronger demand in the market than even organic.

-- rate next to a -- were looking right now at a map of exactly where it's gonna be a look at that busy -- on the left their cars and trucks you know.

Polluting the air right next to the farm does make a difference.

Well we we are concerned about -- we think about the environment at all times steel plants are more discriminate then humans are when they think when they when they taking things from the -- And I think you could you could walk on the streets there and see plenty of -- -- -- -- -- -- We're also looking to improve the air quality by cutting out the cross continent shipping the trend contributing to the pollution in the air.

We we do have to charge more for -- -- effort of vegetable that's grown there in order.

To solid make a profit hurt curt can you charge at their record price.

We believe that if we were charging more it would be nearly a niche product we want to make a difference in the mainstream of the food market.

But having a perhaps a higher operating cost at a lower system cost we actually have a competitive advantage.

Cost was OK Paul like -- face for coming -- we appreciate -- the currency it when you're all done actually think Patrick Leary for.

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