Fork Farms
Fork Farms is a Green Bay, Wisconsin-based agriculture technology company that designs and manufactures modular indoor vertical hydroponic farming systems (Flex Farm, Flex Acre, Flex Micro), primarily serving K-12 schools while expanding into healthcare systems, hunger-relief nonprofits, and corporate ESG programs.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersWisconsin Rapids, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Fork Farms does
Fork Farms is an agriculture technology company headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin, that designs and manufactures modular indoor vertical hydroponic farming systems for distributed, on-site food production. The company's flagship product, the Flex Farm, occupies 9 square feet, requires approximately 2 hours of maintenance per month, and yields 25+ lbs of fresh produce every 28 days (up to 3,400 plants annually), using 98% less water than traditional agriculture. The portfolio is anchored by three hardware tiers: the Flex Farm (the core SKU), the Flex Acre enterprise-scale system capable of 100+ lbs of leafy greens monthly, and the Flex Micro compact unit, all built on a hybrid aeroponic/hydroponic architecture that combines elements of Nutrient Film Technique and drip irrigation with energy-efficient LED light towers and proprietary two-part mineral nutrient formulations.
The platform is supported by Farmative, a digital community application (iOS and Android) that connects growers, distributes step-by-step growing guides, hosts courses including a Hydroponics Skill Certificate program, and provides peer collaboration. A K-12 STEM curriculum aligned to Next Generation Science Standards is bundled with each Flex Farm sale, along with end-to-end support from the company's hybrid team of former educators and hydroponics experts. Distribution is direct via the company website and an enterprise sales motion for Flex Acre deployments; international pilots have begun in the Caribbean.
Revenue is generated primarily through one-time hardware sales ($4,995 per Flex Farm, custom pricing for Flex Acre) with secondary recurring streams from proprietary nutrient consumables, professional services for enterprise deployments, and the currently free Farmative platform. The customer base is anchored in K-12 education — 1,000+ Flex Farms deployed across 800+ school partners — and is diversifying into healthcare systems (Food Is Medicine initiatives, including the Sanford Health Marshfield PureGrow Project), hunger-relief nonprofits (Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin, St. Joseph's Food Program), corporate ESG programs (notably a 72-Flex-Acre deployment with Rockwell Automation at Clock Tower Farms in Milwaukee), and restaurants/hospitality. Disclosed capital raised totals approximately $4.3M across a 2017 gbeta engagement, a September 2021 $2M round led by TitletownTech, and an October 2025 ~$2.3M round.
Fork Farms firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Fork Farms
- Legal name
- Fork Farms
- Website
- https://forkfarms.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Fork Farms is a Green Bay, Wisconsin-based agriculture technology company that designs and manufactures modular indoor vertical hydroponic farming systems (Flex Farm, Flex Acre, Flex Micro), primarily serving K-12 schools while expanding into healthcare systems, hunger-relief nonprofits, and corporate ESG programs.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Fork Farms industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Indoor Hydroponic Farming Systems
- NAICS
- Farm Machinery and Equipment Manufacturing (333111), Food Crops Grown Under Cover (11141)
- SIC
- Farm Machinery & Equipment (3523)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Vertical Farming Systems & Racking (Indoor Farms, Multi-tier) (AFAAAHAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) / Vertical Farming (Indoor LED Farms) (AFAGAHAJ), Hydroponic & Aeroponic Growing Systems (NFT, DWC, Ebb/Flow, Misting) (AFAAAHAD), Greenhouse Herb & Microgreens Production (Culinary Herbs, Microgreens) (AFAGAHAC)
Keywords
Where Fork Farms is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Wisconsin Rapids
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Fork Farms business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Hardware Sales: Primary revenue stream from selling Flex Farm, Flex Acre, and Flex Micro hydroponic systems. The Flex Farm is sold at $4,995 including three months of growing supplies, curriculum, and community access. Enterprise-level Flex Acre systems are sold with custom pricing based on deployment scale.
- Subscription/Membership: Farmative digital platform provides ongoing value through community access, growing resources, and support. While Farmative is free with Flex Farm purchase, the recurring engagement model supports customer retention and upsell opportunities for additional hardware and consumables.
- Nutrient Solutions and Consumables: Recurring revenue from proprietary nutrient formulas and growing supplies. Two-part nutrient system (Nutrient A and B, 1 lb each) sold through the Fork Farms store. Regular nutrient replacement represents ongoing revenue from existing customer base.
- Professional Services: End-to-end support services including pre-sale consultation, onboarding, ongoing growing support, and customer success programs bundled with hardware purchases.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Flex Farm - Core Product |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Flex Acre - Enterprise System |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Nutrient Solutions |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Warranty Terms |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
Fork Farms product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Fork Farms designs, manufactures, and sells indoor vertical hydroponic farming systems (Flex Farm, Flex Acre, and Flex Micro) that enable year-round, on-site production of fresh leafy greens and produce. The company bundles the hardware with proprietary two-part nutrient formulas, a K-12 STEM curriculum aligned to NGSS, and access to its Farmative digital community platform. It sells directly to K-12 schools, healthcare systems, nonprofits, and corporate customers through its website and enterprise sales motion.
Product overview
Fork Farms offers a portfolio of indoor hydroponic farming products centered around their Flex Farm technology platform. The product line includes the Flex Farm as the flagship indoor vertical hydroponic system, the Flex Acre as an enterprise-scale solution for large organizations and healthcare facilities, and the Flex Micro for smaller-scale applications. All systems are supported by the Farmative digital community platform which provides growing resources, educational content, and peer collaboration. The company also offers proprietary two-part nutrient formulas and a comprehensive K-12 STEM curriculum aligned to Next Generation Science Standards. The Flex Farm is priced at $4,995 and requires only 9 square feet of space, while the Flex Acre targets enterprise customers requiring higher production volumes of 100+ pounds monthly.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Farmative: A digital platform to learn, share and connect with the Fork Farms global community. Free and available for Flex Farm users, providing growing programming resources, community collaboration, and learning tools including the FARMATIVE App for iOS and Android.
