Groundbreaking news at JFS Altius Farms
We are excited to share more about our JFS Altius Farms culinary mushroom cultivation as the farm expansion to add Farm Box containers is underway.
In December, we completed preparing the site for the container placement, trenched for electrical and plumbing from the main building to the garden, and placed concrete caissons to support the 15,000-pound containers structurally. The mushroom containers will be installed next week, and the final certificate of occupancy will be issued in early January. The two Farm Boxes in our existing outdoor garden space can produce 400 to 600 pounds of mushrooms per week, including blue oyster, chestnut, lion’s mane, enoki, and king trumpet varieties.
The team will begin formal training the week of January 13, and our first crop of mushrooms will be inoculated that week. We anticipate offering our first mushroom sale to our existing customers in mid-February and donating to the Weinberg Food Pantry. It will take six to nine months to ramp up to full production. Stay tuned for updates!
While we’re excited about our future, we’re equally proud of what we’re accomplishing now.
The greenhouse produces 16 varieties of lettuces, kales, arugula, mustard greens, Pac Choi, basil, and parsley.
Our microgreens production increased across six different varieties: mild microgreens, broccoli, radish, kohlrabi, arugula, and brassica microgreens.
We support 41 customers in the Denver metro area including four grocery locations and added seven new restaurants and direct-to-consumer customers last calendar year.
We have six regular volunteers on the greenhouse team—and we are so grateful for what each person brings to the farm every day!
The farm has a high school intern from the STEAD school in Commerce City, getting on-staff training in all aspects of the farm “from seed to sale.”
Our partnership with Veterans to Farmer has trained eight military veterans this calendar year.
The team is preparing to offer supervised job training to a candidate in early January, and we are excited to deliver this type of skills training to our community.
Every day at JFS Altius Farms, we provide nutritious greens, support our community, and give back in ways we never imagined. It’s inspiring, and we look forward to sharing more with you.
If you want to enjoy fresh assorted greens, subscribe to our weekly CSA. Or if you are interested in supporting JFS Altius Farms, please contact Jessica Zeidman, Chief Advancement Officer at 720.248.4663.
Make sure to follow JFS Altius Farms on social to get updates on the farm expansion, new products, and upcoming tour dates.
