Growing Underground

Fantastic. Fully of passionate, slightly mad scientists.
Feb 2nd, 2023

Most impressive thing i ve seen for few years now
Nov 17th, 2022

Hi Richard and Team @Growing Underground This is an honest review from an ex-employee (August 2021) of the company and someone who keenly observed whilst working. Growing Underground is an underground Urban-farming company based in Clapham, South London. They grow Microgreens, leafy greens and herbs and sell these products to local restaurants and supermarkets. They deliver these products both via van/bicycle to their customers. They ''claim'' to be a 100% carbon neutral and environmentally friendly farm. Firstly, I am asserting that they are NOT a sustainable and carbon neutral farm!!! There is an atrocious amount of waste being produced in this farm (see picture) they grow on single use, polycotton mats and use industrial cling film to propagate their microgreens. Then when they harvest, about 20% of the greens fall to the ground or just get chucked in the bin...So all these microgreens, polycotton mats and cling film get thrown into a container which then goes to a landfill site. I really can't believe this, and they claim to be 'sustainable' this is nothing more than corporate greenwashing!!! Labour; the team is a 50/50 split between the people in the office and the farm operatives. The people in the office do officey things, and there seems to be a lot of micro-managing going on, without a whole lot of results..I found the site manager Mr Holbrook to be very passive aggressive. As a farm operative you will be doing a 10 hour shift, for 9.50 to 11 (which is below the London living wage) in a 30metre underground cavern where you only source of light will be purple fluorescent lights used to grow the microgreens. It feels quite cramped as the ceiling height is only 2.3 metres and the whole place smells like a fish tank, to be quite frank. Your job could include packing veg, cutting veg, putting stickers on boxes and helping with the seeding...It is quite hard and physically demanding work actually...However every 30 mins, the whole building will shake with thunderous sounds and it feels as though it's 1941, and the Luftwaffe is flying overhead during the blitz... (it's not though, its the tube line running adjacent to the premises) But working as a farm operative does feel claustrophobic....Also there are so many drain flies around,, they fly around everywhere! and some evidence of mould on the microgreens. Do I recommend working here; Personally I don't, there are better jobs elsewhere...As a start-up company, I find that there is a lack of leadership and direction for the company as a whole. I believe that sooner or later the investors will run scared due to a no-profit business and they will simply go under!!! Regards, Kauri Maher
Sep 29th, 2022

Over priced, everything was turned off, in the skip outside was tons of food waste that could of gone to charity. I also spoke to an employee who claims the company is green washing everything and pays minimum wage.
Sep 20th, 2022

Vegetable
Aug 24th, 2022