What we do
We at LOR Farms grow various microgreens, and hydroponic products including fresh local produce such as leafy greens and seasonal vegetables. All of our produce is the freshest available, be it our living produce or microgreens, all are harvested within HOURS of delivery or purchase. MINUTES if you swing by our Mobile Produce Stand as we harvest right when you order! We are proud memb
ers of both the Orange County Beekeeping Association and the NC State Beekeeping Association. Click the logos below to visit their sites and learn more about bees and beekeeping in the Durham, NC and surrounding areas!! LOR Farms also believes in increasing knowledge about hydroponics/aquaponics, microgreens, and sustainable living. we will be offering workshops and courses on these topics as well as articles in our blog and "Learn More" sections. Curiosity is to be rewarded, so start learning more today! We are proud to work with local chefs and restaurants to provide them with the seasonal flavors and profiles they want to make the most exquisite and enjoyable cuisine you love to eat! Be sure to check back often as our produce rotation keeps up with the changing seasons so there is always something new to enjoy! For all of our fresh microgreen packaging, we use 100% eco-friendly plant-based containers. They are compostable (after removing the label) and made from rapidly renewable 99% plant-based material and no chemicals of concern. This is our way of helping to ensure that our products not only only healthy for you, but also for our planet! By using our microgreens and hydroponic produce methodology, we can outclass that of tradition agriculture farming methods. This allows us to be sustainable and help make less of an impact, in some ways even helping reverse the carbon footprint! With our ecofriendly methods of production and operation, we are able to save water by using less, and have no need for harsh and toxic chemicals like poisons, pesticides, or fertilizers. All this is accomplished in an area much smaller than a traditional farm thanks to "Growing Upwards" with vertical farming racks. We even recycle the leftover produce, root mats, plant-based damaged packaging containers, and growing media into our vermiculture compost bins. This in turn gets used to feed and supplement the soil in our living plant nursery as well as sustain the land around our farm and gives the bees plenty of flowers and plants to feed from. Finally, by you choosing to purchase locally grown produce and goods (hopefully a lot from us :-D ), you are helping us cut down on the length of the transportation supply chain. Products no longer have as far of a trip to take to go from our farm to your plate. This results in less pollution generated thus making the environment cleaner, more sustainable, and more enjoyable for all! Our History
The LOR Farms Story
Our Founder, Elliott, is a local Chef and Mechanical/Mechatronics Engineer with over 21 years of culinary experience spanning 8 restaurants and 3 states. Using his experience and education in both culinary arts and engineering, he designs, operates and maintains the hydroponic, aquaponic, spirulina bioreactors, and the microgreens growing systems. This allows for a unique and true understanding of how to work with mother nature to provide the optimum environmental factors and conditions needed. The plants are able to grow to their best quality and most flavorful selves to bring to you the customer a healthy and enjoyable meal experience. He tells his and the LOR Farms stories below:
"It all began back when I was a little kid in Charleston, SC. My grandmother would babysit me and we would spend the day in the garden tending to the plants and vegetables. I would play in the dirt pulling weeds and picking up rocks while she planted, pruned, and picked the produce. This was the normal daily routine for many years growing up. I would play in the kitchen while my mother cooked, helping her prep and cook every chance I got. And so began my culinary journey. Fast forward to being a teen when I was able to get a job in a restaurant. I started working as a garbage boy and since then I have worked my way up the culinary ladder to head chef and kitchen manager. After graduating high school, I went to culinary arts college where my passion for food, and waistline, grew and grew. It is safe to say the freshman 15 pounds was more like the freshman 50 pounds. Over the years as I progressed in my climb to the top positions in several restaurants, my health began to suffer. I was more focused on making the best foods for others than for myself. I began eating more of the processed foods available that were quick and simple to make, or often just getting fast food due to my numerous hours working. Over time the poor food choices began to take their toll. As I topped 280 lbs I was informed by my doctor that diabetes and heart problems were all but inevitable unless I make some drastic changes in my life immediately. Using my culinary background I began researching the benefits of healthier foods and how to make them more delicious and enjoyable. This is when I found out about Hydroponics. At the time in 2010 it was a budding science, just getting started. I began researching into how this works and affects the produce that is grown. As I researched, I experimented with different methods and styles of hydroponics and started piecing together various systems that would enhance my garden. Piece by piece my test greenhouse grew until it was a fulltime hobby. As I built the hydroponic greenhouse, I grew various vegetables and fruits and began incorporating them into my diet. You can imagine my surprise when I discovered the big difference in flavors and textures of the produce I was growing versus the produce from the grocery store. In addition, the hydroponically grown produce also grew faster and bigger compared to the store's produce. As a Chef, for me this was a whole new world of food experience that only deepened my passion for food. I was hooked! I began to grow enough hydroponic produce to have incorporated into several meals a week and then I noticed the effects the healthier food was having. I was no longer a candidate for diabetes and my health improved greatly! I was changing over to a proper healthier diet and as expected when one does, my weight began to drop. Over time, I continued to eat what I grew, sharing the produce with friends and family whenever I could. It was fun and great to watch the expressions on their faces when they tasted the amazing flavors of the hydroponic produce! I tried incorporating as much as I could into each meal! Seeing everyone's enjoyment of the food, hearing them ask where I got the produce from, and the look of surprise when I told them I grew it hydroponically really made it all worth while. But it also began pointing out a subtle problem. Why were so many people surprised at the flavors they were missing out on? How is it that they have been missing out on this? Why isn't hydroponically grown produce more available to the public? How can I change this so that people can be healthier while making 'Healthy Eating' more enjoyable? It was at this point I became dedicated to helping everyone get the most nutrient dense and healthy produce that had the best flavors. Bringing hydroponics and its produce to the masses and making it available to all was my new goal. Fast forward again to 2015, LOR Farms was founded in the summer between college semesters, just a boy and his dog building the beginning of a dream. We started as a backyard hobby and over many years of research, practice, and dedication we began to grow into a successful local family business! Our goals are to bring fresh healthy produce to the masses, as well as grow and produce industrial hemp for CBD and renewable materials. Then at the end of 2019, the COVID Pandemic hit. Like so many other businesses, we were forced to close due to the lockdowns and ended up almost shutting our doors for good. In January 2020, LOR Farms finished the Incorporation process in Durham, NC despite the pandemic setbacks. It was the support of a very few dedicated customers and a local restaurant that we were able to keep our business running during this lockdown. Once the lockdown was lifted, a relocation provided a new opportunity to start again but this time even better! Since reopening LOR Farms has once again began to grow and we have continued to provide quality produce and microgreens to the Triangle Area. I'm proud to say again what started as a hobby, eventually grew to being able to supplement paying for 2 college degrees, and after a close brush with the death of a dream thanks to the COVID pandemic, now once again that dream has become a rewarding full-time Family business! And so here we are, reinvigorated and determined to bring you the joy of experiencing microgreens and all the nutritious benefits there in."
-Elliott
Owner and Farmer, LOR Farms, Inc. We have a new greenhouse facility coming soon to the Durham NC area in Eno Estates! With future plans in the works of expanding into the Raleigh, Greensboro, and Wilkesboro, NC areas with our farms and hydroponics facilities.
