Montreal greenhouse operator eyes U.S. cities

From Supermarket News: MONTREAL — Lufa Farms, which operates a commercial rooftop greenhouse year-round here, has taken an adage about New York City and made a slight change: “If it will work in Montreal, it will work anywhere.”

“Our reasoning was that if it will work in Montreal, it will work anywhere warmer in our target market geography because our costs will be less and the markets will be larger,” said Mohamed Hage, founder and chief executive officer of Lufa Farms, in a statement explaining why he opened his first hydroponic greenhouse in Montreal in February 2011.

Last week, Lufa improved its chance to test that theory. The privately held company, which broke even last February and has annual sales of $1.6 million, announced that it has secured $4.5 million in financing to support additional rooftop farming operations in Quebec that are in the works as well as potential facilities in Ontario and the U.S.

The investment came largely from Cycle Capital Management here, with additional funding from the company’s founding team, including Hage, Lauren Rathmell and Dave Furneaux. Andrew Ferrier, a veteran food and agriculture executive, also contributed and will be joining the company’s board. Additional funding, to the tune of $1.5 million, is expected in the coming weeks through government-sponsored debt sources within Quebec.

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