Newark, New Jersey — AeroFarms®, a Certified B Corporation and global leader in indoor vertical farming AeroFarms announces produce industry leaders, Robert Ferla and John Freitas, have joined the company as Vice President of Customer Logistics & Demand Planning and Head of Food Service, respectively.
As a purpose-driven organization, AeroFarms is both a change-the-world company and an award-winning retail brand leading the way with smart, indoor vertical farming to elevate agriculture with people and planet in mind. AeroFarms grows safe, nutritious, and delicious food all year round, while using up to 95% less water and zero pesticides compared to traditional field farming.
“As we continue to scale our operations to meet our increasing customer demands for our award-winning products, we are excited to bolster our world-class team with two long-time produce industry leaders who will help ensure our continued expansion success with a focus on servicing our great selling partners,” said AeroFarms Co-Founder & CEO David Rosenberg.
Robert Ferla is a tenured expert in produce with 30+ years of experience, most recently at Fierman Produce Exchange and Katzman Produce companies and previously at The Grand Union Supermarket Company. Robert’s expertise in the distribution, operations and customer logistics of perishable foods will help AeroFarms continue to scale operations to meet the growing customers supported and deliver the best customer experience.
John Freitas also has a 30+ year career leading the expansion of flavorful, fresh and nutrient-rich foods. With a combined knowledge of the microgreens category and a passion for sustainable, flavorful produce, John will draw on his produce industry experience at Fresh Origins and IFCO to expand our Food Service business even further.
Winning on flavor, AeroFarms is the number one retail brand for both unit and dollar sales in the United States for microgreens according to Nielsen syndicated data, and AeroFarms distinct, specialty greens can be found at major retailers like Ahold Delhaize, Amazon Fresh, Harris Teeter, The Fresh Market, Walmart, Whole Foods Market, and at great food service partners like Compass Group, Marcus Samuelsson Restaurant Group, and Momofuku Noodle Bar. Produced year-round at the highest quality, AeroFarms microgreens offer great visual and flavor excitement, elevating every dish. In addition, AeroFarms microgreens provide higher nutrient density than their mature green counterparts, offering a powerful way to provide a potent boost of vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients.
AeroFarms Key Benefits:
• Bursting with Flavor
• No Pesticides Ever
• Sustainably grown with up to 95% less water and 99% less land than traditional field farming
Our FlavorSpectrum™ Philosophy
The AeroFarms product line of specialty greens was commercialized by AeroFarms expert team of plant scientists, growers, and nutritionists who identified the best seed varieties and developed the perfect growing recipe to create the most delicious, flavorful experience possible for customers. The AeroFarms FlavorSpectrum™ Philosophy was designed to represent the breadth of flavors and varieties grown inside the company’s indoor vertical farms. Each color of the AeroFarms package is paired with a specific tasting note to bring this concept to life. Across the leafy greens packaging line, the cool blue colors represent sweet and mellow notes, while intense reds represent bold and zesty flavors.
AeroFarms specialty greens are safely grown indoors in state-of-the art commercial indoor vertical farms that are certified for USDA Good Agricultural Practices, SQF Level 2 Good Manufacturing Practices, Non-GMO Project Verification, OU Kosher, and the industry-leading CEA Food Safety Seal that was developed to differentiate indoor clean growing practices from traditional challenges in the field. AeroFarms specialty greens are completely pesticide free and are ready to eat without any need to wash, providing a major benefit to customers looking for safety and convenience.
About AeroFarms
Since 2004, AeroFarms has been leading the way for indoor vertical farming and championing transformational innovation for agriculture. On a mission to grow the best plants possible for the betterment of humanity, AeroFarms is a Certified B Corporation with global headquarters in Newark, New Jersey. Named one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company two years in a row and one of TIME’s Best Inventions in Food, AeroFarms patented, award-winning indoor vertical farming technology provides the perfect conditions for healthy plants to thrive, taking agriculture to a new level of precision, food safety, and productivity while using up to 95% less water and no pesticides ever versus traditional field farming. AeroFarms enables local production to safely grow all year round, using vertical farming for elevated flavor.™ In addition, through its proprietary growing technology platform, AeroFarms has grown over 550 varieties of plants and has developed multi-year strategic partnerships ranging from government to major Fortune 500 companies to help uniquely solve agriculture supply chain needs.
