First-of-Its-Kind Airport Farm Donates $10K of Produce

JetBlue isn’t afraid to get its hands dirty for the sake of efficiency. The airport farm at JFK’s T5 – the first of its kind – uses an otherwise idle space to grow plants that not only look lovely, but also work hard.

24,000 square feet of potatoes, herbs, and vegetables help T5 restaurants close the loop and give back to the local community with our partner, GrowNYC.

Crewmember volunteers do most of the farming. In 2016, JetBlue hosted 40 collection events with 175 crewmembers flying in from across the country. Together, they packed up 850 pounds of produce, worth $10,000, and donated it to City Harvest.

“The success of JetBlue’s farm would almost surely be followed by other airports dreaming up novel ways to transform once-dull spaces into green spaces. This new green strategy is rapidly becoming part of the design process for airport architects and designers.” — Henry Harteveldt, Travel industry analyst and advisor, Atmosphere Research Group

To learn more about JetBlue’s long-term responsibility platform and to view the full report, visit responsibilityreport.jetblue.com/2016