According to Richmond Inno, Bay Area vertical farming startup Plenty Unlimited Inc. — which is building a massive indoor farming campus in Chesterfield — is further pruning its California presence as part of a larger strategic pivot.
New mass layoff notices made public this month reveal Plenty's plans to slash 50 employees in South San Francisco and another 100 in Compton, California, by the end of March. In late 2022, the startup said it had "outgrown" its 200,000-square-foot indoor facility in South San Francisco and would shift operations over to the then-upcoming farm site near Los Angeles in Compton — though it still hoped to keep some Bay Area presence.
Plenty will be ending its research and development operations in California as a result of the move. It's offered relocation support for team members willing to transfer to Plenty's other sites in Virginia and Wyoming, the company said.
"Plenty will maintain its office in South San Francisco and farm in Compton, but its future growth will be in states and regions of the world supporting and investing in vertical farming for its potential to transform their local food systems," a Plenty spokesperson told Richmond Inno on Monday via email.
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