JetBlue Opens Farm at JFK Airport
NEW YORK, NY - JetBlue has announced the T5 Farm, a 24,000 square-foot blue potato and fresh produce farm that will now exist at Terminal 5 at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.
In a partnership with Hain Celestial’s TERRA® Real Vegetable Chips, this experiment in 'farm-to-air' innovation is being used to promote New York agriculture and show customers that JetBlue values a green and sustainable customer experience. The T5 Farm will yield blue potatoes like those used to make the TERRA Blues, the official snack of JetBlue.
"An airport seems like an unexpected place for a farming experiment, but what better way to explore JetBlue's role in the food cycle than to harvest right in our own backyard at JFK," explained Sophia Mendelsohn, JetBlue’s Head of Sustainability. "We know from our T5 Rooftop that people are drawn to light and green spaces, and they also have an inherent interest in understanding where their food comes from."
The farm will feature 3,000 crates of potato plants, herbs, and other produce, and will highlight local farmers and New York's agriculture, according to a press release. The company expects the farm to produce more than 1,000 pounds of blue potatoes per harvest, as well as house 2,000 herbs and plants including arugula, beets, mint, and basil. This will be the world’s first-ever blue potato farm at an airport.
A Jet Blue press release reports that the T5 Farm will also serve as an agricultural and educational resource for the community. Harvests will help JetBlue and its partners in T5 become more self-sufficient by providing herbs and produce for use in some of the terminal's restaurants and eateries, with the goal of blue potatoes eventually finding their way back in TERRA Blues served onboard. Items from the T5 Farm will also be donated to local food pantries.
"TERRA Blues are the perfect snack to complement the JetBlue mission to provide quality food during the travel experience,” said Senior Director of Marketing for Hain Celestial, Jared Simon. “Now, through the T5 Farm, we are pleased to bring a farm-to-flight experience closer to travelers. We are proud to extend our partnership with JetBlue through this initiative, which highlights the journey that blue potatoes make as they become a delicious in-flight snack."
JetBlue also composts many leftovers from restaurants in T5, hauling nearly 300 pounds of food waste each day.
