The company, which grows vegetables in its greenhouses on the roofs of buildings in Greater Montreal, will soon open a greenhouse in Boston, Massachusetts.
A logical choice, according to the co-founder of Lufa Farms, Mohamed Hage. There are a lot of similarities between Boston and Montreal. These are cities that are very open to innovation and they are not necessarily big cities. We wanted to make sure that we still have a good chance of success in our first adventure outside Quebec.
Since the opening of a first greenhouse on the roof of a building in Ahuntsic-Cartierville in 2011, Lufa has fitted out three others: one in Laval, one in Anjou and another in the borough of Saint-Laurent.
But for Mohamed Hage, this is just the start. Our dream, from day one, was to replicate the model all over the world, but we are not there yet. We still have a lot of work to do
, he said with a broad smile.
Lufa Farms also want to continue their expansion in Quebec. Another rooftop greenhouse will soon see the light of day in Montreal and there is also “a special project” in the works, kept secret for the moment.
Rapid growth
With a total area equivalent to six football fields, Lufa greenhouses produce more than 25 tons of food each week.
The company, which started out with just a few employees, now has 600, including Javier Campos, who has been there from the start. I feel really proud
, he said.
As crop manager, he ensures that the vegetables grow in the best possible conditions. I put all my efforts and my knowledge as an agronomist to make this project grow, but I also learned a lot of things. Because that’s the challenge, it’s always new, greenhouse production on the roofs.
Lufa Farms, which had some 200 subscribers when it started in 2011, now delivers more than 25,000 baskets each week. Today, we are able to personalize all the contents of the basket. And we also brought several food producers and market gardeners on our web platform
, says Mohamed Hage.