- Flex Farm
- Flex Acre
- Flex Micro
Products and services
- Flex Farm
Quantifiable outcome
- Grows 25+ lbs of fresh food every 4 weeks (28 days)
- +9 more outcomes
Companies that use Fork Farms
Customer profileNamed customers15 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Fork Farms technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature7 records
Fork Farms partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Rockwell AutomationcoreRockwell Automation partnered with Fork Farms to create Clock Tower Farms, a first-of-its-kind hydroponic farming facility at Rockwell's Milwaukee headquarters. The facility houses 72 Fork Farms Flex Acre hydroponic systems powered by Rockwell's Plant PAx automation technology. Project produces 200,000 lbs of leafy greens annually while saving 5.9 million gallons of water and conserving 5.5 acres of conventional crop land.
- Feeding America Eastern WisconsincorePartnership to distribute fresh produce grown at Clock Tower Farms directly to Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin's hunger relief network. Addresses food insecurity across 35 counties in Eastern Wisconsin by providing nutritious leafy greens to local food pantries.
- K-12 School Partners (800+)coreOver 800 school partners have adopted Flex Farms, with more than 1,000 units deployed across K-12 schools nationwide. Partnerships include curriculum integration, cafeteria food service programs, and hands-on STEM education implementations.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Fork Farms competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Freight Farms: Freight Farms manufactures container-based hydroponic farms (Greenery S) deployed in schools, restaurants, and corporate campuses. It is a direct competitor to Fork Farms in the modular indoor farming category for non-traditional growers (education, hospitality, corporate).
- Babylon Micro-Farms: Babylon Micro-Farms sells compact, remotely-managed indoor hydroponic systems targeting schools, hospitals, corporate cafeterias, and senior living — directly overlapping with Fork Farms' Flex Farm/Flex Micro use cases for fresh on-site produce.
Broad incumbents
- AeroFarms: AeroFarms is a large-scale commercial vertical farming operator using aeroponic technology. While it operates industrial-scale farms rather than modular consumer systems, it is a relevant incumbent in the indoor vertical farming category and category-defining competitor.
- Bowery Farming: Bowery operates large indoor vertical farms supplying retailers and food service. It competes in the same vertical farming category as Fork Farms but at industrial scale rather than distributed modular deployments, making it a broader incumbent.
- Plenty: Plenty is a well-funded vertical farming company building large indoor farms for retail and wholesale produce. It is a relevant category incumbent, though its operating model and scale differ materially from Fork Farms' distributed modular approach.
- Gotham Greens: Gotham Greens operates a national network of hydroponic greenhouses producing leafy greens and herbs for retail and food service. It is a relevant incumbent in controlled-environment agriculture, though greenhouse-based rather than fully indoor vertical farming.
- BrightFarms: BrightFarms builds and operates hydroponic greenhouses supplying supermarkets with locally grown leafy greens. It competes in controlled-environment agriculture for the same leafy greens and herbs use cases Fork Farms targets, but at greenhouse rather than indoor scale.
- 80 Acres Farms: 80 Acres Farms operates large indoor vertical farms producing leafy greens and herbs for retail and food service. It is a category incumbent in indoor vertical farming with comparable crop focus but very different operating model and scale.
Emerging players
- Local Bounti: Local Bounti operates controlled-environment agriculture facilities focused on leafy greens and herbs, with a Stack & Flow technology combining greenhouse and vertical farming. Relevant as a CEA peer with overlap in hydroponic produce but a different facility model.
- Click & Grow: Click & Grow sells consumer-facing smart indoor gardens (e.g., Smart Garden) for homes, schools, and offices. It overlaps with Fork Farms' Flex Micro/entry-level use case for small-scale hydroponic growing, though at a much smaller and lower-priced form factor.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Fork Farms social profiles
Digital presenceFork Farms financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Fork Farms leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Fork Farms funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Fork Farms M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Fork Farms
What does Fork Farms do?
Fork Farms designs, manufactures, and sells indoor vertical hydroponic farming systems (Flex Farm, Flex Acre, and Flex Micro) that enable year-round, on-site production of fresh leafy greens and produce. The company bundles the hardware with proprietary two-part nutrient formulas, a K-12 STEM curriculum aligned to NGSS, and access to its Farmative digital community platform. It sells directly to K-12 schools, healthcare systems, nonprofits, and corporate customers through its website and enterprise sales motion.
Is Fork Farms a public or private company?
Fork Farms is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Fork Farms founded?
Fork Farms was founded in 2012. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Fork Farms based?
Fork Farms is headquartered in Wisconsin Rapids, United States, in the North America region.
How does Fork Farms make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Hardware Sales are the primary driver. The others are subscription/Membership, nutrient Solutions and Consumables and professional Services.
Who are Fork Farms's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Freight Farms and Babylon Micro-Farms. Broad incumbents are AeroFarms, Bowery Farming, Plenty, Gotham Greens, BrightFarms and 80 Acres Farms. Emerging players are Local Bounti and Click & Grow.
Does Fork Farms have an API?
No public API is recorded for Fork Farms.
What industry is Fork Farms in?
Fork Farms's product category is Indoor Hydroponic Farming Systems. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAAAHAI, Vertical Farming Systems & Racking (Indoor Farms, Multi-tier), with a secondary code of AFAGAHAJ, Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) / Vertical Farming (Indoor LED Farms). Its NAICS code is 333111 and its SIC code is 3523.