OUR STORY
Kentucky Fresh Harvest is working toward a
brighter future for our industry,
our Commonwealth, and
our community.
Our vision
innovating agriculture / Growing communities
The Future of Farming is more than a slogan - it’s our vision for a healthier, more sustainable and equitable world. A world in which access to wholesome, fresh food is no longer a luxury afforded only to a lucky few, where we can feed a growing population without harming the environment and the people who grow our food are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve.
About The Farm
Controlled environment agriculture project, protected agriculture facility, high-tech greenhouse: there are dozens of names for what we’ve built, but at the end of the day, KFH is just a farm. Click below to learn more about the science behind CEA and the technology that makes it possible.
BUILDING A
BRIGHTER FUTURE,
TOGETHER
Incorporating our values into every part of our production from seed to harvest required an approach where we engaged our workers at every level. The EFI program helps us build transparency with each team member and support them to contribute to our collective efforts to provide the freshest, healthiest, most sustainable produce.
Why
Kentucky?
Kentucky’s famous for fine bourbon, fast horses, and fanatic sports fans, but why did we set out to build a greenhouse in the Bluegrass? The simple answer: Kentucky kicks *ss! Click below to read more about what makes the Commonwealth a great place to grow.
Our team
Learn more about our commitment to the Equitable Food Initiative and meet the men and women who put in the work to make our vision for the Future of Farming a reality every day.
About
The
Farm
About the Farm
What is
protected ag?
Over the past century, agriculture has become one of the leading contributors to the degradation of our soil, our air, and our waters - and yet there’s nothing more important than food. With the technology available to us today, we have the opportunity to feed the world without sacrificing our environment.
Protected agriculture, also known as controlled environment agriculture, is the practice of producing a crop in a controlled space. In our greenhouses we utilize these environmental controls to create and maintain a balanced climate and atmosphere despite the conditions outside.
Controlling the environment, even in the darkest and coldest months of the year, allows us to keep the plants happy. Happy plants grow tasty tomatoes and help us to bring you the fresh taste of…
summertime, all year round.
Closed loop irrigation
If you’ve got 3 or 4 plants at home, you know that feeding and watering is a chore that requires time and attention to detail. You might use a pitcher or two with some fancy plant food, but it’s not enough to see a big water bill each month and - if you miss a day - the stakes aren’t all that high.
Now, imagine instead of 3 or 4 plants you’ve got over 13,000 across several acres - that’s a lot of water and a TON of plant food! At this scale, these inputs really add up. That’s why we’ve built a closed loop drip irrigation system that allows us to recapture, clean and recycle nearly all of the water the plants don’t use.
Emitters at the root zone of each and every plant drip water enriched with the nutrients they need to thrive at specific intervals throughout the day. The water they can’t take in drains through the substrate, down a complex system of gutters and drain lines, and into collection tanks where it’s cleaned and recycled into the system. Not only does this help us save on water and fertilizer, it also makes us a zero runoff facility which helps
to Protect our waters.
Lighting the way
In Kentucky, we’re pretty crazy about tomatoes. Each year, we drool with anticipation as we wait for late July when the first tomatoes are ready for harvest. In fact, it’s not uncommon for the eldest child - or the newlywed couple - in the family to receive the honor of enjoying the first, juicy tomato each year as a gift.
Traditionally, we’d have to wait all year for the plants to soak up enough light to bear fruit, but not anymore. At KFH, we use a combination of LED and HID lighting to facilitate growth at each stage of the plant’s development and extend crop cycles from a few short months to an entire year.
These lights, selected by our horticultural team, rain down photons in specific wavelengths and intervals which allow the plants to grow as if it were a summer’s day all year long. On the darkest days, we even inject CO2 captured from our heating system into the space to boost photosynthesis and increase natural production of sugars in the plant! It’s just another way we’re working to move farming
to a brighter future.
WHAT’S
ALL THE BUZZ?
As plants mature and flower clusters begin to form, natural pollinators are released in the greenhouse. These aren’t your average bumble bee, though.
These busy bees, known as bombus impatiens, are especially well-suited for work in the greenhouse. With a docile temperament and large saddlebags, bombus impatiens “works well with others” and can carry more pollen with greater efficiency. While they don’t produce honey, they have evolved extremely acute vision that allows them to perceive light, discern shapes, and find that tasty nectar even in the relatively low ultraviolet light conditions inside our greenhouses.
The way it was meant to be(e).
BRING ON THE
(GOOD) BUGS
If you’ve grown your own garden at home, you know that pests are a part of life. With so much on the line, we take the threat these critters pose for our plants very seriously.
At KFH, we take a holistic and long-term approach to mitigating this threat known as Integrated Pest Management (IPM). Physical controls, such as fine mesh screen on every vent and specialized “air knives” at every entrance, help to keep the bugs at bay. Strict hand washing protocols, foot-baths, and training - known as cultural controls - are also crucial in battling the barrage of hungry bugs that may hitch a ride on our clothes.
When those measures are not enough, we also employ biological controls. This strategy involves deliberately releasing natural enemies of the pests we can’t stand into the greenhouse. These good bugs won’t harm our crop, but they are ruthless in the pursuit of pests that would. In this way, we’re able to create a healthy balance in our indoor ecosystem and deliver high quality tomatoes grown
IN HARMONY WITH NATURE.
Why Kentucky?
Here’s Why:
The climate
As every farmer knows, it’s becoming harder and harder to depend on the weather. Increased uncertainty, unprecedented wildfires, and superstorms increase in frequency across the country and around the globe, Kentucky’s temperate climate and geographic location have become even more attractive to growers and investors seeking the perfect place to…
Plant Thier roots.
The People
From the rise and fall of the coal industry to the COVID-19 pandemic, Kentucky’s workforce has seen it’s fair share of hard times. Still, the men and women who call this state home are resilient, dependable, and always up for a challenge. Leaning on a rich heritage of agricultural tradition in our hometown of Stanford, Kentucky Fresh Harvest is providing new opportunities for
The next generation.
The Future
The Future of Farming is more than a slogan - it’s our vision for a healthier, more sustainable and equitable world. A world in which access to wholesome, fresh food is no longer a luxury afforded only to a lucky few, where we can feed a growing population without harming the environment and the people who grow our food are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve.
Kentucky Fresh Harvest is the Commonwealth’s first commercial production greenhouse growing fresh vegetables year round, and we’re only getting started. If you want to be a part of that future, click below to get in touch.
Natural Resources
Kentucky’s rich clay soil has supported generations of farmers and families in the pursuit of a better life and, with 62,000 miles of freshwater shoreline, water has never been in short supply. Even in the mountains, where coal mines once supported entire communities, there is enough flat land and fresh water to build scalable greenhouses and create…
new opportunities.
Location, Location, Location
Centrally located in the United States, Kentucky’s border’s are within one day’s truck drive of nearly two thirds of the nation’s population. It’s the reason logistics companies of all sizes recognize the strategic value of locating in the Bluegrass State and it’s also the reason we’re able to ship fresh, high-quality produce for consumers to enjoy
Fresh off the farm.
leadership
From Governor Beshear’s Agritech Task Force to the Stanford Chamber of Commerce, and even within the walls of our humble farm, the Commonwealth is teaming with leaders ready to support agriculture projects of all shapes and sizes. Leaders here know that innovation can’t happen in a bubble. So they are fostering new conversations, creating new incentives, and working tirelessly to make Kentucky an open, inclusive environment
where new ideas grow.
The Future of Farming is here.™
