Instead , Jochner replaced the spork kit with 100 percent postconsumer recycled napkins , compostable and biodegradable silverware , and got rid of the straws altogether . Despite receiving significant pushback because the items were costlier than the spork kits , and not having any data or projections to support his decision , Jochner followed through with his plan . The decision turned out to be a budgetary genius . “ As it turns out , if you give a beautiful mind a choice , oftentimes they ’ ll make the right decision . Students could just come up and grab what they needed . And if one student just grabbed one napkin , I was already saving fifty percent of my money on napkins ,” Jochner explained . It also meant less trash going into landfills .
When he introduced Freight Farms to MHUSD , the idea was met with similar perplexity . During his time at Google , Jochner was privy to many cutting-edge technological advancements in the works , including controlled environment hydroponic farms that were built out of shipping containers . When he left Google , he knew he wanted to continue pushing this technology forward if he could , and , since he believes that school nutrition departments can and should grow their own food , it seemed like the perfect opportunity . a school district in Hawaii , which purchased four for their education system and a few more to help jumpstart the farming community after Maui ’ s devastating fires .
Jochner also sees the Freight Farms as a perfect learning opportunity . Although it ’ s still in its infancy , he has partnered with Berkley to create a FarmTech program designed to educate students about hydroponics . “ Vertical hydroponics for food is a 25 billion dollar industry . So why wouldn ’ t we bring one of the most advanced farms to Morgan Hill , offer an educational pathway through the farms , and show kids you don ’ t have to be a conventional farmer , you can actually grow food with very clean fingernails every single day and make a great living at it ?” Jochner said .
Eventually , he hopes to use two of the school district ’ s twelve acres of land to create a field trip worthy demonstration farm and expand the other ten acres into a larger scale hydroponic and greenhouse system so that they ’ ll be able to grow food year-round and students can be exposed to both high-tech and conventional farming .
Getting the Freight Farms , however , was an uphill battle . Many grants turned Jochner down due to the grant language being specific about “ farm to school ” programs . The USDA and CDFA wanted their money to establish pathways between schools and farms . They didn ’ t understand why the school would want to become the farm . Nevertheless , Jochner persevered and currently has two Freight Farms in operation .
Since their inception , the Freight Farms have been a showstopper . Not only do they grow 100 percent of the lettuce used across all thirteen schools for their open salad bars and meals — a whopping 450 pounds of lettuce a week — they are more environmentally conscientious . “ Each Freight Farm runs on only five gallons of water a day . The average American shower uses twelve gallons of water , so in less than half of your shower , we grow lettuce every day ,” Jochner explained .
One Freight Farm also replaces about 2.5 acres of conventional farmland . It has provided a glimpse of what school nutrition departments could become , and many school districts have reached out to Jochner about the Freight Farms , including
Above : the Freight Farm at Ann Sobrato High School is one of two in operation , producing 100 % of the lettuce used at thirteen school locations in the district , using only five gallons of water each , per day . Lower Left : Inside the Freight Farm at Ann Sobrato High School . Lettuce ready to deliver sits atop new seedlings ready to be placed in the vertical hydroponic growing platform .
As excited as he is about the Freight Farm ’ s success , Jochner sees it as icing on the cake . He likens the experience to having Google on his resume . “ Everybody ’ s like , ‘ Wow ! You worked at Google ?’ Well , yeah , but that wasn ’ t the most exciting thing I did when I was cooking ,” he said . What Jochner is proudest of is all the work he and his team have put into making school food healthier . “ Food is medicine , and we ’ ve gotten away from that . The whole idea of healthy food has just passed by schools ,” Jochner said .
A typical school meal tends to be heat-and-serve , meaning it ’ s loaded with preservatives , anti-caking agents , salt , sugar , and oil . To combat this , Jochner has been moving school meals towards being scratch cooked and plant-forward . Much the way chefs buy from local farmer ’ s markets to ( continued ...)
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