AdventHealth Celebration

Overview

As part of the expansive AdventHealth healthcare system, AdventHealth Celebration, located in Celebration, Florida, is one of 51 hospital campuses distributed across 9 states.

AdventHealth Celebration Hospital Overview: 

• 357 licensed beds

• 20,188 admissions

• 88,809 ER visits

• 12,013 surgeries

• 3,705 deliveries

Since its establishment in August 2021, AdventHealth Celebration’s Freight Farm has created a direct return on investment for the hospital's employees and the local community. 

AdventHealth’s vision for its Freight Farm was simple: 

To reduce food insecurity in our community, increase employee health via increased produce consumption with healthy lettuce, and reduce our environmental impact.

Due to the Freight Farm’s quick success and overwhelming positive feedback, AdventHealth has expanded its container farming initiative by acquiring 2 additional Freight Farms to supply fresh produce to their East Orlando and Kissimmee campuses.

The Planning Process

AdventHealth Celebration’s Chief Nursing Officer, Patty Jo Toor, who’s worked at the hospital for 35 years, proposed putting a greenhouse on the hospital’s 48 acres about 10 years ago. However, due to hospital growth and finding a place with sufficient sun, that idea fell flat until she saw a TV program about Freight Farms. Soon afterward, the idea was presented to the AdventHealth Foundation team and they toured an operational Freight Farm in Orlando, which gave them insight into how the farm works and how it could be integrated into the hospital's operations.

The AdventHealth team was attracted to the idea of growing fresh greens on campus to minimize their reliance on external produce suppliers and the high food miles their food often incurred. By growing produce on-site, they aimed to improve food accessibility in their community while ensuring higher nutritional density, as the produce could be harvested and served in their cafeterias on the same day. Due to its controlled environment, the container farm also completely eliminated the need for fertilizers and pesticides – a huge bonus for the hospital’s commitment to improving health outcomes. 

They also saw the potential to create more job opportunities within their community as they expand their Freight Farm initiative across more AdventHealth hospital campuses.

Convincing leadership of the value

When the Freight Farms initiative was first pitched to AdventHealth leadership, they needed assurance that the farm would deliver a direct return on investment for their staff, community, and health outcomes.

Obtaining funding

After convincing leadership of the container farm’s value to the hospital, the AdventHealth Foundation approved the required funding.

Finding the right operator

Needing to hire a farm operator, they searched for someone with previous experience in growing food who was self-motivated, independent, organized, mission-oriented, and able to troubleshoot. 

Learning how to maximize production

AdventHealth wanted to ensure they knew how to seed, transplant, and harvest in the Freight Farm to maximize their production capacity. 

IT obstacles

Having no agriculture specialists employed at AdventHealth, hospital leadership wanted to guarantee they could learn the farm automation software and farm seamlessly with it.

Implementation

AdventHealth Celebration’s Freight Farm sits in the parking lot of a physician training center. Sean Toor, AdventHealth Celebration’s Operation Manager, and his team are responsible for planting and harvesting vegetables five days a week. 

AdventHealth grows a few different types of lettuce and herbs, which are selected based on which crops have the longest shelf life and can reduce most of their waste. The container farm produces 990 heads of lettuce weekly. No pesticides are needed, and any residual, nutrient-rich water supports the hospital's landscaping. Due to its location in humid Florida, AdventHealth’s Freight Farm often generates more water than what’s needed to grow the produce because it takes in outside condensation.

After harvesting the produce every Monday and Wednesday, the AdventHealth team places the greens in itemized food-safe bins, records the weights, and transports the lettuce across the parking lot to the cafeteria. Upon arrival, the hospital’s culinary team preps and cleans the lettuce so it’s ready to be served in the sandwich and salad bar.

Results

After a Freight Farm was implemented on the AdventHealth Celebration campus, the hospital saw a 238% increase in its monthly salad bar revenue. Due to increased demand, the facility added another 28 hours of salad bar access per week for patients and staff. Overall, there was an 85% increase in cafeteria sales after the hospital started serving Freight-Farmed produce. 

The AdventHealth team can consistently produce 990 heads of lettuce weekly to deliver to the hospital cafeterias, a food pantry, and a few schools in Osceola County. They use the farm for team building with nursing units, field trips for students, and many public tours. Hospital staff and local community members have also loved volunteering in the farm, which has helped to reduce Sean Toor’s labor hours. 

Before introducing their Freight Farm, AdventHealth’s produce had a shelf life of 2 days. But now, produce stays fresh for at least 7-8 days. They also reduced their reliance on external vendors as the amount of produce they purchase from outside sources has decreased significantly.

Future Plans

The two new Freight Farms delivered to AdventHealth Celebration in May 2024 will deliver fresh produce to their East Orlando and Kissimmee campuses and create new jobs for agriculture specialists within their communities.

Looking ahead, they’re exploring the possibility of selling their hydroponic produce at farmers markets, partnering with local schools, and using the farm to promote community discussions on health and nutrition. 

Within AdventHealth, the farm will continue to be leveraged for various team-building opportunities, such as seeding, planting, and harvesting greens for their cafeteria. They’re also exploring using solar panels to power the farm and reduce the electrical cost. With 3 container farms now operational at AdventHealth, their Freight Farm journey is far from over. They’re eager to expand to more campuses, enabling additional AdventHealth locations to provide fresh and nutrient-dense produce to their patients, staff, and community.