U.S. greenhouse grower Gotham Greens has expanded into New England, where it is currently building a 110,000 square foot facility in Rhode Island due to open later this year.

The greenhouse will create around 60 permanent jobs and is expected to begin operations in early fall 2019, providing a year-round supply of leafy greens to residents, restaurants, and foodservice customers of Providence and the greater New England region.

With this project, Gotham Greens is continuing its rapid growth of building high-tech indoor greenhouse farms across the U.S.

Since its launch in 2011, the company has grown from a single urban rooftop greenhouse in Brooklyn to a multi-state indoor farming leader and one of the largest hydroponic leafy greens producers in North America.

Gotham Greens currently operates more than 180,000 square feet of greenhouse in New York and Chicago and has an additional 500,000 square feet of development underway across five U.S. states, including previously announced projects in Chicago, Ill. and Baltimore, Md.

To support this US$12.5 million project in New England, the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation has committed up to US$2.3 million in tax credits, payable over a 10-year period contingent on actual job creation.

Gotham Greens co-founder and CEO Viraj Puri said the company was thrilled to partner with the city of Providence and state of Rhode Island on this project.

"Providence is the perfect location for us, strategically located at the gateway to New England, the city has a rich legacy of manufacturing, world-class institutes of higher education, and a thriving local food culture. Geographically, New England is farthest from the West Coast, where the majority of leafy greens distributed across the U.S. today are grown.

"Once we're operational, Gotham Greens will be able to supply this region's supermarket retailers and foodservice operators with a consistent and reliable supply of fresh produce grown right here in New England year-round.

"Furthermore, using our proprietary indoor growing methods, we can implement rigorous health, safety, and traceability measures—from seed to harvest—that far exceed those of conventional commodity agribusiness to ensure that we are growing the highest quality, safest products on the market today."