Beanstalk Vertical Farms Expands To Herndon, Adds 29 New Jobs

HERNDON, VA — Beanstalk, an indoor vertical farming company located in Lorton, is relocating to the Town of Herndon. The effort is part of a $2 million investment by the company to expand its business in Fairfax County and add 29 new jobs to the local community, according to a release from Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam's office.

“Fairfax County is the perfect place for a startup like Beanstalk to put down roots and grow their company,” Northam said, in the release. “We are pleased to support a project that blends agriculture, Virginia’s oldest and largest industry, with technology, one of the fastest-growing sectors of our economy. Innovative entrepreneurs like Mike and Jack Ross are demonstrating how STEM fields can help cultivate new techniques like hydroponics that make fresh produce more accessible.”

Beanstalk, which was founded by aerospace engineer Michael Ross and computer engineer Jack Ross, will grow a variety of pesticide-free leafy greens and herbs all year round at its new Herndon location. The company's products will not only be available through national grocery chains and farmers markets in Northern Virginia, they will be sold out of an onsite storefront.

“The Town of Herndon is thrilled to welcome Jack and Mike Ross’ Beanstalk Farms to our community,” Herndon Mayor Sheila Olem said, in a release. “Theirs is exactly the kind of innovative, jobs-producing business we are looking to attract to our town’s commercial sector, and we applaud their application of technology toward provision of healthy, locally-grown produce.”

Jack Ross developed Beanstalk's proprietary, automated hydroponic growing technology that allows the company to produce food more efficiently than other companies using traditional hydroponic technology.

“Jack and I are incredibly proud to be developing our technology and growing local produce in Virginia,” Michael Ross said, in a release. “Being ‘Virginia Grown’ ourselves, we are excited to be bringing new technology to the industry and new jobs to our home state.”

Working with the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and Virginia Economic Development Partnership, Fairfax County and the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority were able to get Beanstalk to commit to bringing its project to Fairfax County.

A $100,000 grant from Governor’s Agriculture and Forestry Industries Development Fund and matching funding from Fairfax County will help Beanstalk create 29 new jobs at its Herndon facility.

“We welcome Beanstalk’s expansion in our community,” said State Sen. Jennifer Boysko (86th District). “I applaud the reuse of an existing structure for this innovative business bringing agriculture to a suburban area through the use of technology to grow pesticide-free produce.”