Upward Farms Names John Perkins as New Chief Financial Officer
Perkins will apply his investment banking expertise to propel Upward Farms from an early-stage indoor farming solution into a well-capitalized and valuable market-leading business
Sep 22, 2020, 08:05 ET
BROOKLYN, N.Y., Sept. 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Upward Farms, the aquaponics operation sustainably growing leafy greens and fish with the highest ecological and quality standards, is pleased to announce the hire of John Perkins as the company's new Chief Financial Officer. As Upward Farms' CFO, Perkins will focus on raising capital to propel Upward Farms from an early-stage indoor farming solution into a market-leading business. He brings 25 years of proven results in the investment banking sector to this role, including expertise in mergers and acquisitions, public and private market capital raising, and general strategic counsel for real estate companies in the Americas and Europe.
Perkins joins the company at a time of accelerated growth as Upward Farms continues to fulfill its mission of profitably supplying the healthiest and highest quality locally-produced leafy greens to grocery retailers, while also drastically reducing production costs. Upward Farms' market-leading microbiome and automation solutions are a true point of differentiation in the booming indoor farming industry.
"With our purpose of enabling everyone to nourish their body, family, and the planet, we are fortunate to have John join our team and together achieve massive scale and impact," said Jason Green, chief executive officer, Upward Farms. "John's unparalleled talent and experience, particularly in capitalizing the real estate and infrastructure that transformed the American food supply chain, will help Upward Farms attract the right capital partners, grow rapidly, and realize the full potential of our vision and technology platform."
Prior to joining Upward Farms, John was Managing Director and Co-Head of RBC Capital Markets' U.S. real estate investment banking business. As a leader in the real estate investment banking sector, John completed numerous capital markets and advisory transactions for real estate companies and sponsor clients, including the $833 million IPO of Americold Realty Trust.
"I am grateful to be a part of a company driving a paradigm shift in food and agriculture," said Perkins. "I joined Upward Farms to pursue a passion for developing the intersection of transformational sustainability initiatives and profitable economic models. I believe Upward Farms has a vision that will help confront some of the biggest challenges facing the food industry, such as the quality and safety of food and the threats to food security caused by climate change."
"John's deep financial expertise and leadership will help Upward Farms to not only obtain the capital needed to continue to grow and expand its production and distribution of the highest quality and safest leafy greens on the market, but achieve unprecedented scale outsized economic returns," said Suzanne Fletcher, General Partner at Prime Movers Lab and member of the Upward Farms Board of Directors.
Perkins serves on the Board of The Great Mountain Forest, a 6,500 acre working forest in northwest Connecticut focused on improving sustainable forestry practices and research. He resides in Brooklyn with his wife and two daughters.
In late 2020, Upward Farms plans to unveil a brand new company headquarters in Brooklyn that will demonstrate and advance the company's next generation technology through both commercial production and research and development facilities. The new operation is expected to increase production of Upward Farms greens by 20 times over its original facility, also located in Brooklyn.
ABOUT UPWARD FARMS
Based in Brooklyn, Upward Farms was cofounded in 2013 with a breakthrough approach to indoor agriculture -- whole ecosystems that are a paradigm shift in productivity and scalability compared to status quo production methods dependent upon synthetic chemicals. Upward Farms -- then Edenworks -- initially launched in Brooklyn grocery stores, including Whole Foods Market. Reconnecting eaters with flavorful, nutritious, local food, the greens quickly earned consumer loyalty to become the salad category leader where sold. Upward Farms has attracted investors and top talent thanks to its 20-year vision to create a sustainable future for the food system by advancing the importance of the microbiome in both indoor and outdoor agriculture. Visit us at www.eatupwardfarms.com.
Contact: Elexis Schroder, 720-352-3961, [email protected]
SOURCE Upward Farms
