Emerald Green, an Ireland-based company co-founded by Brian O’Reilly, a former Irish mushroom farmer, along with his brother Aidan, has secured a deal to supply Compass Ireland (a global contract-based foodservice company) with vertically grown leafy greens after launching Ireland’s first-ever vertical farming facility in Ballyporeen, Co Tipperary.

The new facility has been developed by converting one of O'Reilly's eight mushroom-growing tunnels into a hydroponic facility using a Sanabio vertical farming system acquired from Farmony (a Dublin-based organization providing consultation for growers). 

The facility will produce basil, baby leaf mixes, and micro greens all year round under the brand ‘Emerald Greens’.

Through the collaboration, Compass Ireland gets 25% or 200kg of Emerald Greens’ basil production each week to produce healthy meals for consumers around Ireland. The contract from Compass is expected to allow Emerald Green to further expand its vertical farming operations by developing a second tunnel through 2022 and increasing production capacity by 20%.