Leading Leafy Greens Grower Nets New Wave of Funding
Photo: Gotham Greens and Julie McMahon
Gotham Greens, Greenhouse Grower’s 2020 Operation of the Year and a pioneer in indoor agriculture operating high-tech greenhouses located across the U.S., has raised $87 million in new equity and debt capital, bringing the fast-growing company’s total financing to $130 million. The capital raise includes Gotham Greens’ recent Series D round led by Manna Tree and joined by The Silverman Group and other existing investors.
Gotham Greens operates one of the largest and most advanced networks of hydroponic leafy greens-producing greenhouses in North America, where the demand for indoor grown produce is rapidly increasing. As a leader in the indoor farming and plant-based fresh food categories, Gotham Greens plans to use the latest funding to accelerate its mission to decentralize food production and bring more fresh foods to people across the U.S. through channel and geographic market expansion, increased operational capacity and new product development.
“Given increasing challenges facing centralized food supply chains, combined with rapidly shifting consumer preferences, Gotham Greens is focused on expanding its regional growing operations and distribution capabilities at one of the most critical periods for America,” says Viraj Puri, Co-Founder and CEO of Gotham Greens. “We’re dedicated to changing how people think, feel, and interact with their food while decreasing the environmental footprint of the traditional produce supply chain.”
Gotham Greens has doubled its revenue in the past year, bringing its fresh produce and food products to retailers in more than 40 U.S. states through its network of high-tech, climate-controlled greenhouses. The company’s expansion has driven 80% growth in retail unit sales year over year.
“Gotham Greens is the fastest-growing indoor farming company in the U.S. today with a track record of profitable, commercial-scale production,” says Brent Drever, Co-Founder and President of Manna Tree. “The pandemic has revealed flaws in America’s food supply chain system, particularly in the produce category, and new leaders and innovators need to emerge to ensure a stable food supply for the future. We believe Gotham Greens’ brand, highly scalable business model and leadership team position the company to be the market leader in the rapidly growing and changing landscape.”
“Manna Tree brings a global network of investors and shares our mission and commitment to expand access to healthy, sustainably-grown fresh produce,” said Eric Haley, Co-Founder and CFO of Gotham Greens. “Our industry-leading crop yields and capital efficiency in building and operating indoor farms continues to attract strong support from both new and existing investors and underscores Gotham Greens’ value proposition and category leadership position.”
Gotham Greens has doubled capacity in the past 12 months by opening new greenhouses in Chicago, Providence, R.I., Baltimore, and Denver. These facilities have expanded distribution of Gotham Greens’ salad greens, herbs, salad dressings and sauces to new regions, including the New England, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast and Mountain regions. Gotham Greens products are available in more than 2,000 retail stores, including Whole Foods Market, Albertsons Companies (Safeway, Jewel-Osco and Shaw’s), Meijer, Target, King Soopers, Harris Teeter, ShopRite and Sprouts. The company’s items also are available for purchase through grocery ecommerce sites, including AmazonFresh, FreshDirect, and Peapod.
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