A new local company is betting that a go-big-or-go-home approach will revolutionize urban farming. Urban Seed Inc. broke ground July 29 on a farming facility just west of the Las Vegas Strip, a space that includes eight 6,400-square-foot greenhouses, offices, a production facility and an event space.

Urban Seed aims to be the premier source of locally grown, non-GMO fruits and vegetables for the flourishing culinary community in Las Vegas. The first crop will be available in the fall and include 20 varieties of produce such as strawberries, beets, lettuce and microgreens.

“Today I really feel that it is not just us as a team breaking ground as a new company, but breaking ground on a new industry that will change the face of Vegas and the way that we grow food,” said Rachel Wenman, Urban Seed’s vice president.

Border Grill celebrity chefs and co-owners Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger were among the dignitaries joining Wenman to celebrate the groundbreaking. They serve as members of Urban Seed’s Culinary Board of Advisors and consulted on produce variety, storage, packaging and delivery.

“There is no better place than Las Vegas, which is the world’s playground, to show the world how you can create a sustainable food system that can be duplicated around the world and used to consume less gasoline, less packaging, and create a better product,” said Milliken.

Urban Seed’s proprietary technology will allow it to grow 30-50 times more produce than traditional farming methods with 90 percent less water, no pesticides and no soil.

Overseeing all aspects of production—from farming to delivery—typically done by multiple companies, Urban Seed is working on making its environmental impact as small as possible. Even the location, at 4770 Wynn Road, was chosen to cut transportation costs and impact.

The company plans to design over a hundred more facilities throughout the Valley and eventually other markets in the next five years.