Hydroponics is a method of growing plants using mineral nutrient solutions, without the need of soil and pesticides, and using reduced amounts of water. The idea of placing greenhouses on top of supermarkets came to the president of BrightFarms, when he noticed that hydroponic greenhouses where absent in the cold regions of the US because of the high energy costs. Commercial buildings on the other hand, are often poorly insulated and waste lots of heat that could be employed to heat a greenhouse instead.

Supermarkets agreeing to host a greenhouse would have the obligation to buy a fixed amount of the vegetable production for ten years, but the advantages for them would be considerable. Vegetables would be delivered to the retailers in hours instead of travelling for days, gaining in freshness, and at fixed price, as they are no longer dependent on fuel prices. In addition, CO2 emissions would be greatly reduced, both in the production and transportation phases, and other precious resources like soil and water would also be saved.
Several supermarkets have already expressed interest for the initiative and the first greenhouse is expected to be running by the spring of 2012.