Backyard Farms
Backyard Farms, LLC operates Maine-based greenhouses that grow three tomato varieties and nine lettuce SKUs year-round, selling wholesale under its own brand to regional grocery retailers within a one-day delivery radius as a subsidiary of Mastronardi Produce Limited.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2004
- HeadquartersMadison, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Backyard Farms does
Backyard Farms, LLC is a Madison, Maine-based greenhouse grower that produces tomatoes and lettuces year-round using controlled-environment greenhouse technology. The company cultivates three tomato varieties (Tomatoes on the Vine, Cocktail Tomatoes, Beefsteak Tomatoes) and nine lettuce SKUs (Romaine, Romaine Blend, Green Leaf, Kale Spring Mix, Spring Mix, Bold Mix, Green & Red Leaf, Living Trio, and Living Butterhead) from non-GMO hand-selected seedlings, hand-picking each fruit at peak vine ripeness. The operation is privately held, employs 101-250 people, and operates under the corporate umbrella of Mastronardi Produce Limited (Kingsville, Ontario), with privacy and IP administration routed through the sister Sunset Grown domain.
Backyard Farms operates a wholesale go-to-market model: produce is transported at a controlled 55°F and delivered same-day from greenhouse to store within a self-imposed "day's journey" radius to local grocery retailers across the Northeastern United States. Revenue is generated per unit of branded produce (Backyard Farms® brand, identifiable by a white picket fence symbol on packaging) sold through regional grocery channel partners; retail pricing is set by the retailers and is not publicly disclosed. The company does not sell direct-to-consumer, operate an app, or expose any public API; its digital presence is limited to a brand website, recipes content hub, and Instagram/Facebook pages used for top-of-funnel awareness and recipe-driven usage inspiration.
The business extends the core greenhouse production asset into two product families (tomatoes and lettuces) using the same growing system, with the lettuce line launched in 2024 as a complementary SKU extension. Sales are concentrated in a regional grocery channel within one day's drive of the Maine greenhouse, with ancillary community engagement via school donation programs in the local Maine community.
Backyard Farms firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Backyard Farms
- Legal name
- Backyard Farms, LLC
- Website
- https://backyardfarms.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2004
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Backyard Farms, LLC operates Maine-based greenhouses that grow three tomato varieties and nine lettuce SKUs year-round, selling wholesale under its own brand to regional grocery retailers within a one-day delivery radius as a subsidiary of Mastronardi Produce Limited.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Backyard Farms industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Fresh Produce
- NAICS
- Food Crops Grown Under Cover (11141), Other Food Crops Grown Under Cover (111419)
- SIC
- Agricultural Production-Crops (100)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Greenhouse Vegetable Production (Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Peppers, Leafy Greens) (AFAGAHAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Leafy Greens Farming (Lettuce, Spinach, Kale, Arugula, Chard) (AFAGADAA)
Keywords
Where Backyard Farms is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Madison
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Backyard Farms business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Wholesale produce sales to grocery retailers: Backyard Farms sells greenhouse-grown tomatoes and lettuces wholesale to local grocery retailers in its regional delivery zone. Products are picked the same day and delivered to stores within a day's journey. Revenue is generated per unit of produce sold through the retail channel under the Backyard Farms brand.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Backyard Farms product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Backyard Farms operates year-round greenhouses in Maine to grow vine-ripened tomatoes and a full line of greenhouse lettuces. Tomatoes and lettuces are hand-selected as non-GMO seedlings, allowed to ripen on the vine, hand-picked at peak ripeness, and transported at 55°F to regional grocery retailers within a day's journey of the greenhouse under the Backyard Farms brand.
