Use Cases
Restaurants

BeatBox Farms

In mid-2023, Denver-based restaurant group Edible Beats integrated a FarmBox Foods Vertical Hydroponic Farm — dubbed BeatBox Farms — into the backyard of its plant-based restaurant, Vital Root, to provide its five local restaurants with fresh, homegrown produce. The 320-square-foot container farm grows up to 7,100 plants at once and yields 120 lbs. of leafy greens and herbs weekly, dramatically reducing the need for shipped produce and supporting Edible Beats’ commitment to sustainability, waste reduction, and local sourcing.

BeatBox Farms supplies restaurants like Root Down, Linger, El Five, Ophelia’s and Vital Root with nutrient-rich greens such as kale, arugula, mustard greens, basil, and dill. The fully contained hydroponic system uses 99% less water than traditional farming, operates pesticide-free, and has the annual output equivalent to 2.5 acres of conventional farmland — all while consuming only $20 in daily energy costs and approximately four gallons of water per day.

This partnership highlights how FarmBox Foods container farms can help restaurant groups take control of their supply chains, improve food quality, lower their carbon footprint and align their menus with sustainable, farm-to-table values.

Cannolo Family Farms

Cannolo Family Farms was created out of a passion for culinary excellence and sustainable farming. Nestled in the scenic heart of Sedalia, Colorado, it’s a family-operated mushroom farm dedicated to cultivating the finest gourmet mushrooms.

With deep roots in the restaurant industry, their journey began with a shared love for food and a vision to grow exceptional mushrooms that inspire creativity in kitchens everywhere. From chefs crafting masterpieces to home cooks elevating everyday meals, Cannolo’s mushrooms bring earthy goodness to every table.

Cannolo Family Farms prioritizes sustainability and innovation. By combining traditional farming wisdom with modern techniques, they produce mushrooms that are as environmentally conscious as they are delicious. They’re committed to nurturing the land, fostering community connections, and contributing to a healthier, more sustainable future.

Strawberry Fields

Mike Sobocinski has long lived the plant life. The Wasa, British Columbia, resident had a veggie garden as a kid and helped his greenthumb father tend a massive vibrant rose garden. When it came time to choose a career, Mike went into psychology, and incorporated plants into therapeutic programming to improve outcomes. He rolled out a horticultural therapy program at The Children’s Hospital – Denver, and later worked at a community mental health center, where he spearheaded a social enterprise business that centered around hydroponic vegetable cultivation. The program provided opportunities for adolescents coming out of the criminal justice system, as well as those who were in foster care or experienced homelessness. The impacts were monumental. It gave the kids a greater sense of purpose and a skill set that opened new doors.

Mike is still a psychologist, but now he dedicates a portion of his time to tending a Vertical Hydroponic Farm made by FarmBox Foods. The farm supplies local restaurants with flavorful basil, nutrient-dense kale, and four different types of Salanova lettuce. 

“The feedback has been really, really positive from the chefs,” he said. “They’re quite pleased with the quality and the shelf life.”

Fresh365

Fresh365’s goal is to provide healthy, fresh, year-round, locally-grown greens, herbs and gourmet mushrooms to their restaurant and other restaurants, and members of the Soldotna, Alaska, community. Another goal is to foster further local interest in self-sustainability.

In the summertime in Alaska, greens and vegetables are grown, or sourced from other local farmers, but for the other 9 months of the year, consumers are compelled to get store-provided produce that is often grown in another hemisphere, or at a minimum, thousands of miles away in the lower 48. Two growing containers are outfitted with vertical growing towers that grow produce and herbs hydroponically inside a computer-controlled interior environment. This offers optimum growing conditions year-round, regardless of Alaskan outdoor weather conditions, and allows them to grow over 100 pounds of produce weekly. Their third grow container specializes in gourmet mushroom cultivation and can produce 200-300 pounds of gourmet mushrooms weekly.

Fresh365 produces a variety of greens, lettuces and herbs. Their varietals includes gourmet lettuce (Salanova, romaine, red leaf), greens (kale, arugula, and chard), herbs (genovese basil, thai basil, chives, mint, dill, cilantro, thyme, parsley, rosemary, sage, tarragon), microgreens, and gourmet mushrooms (blue, golden, and snow oyster, chestnut, lions mane, and plopping). Fresh365 perfectly compliments their on-site restaurant, Addie Camp, providing fresh, locally-sourced menu options. A number of other restaurants and food trucks have caught on, and enjoy the year-round availability of produce and mushrooms.