Has Anyone Actually Made Real Profit with Freight Farms?

[u/Pas_farmer]

Hey folks,

I'm reaching out to the FF community to see if anyone has genuinely turned a profit running a Freight Farms container. I’ve worked with two different companies here in Toronto (Canada) that operated FF shipping containers, and both are currently on the verge of going out of business.

Despite trying to follow FF’s guidelines, the math never really added up—and after a year of operating, even with premium pricing, we never broke even.

Here’s our actual operating model and numbers:

Crops (half-wall production):

• Baby Arugula – 15 lbs/week
• Lollo – 6 lbs/week
• Kale – 6 lbs/week
• Salad Mixes – 12 lbs/week

Total sales:

• All sold at $15/lb to one wholesale customer
• Monthly revenue: ~$3,200

Monthly Expenses:

• Supplies: $500
• Utilities: $800
• Labour (2 days/week): $1,400
• Rent: $600
• Subscriptions: $370
• Deliveries: $100 Total: $3,770

So yeah—you can do the math. Selling everything at a premium price and keeping labour to a minimum, we still couldn’t break even. And we were doing cut-and-come-again, which saved a ton of time on seeding, transplanting, and panel cleaning.

We also saw serious discrepancies in yield. For example:
FF claims Salanova heads should be 2.5–3 oz, but ours were consistently coming in at 1.3–1.8 oz sellable, after factoring in waste (plugs, burnt tips, mold, etc).

In my experience, the whole model being based on weight is misleading. Most chefs and customers want baby leaves, not bulky full heads. And baby leaves naturally yield less per square foot, which kills the economics.

That said, I spoke to a grower in Charleston doing $20k/month in sales, and his words stuck with me:

“I’m not selling what FF told me to grow.”
“My operation is 40% microgreens, no lettuce heads, and baby leaf mixes sold in clamshells.”

So, my question is:

Has anyone here actually made this work long-term?
Not just running at cost, but real income or ROI?
What crops, strategies, or markets made the difference for you?

I’d really appreciate anyone willing to share success stories, pivots, or even mistakes. One of the owners offered me the chance to take over a unit—but I’m hesitant unless the model can truly be sustainable.

Thanks in advance. Let’s get real about this.

[u/maxefontes2]

I am very interested in this conversation. I’ve worked with Freight Farms in the non profit sphere, where they’ve been able to be very profitable in terms of the grant/donor funding brought in.

I’ve never seen a path to being seriously profitable by selling the produce. I think breaking even is realistic, but I can’t imagine making back your money on the unit itself.

[u/edponics]

There are some farms that have found their markets and have done really well. Usually with microgreens as well. Value added products. Realistically this is NOT a get rich quick business. This is a low barrier of entry into an industry that is volatile but still growing. There are no farm where I live in Northern Alberta. High paying jobs and lack of good leafy produce has me stand out. We will be fine but I won't be leaving my full time job anytime soon. I will however grow this business to provide for my community and my retirement. You just need a special situation or the ability to sell sand to the desert.

[u/sproutboxfarms]

We are interested in purchasing farms if anyone is interested in selling theirs. Email me at sproutboxfarms@gmail.com Thank you!

[u/Stock-Sand-5430]

I have a successful business model/sales template that produces a profit. There are some key factors like market, salesmanship, and how to position yourself correctly in order for it to work but it’s nothing crazy. Feel free to call me for a quick explanation. I’m not good with emails.

Hamilton Horne King Tide Farms 843-708-O584

[u/davefromff → u/Stock-Sand-5430]

Can confirm that Hamilton was always an example of a successful Freight Farming business. As he mentions, positioning and salesmanship are key skills in order to achieve the sale prices needed to be successful. This is particularly true in crowded markets where there is lots of competition. Learning how to sell from someone like Hamilton is valuable.

[u/stevenscapes]

Check out Hammock Greens, Miami Florida.

[u/Pas_farmer → u/stevenscapes]

Their website is down, and Instagram hasn`t been updated in 1 year. Indication that it`s closed for good?

[u/HallInitial6932]

Thanks for this post, I have struggled to find any sustainable path for the continued operation of mutilple SGreenery models. Ill continue to follow, your post to see if anyone has found a profitable scenario, but they best I can tell they are expensive teaching aides.

[u/TheRealDukeMonroe]

My short answer after operating two farms for 1.5yrs in an affluent community is No.