Urban Stalk

Canada’s short harvesting season has led to increased dependency on imported vegetables to satisfy domestic demands. This has driven communities to explore innovative approaches for creating resilient local food supply chains. sdsdsd

Urban Stalk is leading the charge in the Canadian food industry with its patented solution to strengthen local crop production and reduce increasing dependence on imported food.

The company is on a mission to nourish the native communities with its novel POD Technology that optimizes the growing conditions of over 50 vegetable cultivars while minimizing cost and environmental footprints. They work with retail grocers, restaurants and food banks that are committed to supporting the effort to improve the yield of vegetable crops, translating to better health and well-being.

“Our proprietary technology creates a simulated natural environment, mimicking the perfect atmosphere for growing crops with the highest nutritional values,” says Brent Downey, founder and CEO.

The POD Technology is a modular blend of hardware and software designed for efficient and sustainable farming. The innovation is licensed to a range of farmers, from small-scale operators to large agricultural enterprises. By simulating a natural environment, it addresses the growing concern over the safety of agricultural practices and keeps risks of food contamination at bay. Growth-environmental parameters are sent through updates and alerts on smartphones, allowing for a better farm-life balance for growers who are used to the traditional farming style.

Urban Stalk’s vertical farming PODs are interconnected through its Global Pod Network, a smart-connected network infrastructure that allows farmers to communicate, share date optimizations and micro-control growing environments. Urban Stalk analyzes valuable data and resources, tailoring crop production to local demands and addressing varying regional preferences for particular crops. The system enhances local food availability and reduces transportation and handling costs, minimizing the risk of contamination.


Managing the entire growth cycle eliminates the need for manual labor, making it feasible for smaller, family-run farms. For instance, Urban Stalk entered into a partnership with a national organization to revive crop production in Brand County, which covers the Traditional Territory Lands of numerous Indigenous Tribes. Many of these groups used to harvest different herbs, spices and medicinal plants across regions in different seasons, a practice that has vanished over the years. The federal government's classification of these areas as food deserts has forced people to leave their territories in search of food. Setting up a locally grown, indigenous-run grocery store with the Global POD Network ensures the zone becomes food-rich. Restaurants, cafes, markets and other entities can join the network and place orders for specific produce. These orders are distributed among local producers, ensuring that demand is met efficiently and sustainably.

The company is also reviving a large repository of at-risk and endangered plant species that are culturally important to Indigenous Tribes and collecting seeds to lessen dependence on external sources. This initiative is set to convert a food desert into a food lush zone for a 129,000-household community.

Circularity is a hallmark of Urban Stalk’s business model. All its processes reuse every possible input—from water to organic matter—up to eight times, leading to zero waste generation.

Urban Stalk’s commitment to building durable local supply chains and shaping the future of farming cements its position at the forefront of the Canadian food ecosystem.