Haven Greens Opening

The official opening of Haven Greens was held on July 15th and included a tour of this King based state-of-the-art greenhouse that produces fresh pesticide-free lettuce.

At the bottom of the picture you can see the sprouts that have recently exited the germination chamber. The rows inch through the facility until they are mature and harvested at about 25 days.

I remember when this proposal came to council in March 2023. The concept was an interesting contrast between heritage and modernisation. I was deeply impressed with the proposed innovation in farming, even though the horse-girl in me was sad that it signalled the end of one of Canada’s most iconic horse racing farms.

The initial Planning Report outlined this groundbreaking project overseen by CEO Jay Willmot. The plan was to venture into agriculture’s high-tech frontier with a 44,700 square-metre greenhouse to be built out in three phases that would redefine how Canadians get their lettuce. Reading about it is one thing. Seeing it in person was something else entirely. It is the only one of its kind in Canada and one of the most advanced in North America.

A Facility Unlike Any Other

On the grounds of the famed Kinghaven Farm which dominated the Canadian thoroughbred racing scene in the 1980s and 90s is the new and equally ambitious Haven Greens, Canada’s first fully automated leafy greens greenhouse. Sitting between old paddocks and rolling fields is the new 18,700 square-metre (about 4.6 acres) phase one plant that can produce 10,000 pounds of lettuce a day at full operation. Inside is bright and efficient with LED lights bathing rows of pristine lettuce. A soft hum fills the air – no tractor engine or loud fans, just the sound of machines quietly doing their jobs.

Everything here is automated. From seed to harvest, Haven Greens uses Dutch-designed technology to control temperature, lighting, irrigation, and nutrients down to the micron. Conveyor belts glide trays of seedlings from one end of the facility to the other, adjusting their environment as they grow. When the plants are mature, they are automatically harvested, packed, and even boxed – no human hands required.

Lettuce is harvested and moved to a conveyor belt where it is packed and shipped to grocery stores within 48 hours of harvesting.

Interestingly, despite being fully automated, Haven Greens still employs about 50 people – just not in the ways you’d expect. The team includes data analyst, robotics technicians, agronomists and software engineers. The farm is redefining what it means to work in agriculture.

The backbone of this operation is a fully integrated, AI-powered control system. Each crop cycle is pre-programmed with parameters, but the system can also make real-time adjustments based on sensor feedback. Everything is tracked: water flow, nutrient absorption, even the CO2 levels in the air.

Haven Greens uses ebb-and-flow hydroponics, where roots absorb water from shallow trays that flood and drain at set intervals. There’s zero soil (seeds are planted in a medium of peat moss) and water is recycled continuously, resulting in 90% less usage than traditional field-grown lettuce. Plus, about 98% of the wastewater and runoff from the facility will be recycled and reused.

Every decision in the building seems to have been rooted in sustainability. The building is heated using high-efficiency boilers with integrated heat recovery systems. It uses 70% less fertilizer than conventional agriculture. Its packaging is recyclable and plastic use if minimal. After the lettuce leaves are harvested, the leftover roots and growing medium are used by farmers in the Holland Marsh as excellent compost material and any unsold lettuce is donated to Second Harvest.

The leftover roots and peat moss are collected in bins before being shipped to the Holland Marsh where it will be used as excellent compost.

Perhaps the most compelling of all is the efficiency of land use. One acre of the Haven Greens greenhouse produces the same volume of lettuce as about 10 acres of open field production. And it does so without the unpredictable variables of weather, soil health, or pests.

During my tour, Eric Highfield the Chief Agricultural Officer at Haven Greens, handed me a bunch of freshly harvested leaves of their signature cut baby green leaf lettuce – a cross between a Boston and a romaine. It’s a vibrant green with a nice crunch and a fresh taste. It’s not just about taste, though. Haven Greens lettuce is non-GMO, pesticide-free, and packed within hours of harvest, ready for delivery to major grocers across Ontario. Because the greenhouse can operate 365 days a year – independent of climate or season – it’s reshaping supply chains.

And this is just the first phase. Phase Two is anticipated to begin construction next year, expanding the greenhouse facility from five acres to 10 and growing Haven Greens’ output capacity.

In addition, a large solar panel field is in the works. With sustainability top of mind, Haven Greens has plans to integrate a large solar array into the greenhouse. They anticipate this will provide up to 100% of the energy needed to fulfill almost all of the first phase of the greenhouse’s electricity needs.