The future of farming is upward for these Hamilton-area produce businesses
CBC
Much like the vegetables he grows, Leo Lewin's business is small but mighty.
The 27-year-old from Hamilton is the owner of Micro Warrior Greens, a mostly one-man farm grown entirely in a room in his home that measures 12.5 by 10.5 feet.
Lewin grows tiny broccoli, miniature Swiss chard, baby beets and itsy-bitsy sunflowers, which he described as "super delicious, very crunchy."
His products are "micro greens," which he said are early-stage vegetables that are vitamin-rich and take only 10 days to grow. He sells his greens to local restaurants and at the Ottawa Street Farmer's Market every Saturday, with a helping hand from his fiancée or one of his friends.
The method Lewin uses to grow his mini-crops is called vertical farming, which is defined as growing plants indoors in a stacked formation and a controlled environment.
He said vertical farming is water efficient, can yield multiple harvests a year, doesn't require the use of pesticides and the controlled, indoor environment produces consistent products unharmed by birds, bugs and weather.
The benefits are similar to those associated with greenhouse farming but the vertical method often uses already existing spaces.
"You can use vertical farming to pretty much grow any vegetable," Lewin said.
"What would change is your size of rack space needed."
Data from the 2021 Census of Agriculture shows that Ontario is losing 319 acres of farmland a day — equivalent to losing one family farm a day.
With available farmland shrinking and urban boundaries potentially expanding in the Hamilton region, vertical farming operations may be an important piece in the future of agriculture.
Vertical farming has its own unique challenges, according to some farmers.
Maple Point Farms Inc. in Onondaga, Ont., around 30 kilometres southwest of Hamilton, has been running since Paul Bootsma's parents bought the farm in 1962.
The farm is still running 61 years later, but instead of farming pigs as it once did, Bootsma is growing kale, lettuce, arugula, broccoli, radishes — all inside a 1,200 square foot barn.