- Mike Sula
- Pink oyster mushrooms from the Plant
Two and a half years ago when I first wrote about the Plant, the decommissioned four-story Back of the Yards meat processing plant that industrial designer John Edel wanted to convert into the city’s first vertical farm, there were two experimental growing beds filled with some sickly-looking basil, fed by the nutrients generated from the processed waste of 70 captive tilapia. The Plant and its various food-producing tenants have come a long way since then, and one of the most tangible developments of this growth is that you can now buy food grown inside the Plant every Sunday at the Logan Square Farmers Market.
That’s right. Plants grown in the Plant, in recycled poop. Just look at this gorgeous bowl of greens: