Tucked under an Interstate 93 overpass near the South End, a hidden urban garden project is thriving. This micro farm in a freight container is a collaboration between b.good co-founders Jon Olinto and Anthony Ackil and finance man-turned-farmer Scott DeLuca of Reading. Their upcycled shipping container houses a hydroponic farm growing several varieties of kale and lettuce that will be used in b.good kitchens. The space is 40 feet long, 8 feet wide, and 9 feet tall; DeLuca is expecting to harvest 55 pounds of produce a week for the local branches of the chain’s 27 fast-healthy-food locations. Urban farming is not new to b.good. Produce has been growing in (or on top of) its restaurants for several years. Ackil notes that “this is going to produce a real amount of food.” Olinto agrees. “We are just scratching the surface of what we could do.” If all goes according to plan, the first harvest will be in mid-November. The little secret garden under the highway has big potential.
b.good grows veggies under I-93
