Saint Joseph's College - ME
IN-24: Innovation A

As a leader in the local and sustainable food movement, Saint Joseph’s College is the first college in the state of Maine to have a Freight Farm on campus. The Leafy Green Machine (LGM) is a complete vertical hydroponic farming system built inside a shipping container. A variety of lettuces, herbs, and greens can be grown within the LGM, producing produce year round. According to Freight Farms, their company “addresses the needs of the changing food landscape by providing the physical and digital tools to create local produce ecosystems on a global scale. With the right tools, infrastructure and support anyone can become a freight farmer, regardless of their background or geographic location.” The LGM will be utilized by kitchen staff and incorporated into the curriculum of ES 300 (the core curriculum environmental science course), giving students, faculty, and staff hands on experience in local food production and innovative technology. During the summer months, the surplus of produce from the LGM can be sold to local grocery stores, creating a new revenue source for the College and supporting local food production.