The Future of Food is Here: Grow Fresh Produce at Home! | Jennifer Broutin Farah

About the video:

Since childhood, Jennifer has been passionate about growing her own food and understanding the intricate processes behind it. She believes that small-scale, high-leverage solutions, when scaled, can disrupt the current food system. Through SproutsIO, Jennifer and her team are working to educate people on a new level of food interaction by developing technologies that allow for home-grown produce, thus reconnecting people with what they eat. In this video, Jennifer reflects on her childhood memories of growing tomatoes, emphasizing the superior taste and care that goes into home-grown food. She critiques the current food system, highlighting how grocery store produce often lacks flavor and nutritional value because it is picked before ripening. The video also exposes inefficiencies in the food supply chain, where much produce is lost before it even reaches consumers. Jennifer introduces the “personal produce” concept, which uses optimized growing profiles as recipes for cultivating various types of produce.

The SproutsIO system is showcased, featuring smart LED lighting, environmental sensors, and a hybrid hydro culture method for soil-free growing, alongside a renewable, home-compostable seed disc. Join Jennifer as she redefines the future of food, making it possible for everyone to grow their own fresh, flavorful produce at home.

About Jennifer Broutin Farah:

As Co-founder and CEO of SproutsIO, Jennifer leads the development of new technologies that redefine our interaction with food. Drawing from her childhood experience growing fruits and vegetables in the suburbs of Detroit, she believes the spirit of the gardener extends beyond growing plants- it represents the ability to thoughtfully nurture and participate in the world around us.

Jennifer has an M.S. in Media Arts and Sciences from the MIT Media Lab, an M.S. Advanced Architecture Design from Columbia University, and a BArch from the University of Miami. She has taught at Columbia University, Pratt Institute, and at the New York City College of Technology, and continues to lecture internationally. She was selected as an Innovation Fellow by Wired Magazine, a Tech Hero by Glamour Magazine, a finalist for the Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards, and is now also an INK Fellow.