Over the past 20 years, the amount of freshwater available per person has fallen by more than 20% worldwide , due to the combined effects of climate change and rising food demand. At the same time, traditional agricultural systems are under increasing pressure. They must produce more, with fewer resources and under more unstable climatic conditions. It is precisely in this context that 80 Acres Farms was developed, enabling the cultivation of 300 times more food per square meter through vertical farms, while saving over 297 million liters of water each year.
A mission praised by *Time*
The " America’s Top GreenTech Companies 2026 " ranking is compiled by Time magazine, a prestigious publication founded in 1923 and read by millions of readers each month, in partnership with data analytics firms. It aims to identify the most innovative U.S. companies in environmental technologies. The ranking is based on a combination of several criteria: actual environmental impact (emissions reduction, resource efficiency), technological innovation, and financial strength or growth.
Based in Ohio, 80 Acres Farms has made sustainability one of its core values. In addition to producing fresh, pesticide-free produce, the company prevents over 135 tons of food waste annually. It also partners with Siemens to ensure optimal water and electricity management in its vertical farms. Furthermore, it raises awareness on a large scale about the benefits of vertical farms, notably at the UN.
2nd place out of more than 1,200 candidates
The FoodTech 500 is a global ranking compiled by Forward Fooding, a media outlet with over 350 million readers each month. Specializing in food and agri-food innovation, Forward Fooding reviews more than 1,200 applications from nearly 180 countries every year.
Among the 1,200 contenders for an award on this prestigious list, 80 Acres Farms rose to second place, just behind Pairwise (an American technology company that uses genetics to improve plant lifespan). The American firm owes part of its success to Infinite Acres, its technology subsidiary that designs and operates indoor farms where plants grow without sunlight or soil, in fully controlled environments (LED lighting, temperature, humidity, nutrients). This enables year-round production, close to cities, with high yields and very little waste. Infinite Acres combines software, automation, energy management, and agronomy into a comprehensive, replicable, and scalable system. While many vertical farming projects remain experimental or isolated, 80 Acres Farms seeks to create a standardizable model capable of being rapidly deployed in different countries.