Product overview
Backyard Farms is a single-business greenhouse grower, not a multi-product SaaS or software platform. Its offering is a unified portfolio of fresh produce grown year-round in Maine-based greenhouses, organized into two product families: (1) greenhouse-grown Tomatoes, comprising three named varieties — Tomatoes on the Vine, Cocktail Tomatoes, and Beefsteak Tomatoes — and (2) greenhouse-grown Lettuces, comprising nine named SKUs — Romaine, Romaine Blend, Green Leaf, Kale Spring Mix, Spring Mix, Bold Mix, Green & Red Leaf, Living Trio, and Living Butterhead. Both families are grown using the same state-of-the-art greenhouse system, hand-selected non-GMO seedlings, and a vine-ripened / peak-picked hand-harvest process, then delivered the same day within a day's journey to local grocers. Supporting the core produce offering is an editorial Recipes catalog that showcases usage of each tomato and lettuce variety, plus a "Find a Store" locator for retail availability. The two product families are positioned as complements within the same "fresh from the vine" brand, identifiable by a white picket fence mark on packaging.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Tomatoes on the Vine The first tomato variety grown by Backyard Farms in its Maine greenhouse, harvested one cluster at a time and described as sweet, juicy, aromatic, and versatile; sold wholesale to regional grocery retailers.
- Cocktail Tomatoes A smaller greenhouse-grown tomato variety described as having a big, juicy bite and a summery sweet flavor; sold as snack packs or used in salads at grocery retailers.
- Beefsteak Tomatoes Backyard Farms' largest greenhouse-grown tomato variety, fully vine-ripened before harvest; described as rich and meaty and suited for baking, roasting, or grilling.
- Romaine Lettuce Greenhouse-grown Romaine lettuce with crisp, mild hand-cut leaves, sold as a 2-pack to grocery retailers and positioned for year-round availability.
- Romaine Blend Lettuce Greenhouse-grown Romaine blend with sweet, delicate leaves, positioned for year-round freshness.
- Green Leaf Lettuce Classic, sweet, and crisp greenhouse-grown Green Leaf lettuce mix marketed as always fresh and always available.
- Kale Spring Mix Lettuce A vibrant, versatile blend of textures and colors of greenhouse-grown kale spring mix, marketed as available year-round.
- Spring Mix Lettuce Delicate and sweet greenhouse-grown Spring Mix lettuce marketed for year-round availability.
- Bold Mix Lettuce A dynamic blend of flavors and textures of greenhouse-grown lettuces positioned for year-round availability.
- Green & Red Leaf Lettuce A classic, sweet blend of crisp greenhouse-grown Green & Red Leaf lettuce leaves marketed for year-round availability.
- Living Trio Lettuce A living lettuce product combining three greenhouse-grown varieties into one package, offering different colors and textures for salad plates.
- Living Butterhead Lettuce Tender, velvety, and sweet greenhouse-grown Living Butterhead lettuce marketed for year-round availability.
Quantifiable outcome
- Year-round tomato and lettuce availability regardless of season
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Backyard Farms
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Backyard Farms technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Backyard Farms partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered flagship / parent affiliation, supporting / affiliate and supporting / operational vendor.
- Mastronardi Produce Limitedflagship / parent affiliationMastronardi Produce Limited is identified as the corporate operator / parent of Backyard Farms, LLC. The Terms of Use lists the contact address as 'Backyard Farms, LLC c/o Mastronardi Produce Limited, 2100 Road 4 East, Kingsville, Ontario N9Y 2E5, Canada.' This indicates Backyard Farms operates under the Mastronardi corporate umbrella for legal, operational, and distribution purposes.
- Sunset Grown ([email protected])supporting / affiliatePrivacy and copyright contact email for Backyard Farms is [email protected], indicating Sunset Grown is a related / affiliate entity (within the Mastronardi Produce family of brands) handling privacy and IP matters for the Backyard Farms site.
- Ultimate Software / UKG (UltiPro recruiting)supporting / operational vendorBackyard Farms' Careers link directs to recruiting.ultipro.ca/MAS5000MPLGP, indicating the company uses UKG (Ultimate Software) UltiPro as its applicant tracking / HRIS platform for hiring.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Backyard Farms competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Mastronardi Produce Limited: Parent company and operator of Backyard Farms, LLC. Mastronardi Produce is one of North America's largest greenhouse tomato and pepper growers (SUNSET®, Campari® brands), with multi-site production and national distribution that fully overlaps with Backyard Farms' greenhouse produce business model.
