Growing Up — Ep.01 Harrison Hillier

Exciting news of the week — we’re launching a podcast!

Indoor farming is getting a lot of attention right now. From VC backed vertical farms to the birth of the legal cannabis industry, there’s a lot to talk about. Most of this attention is focused on the technology and funding and companies growing in the space, but there’s not a lot of focus on the people who actually run the day-to-day farm operations.

Every day, I spend time with the farmers who are battling low margins, who are investing in and using the newest technologies, who are innovating and scaling operations, and who are growing the food we all love to eat.

I started Growing Up as a way to highlight these farmers and share their stories. On each episode, I chat with an indoor farmer about how they got where they are, their challenges, why they do what they do, and industry trends.

If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to run an indoor farm, wonder no more.

To kick thing off, I dive into the non-profit side of farming with Harrison Hillier, the hydroponics manager at Teens For Food Justice. Did you know that 16% of New Yorkers are food insecure and undernourished? Harrison and his team build greenhouses for schools to help teach children how food is grown, how to prep and cook healthier foods, and all about food justice.

You can listen on SoundCloud or using the link above. This episode and all future episodes will also be available on iTunes soon. If you have an idea for someone I should chat with or topics for future conversation, reach out on twitter or in the comments. I’d love to hear from you.

Stay tuned for upcoming episodes where we explore commercial aquaponics, challenges with organic certification, the Food Safety Modernization Act, container farming, the OGs (Original Growers) of the industry, and more.

Agrilyst is the virtual agronomist powering the horticulture industry. We invite you to join the #DigitalHorticulture movement on social media and share your stories of farm innovation.

If you enjoyed this story, tune in for more here and be sure to check out our website: www.agrilyst.com.