Indoor Farming: Under Control in the South
March 12, 2024 
My trip to Savannah in early January was one of firsts: My first time visiting the oldest city in Georgia (like a trip back in time); my first time attending the annual Southeast Regional Fruit & Vegetable Conference (great show — fresh trial results galore); and my introduction to CEA (short for controlled environment agriculture, or indoor farming, a practice that may be closer than it appears in your rear view mirror).
Day 1 of the conference included a four-hour session on CEA. To the surprise of organizers, most of the attendees were academics and industry reps rather than growers. A consensus attributed that ratio to the fact the trade show did not open until Day 2.
Still, indoor farming trailblazers brought obvious momentum and street cred to the cobblestone roads of Savannah. Tom Stenzel now leads the CEA Alliance as Executive Director, having served most of the previous three decades as President and CEO of the United Fresh Produce Association.
“This is a very fascinating part of the future for all of us in agriculture,” he said.
Everyone? Fruit growers, too? Anything is possible, maybe even inevitable, when the prospect of consistent revenue arises.
Georgia’s first CEA grower had never even considered farming before he opened his indoor leafy greens operation, Better Fresh Farms, in 2016. Grant Anderson arrived at Georgia Tech as an engineering student, exited the school with a business degree, and began his career in finance.
“I had had a lot of exposure to traditional agriculture,” Anderson said. “Was born in Savannah and raised in Effingham County. Farmed an acre with my grandpa every summer. I just never saw there being a potential career path in that for me.”
What changed?
“When the idea of a 52-week-a-year, cash flow-related business model came around,” Anderson answered. “The idea that we could grow and sell food year-round — every week, all the time — I thought was real novel.”
Eight years later, where is Anderson at with controlled ag?
“The goal now is to try to control every input and output in a way where there is profit on the back end of it,” he says.
Improved control of growth factors is just one advantage of CEA, according to Daniel Wells, an Associate Professor of Horticulture at Auburn University. Other benefits, he said, are higher yields, water conservation, decreased insect and disease pressure, high-quality products, and enhanced food safety and security.
Best of all, location is less restrictive, which seems to be conducive to southern states — such as Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama, and Tennessee — according to Chris Chammoun, Director of Agricultural Technology with the Georgia Dept. of Economic Development. Anderson’s Better Fresh Farms is now one of 14 CEA operations in Georgia.
“Clearly this is a hotbed for CEA in the U.S.,” Stenzel said.
There are a few disadvantages to CEA, Wells added, citing specialized labor and knowledge, energy intensity, and high capital investment. Phrases such as “trial and error” and “troubleshooting” were frequently mentioned over the four hours.
“There are going to be speed bumps. There certainly are in any new technology,” Stenzel said. “But I believe it’s time to move forward. CEA is one of the most exciting developments we’ve had in agriculture in the fruit and vegetable world in many, many years.”
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