- Sunset Grown: Sister brand within the Mastronardi Produce portfolio (uses the same sunsetgrown.com privacy domain as Backyard Farms). Operates greenhouse-grown tomatoes and other produce under the SUNSET brand with overlapping SKUs, greenhouse production methods, and grocery channel.
- NatureSweet: Large North American greenhouse-grown tomato specialist (Cherubs, Glorys, SunBursts) selling to major grocery retailers. Directly comparable in product category (premium branded greenhouse tomatoes), target customer (regional/national grocers), and channel partner motion.
- Village Farms International: Public greenhouse produce grower operating large-scale facilities in North America producing tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers. Comparable in greenhouse production technology, multi-product portfolio, and wholesale-to-grocer distribution model.
- Local Bounti: Controlled-environment agriculture company specializing in greenhouse-grown leafy greens and lettuce. Highly comparable to Backyard Farms' 2024 lettuce line expansion; same greenhouse platform, similar SKUs (spring mix, romaine, butterhead), and grocery retail channel.
- Gotham Greens: Urban greenhouse operator producing leafy greens and herbs sold through grocery retailers across the US. Comparable greenhouse production technology, lettuce/Spring Mix product line, and branded-pack positioning at retail.
- BrightFarms: Indoor/greenhouse grower of leafy greens (lettuce, spinach, arugula) sold to regional grocery chains. Directly comparable greenhouse lettuce product portfolio, regional grocery channel strategy, and year-round fresh positioning.
- Revol Greens: Greenhouse-grown leafy greens producer (spring mix, romaine, spinach) selling into grocery retail. Comparable in greenhouse lettuce production, regional distribution model, and branded CPG positioning.
Regional players
- Windset Farms: Family-owned greenhouse produce grower with operations in British Columbia and Arizona (Northeast distribution presence). Comparable greenhouse technology and product portfolio (tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, lettuce) but primarily serves different geographic regions.
Emerging players
- AppHarvest: Controlled-environment agriculture company building large-scale greenhouse facilities for tomatoes and leafy greens in Appalachia. Comparable greenhouse production model and grocery distribution channel, though focused on a different region and earlier in commercial scale-up.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Backyard Farms social profiles
Digital presenceBackyard Farms financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Backyard Farms leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Backyard Farms funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Backyard 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 Backyard Farms
What does Backyard Farms do?
Backyard Farms operates year-round greenhouses in Maine to grow vine-ripened tomatoes and a full line of greenhouse lettuces. Tomatoes and lettuces are hand-selected as non-GMO seedlings, allowed to ripen on the vine, hand-picked at peak ripeness, and transported at 55°F to regional grocery retailers within a day's journey of the greenhouse under the Backyard Farms brand.
Is Backyard Farms a public or private company?
Backyard Farms is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Backyard Farms founded?
Backyard Farms was founded in 2004. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Backyard Farms based?
Backyard Farms is headquartered in Madison, United States, in the North America region.
How does Backyard Farms make money?
One revenue line is on record: wholesale produce sales to grocery retailers.
Who are Backyard Farms's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Mastronardi Produce Limited, Sunset Grown, NatureSweet, Village Farms International, Local Bounti, Gotham Greens, BrightFarms and Revol Greens. Windset Farms is listed as a regional player. AppHarvest is listed as an emerging player.
Does Backyard Farms have an API?
No public API is recorded for Backyard Farms.
What industry is Backyard Farms in?
Backyard Farms's product category is Fresh Produce. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAGAHAA, Greenhouse Vegetable Production (Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Peppers, Leafy Greens), with a secondary code of AFAGADAA, Leafy Greens Farming (Lettuce, Spinach, Kale, Arugula, Chard). Its NAICS code is 11141 and its SIC code is 100.