The need to attract businesses and grow the state’s economy was the focus behind a recent field trip for state Rep. Stephanie Kifowit (D-Oswego), who went to Rochelle in Ogle County to learn about making year-round farming more of a reality in the Aurora area.
On Jan. 29, Kifowit, who was accompanied by members of the Illinois Farm Bureau, toured the MightyVine tomato “growhouse” in Rochelle which uses hydroponic methods to produce fresh vine-ripened tomatoes throughout the year.
Owned by developer Daniel Murphy, the glass-enclosed facility consists of two 71/2-acre greenhouses that today produce a total of 9 million pounds of tomatoes annually.
Murphy said the idea basically came from his dad, “an Italian-Irish man who was raised in the Chicago area and knows the food industry here.”
“This was my father’s passion and vision and he always felt the issue was how to have fresh produce here year-round,” Murphy said. “Tomatoes are 90 percent water and don’t transport well and are often picked before they’re ripe, which means not having their true color or taste.”
Murphy said the project was first launched in 2013 but did not begin producing tomatoes until October 2015. MightyVine currently works with a Dutch partner that operates a 140-acre facility and provides seeds for the Rochelle group.
Kifowit said the idea to tour the facility was hatched from one of her ongoing morning coffee meetings with constituents in the Oswego area.
“We were talking about our own local geography and having discussions about food production and food deserts and keeping things local and free from pesticides and … that led to contacting the Illinois Farm Bureau,” Kifowit said. “We went out there to Rochelle and looked at the whole package. They’ve only scratched the surface in terms of what can be grown in this hydroponic ecosystem.”
Russ Orrill, assistant director of state legislation for the Illinois Farm Bureau, accompanied Kifowit on the visit and said the “state-of-the art” facility provides a template for future employment and better food for consumers.
“The agricultural technology is exciting and provides a great product with minimum food loss as well as the opportunity to grow year-round crops,” Orrill said.
Orrill said the decision to raise tomatoes was no accident, as local markets and grocery stores consistently report “it is the number one commodity.”
“Because of the versatility of the tomato between salads, salsas and all the various sauces, it’s the commodity people most ask for,” he said.
MightyVine boasts its tomatoes “are picked today and on your plate tomorrow” and currently supplies tomatoes to over 300 Chicago area restaurants as well as its MightyVine canned tomatoes that are sold to area Whole Foods and Jewel stores.
Murphy said the company currently employs 100 workers and that “we have applications on file for 300 more people waiting to get a job here.”
“People get to work in a controlled environment 365 days a year where it’s never too hot or too cold, and we have our own ecosystem where we use rain water and collect it in barrels and water is provided directly to the roots,” Murphy said. “We have our own bees we use for pollination — it’s a complete system.”
Kifowit said that while there are no immediate plans to launch a “growhouse” here locally, she is looking to sponsor some agricultural stimulus packages that would allow local investors incentives in order to possibly redevelop property.
“Imagine turning an old abandoned warehouse into something like this where you could repurpose it and grow food locally year-round,” Kifowit said. “There are no chemicals used in this facility in Rochelle and they have a drip system where the water goes directly to the plants. This type of technology uses so much less water, which is going to be the next big issue in the state as we’re running out of it in places. We need to embrace farming that is so ecologically friendly — it’s a win-win.”
David Sharos is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
