BANKS TOWNSHIP, CARBON COUNTY — Governor Josh Shapiro attended the grand opening of Pennsylvania’s largest indoor leafy greens production facility on Wednesday in Carbon County.
The facility is expected to create nearly 200 jobs by the end of this year. With the snip of a green ribbon, Governor Shapiro joined Little Leaf Farms in making the monumental announcement in Banks Township.
As part of its expansion, Little Leaf Farms will grow its presence in Carbon County and open its second facility in Pennsylvania.
“With this new facility and the one that’s gonna come after it, and God willing the many more that will come after that, Little Leaf Farms is adding to the 52,000 farms that contribute $132 billion annually to Pennsylvania’s economy,” said Shapiro.
Little Leaf Farms produces packaged lettuce sustainably grown through controlled environment agriculture. It opened its first 10-acre greenhouse last July on nearly 200 acres of land.
“We cut, we deliver the product within 24 hours, that’s fresh lettuce as if you were growing it in your backyard. And we want to do this in the most sustainable way possible, that’s been very important. This facility operates on 100% renewable, electrical energy,” explained Paul Sellew, Founder and CEO of Little Leaf Farms.
As a way to give back, the CEO presented a $10,000 donation to Feeding Pennsylvania, a local nonprofit that works to fight food insecurity across the state.
“I’m so thrilled and excited to accept the donation from little leaf farms, which we will pass through to our member food banks to help them acquire more fresh produce and other things that they need every day,” stated Shea Saman, interim CEO and CFO of Feeding Pennsylvania.
The Commonwealth supported the expansion by providing more than $3 million in redevelopment capital assistance grants.
“I like to stand in a greenhouse always because you see the past, you see the very simple parts of science, but you also see a future,” described Russel Redding, the Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture.
In March, Governor Shapiro unveiled his first budget proposal including investments to increase funding to attract and retain businesses in Pennsylvania and grow the state’s organic market.
For more information, visit LittleLeafFarms.com.