Fifty-five workers at an indoor vertical farm in neighboring Marysville lost their jobs this month after a last-minute acquisition deal collapsed, leaving the facility permanently closed.

80 Acres Urban Agriculture, Inc., which operated as 80 Acres Farms, filed a WARN Act notice with the Washington State Employment Security Department on Aug. 3 stating the company is winding down all operations.

The company had been negotiating a sale that would have kept the lights on. On the evening of Sunday, Aug. 2, the unnamed prospective buyer pulled out, according to the WARN filing. Without those proceeds and no other funding available, CEO and co-founder Mike Zelkind and President Tisha Livingston signed the notice the next morning.

The deal fell through.

"After an exhaustive effort to find a way forward, 80 Acres Farms is winding down operations," Zelkind said in an Aug. 3 statement. "For a decade, our team has proven that vertical farming can work at scale — building and operating indoor farms that ultimately supplied more than 18,000 retail locations across the US."

Who loses work

The Marysville facility at 4010 156th St. NE employed 55 people, none of them unionized. Twenty-nine were packers. The rest included labeling technicians, line coordinators, production supervisors, receiving clerks and an operations manager, according to MyNorthwest. Layoffs began Aug. 3 and run through Aug. 17.

A sector under pressure

The Ohio-based company raised more than $350 million over its history and operated five fully automated farms at its peak, AgFunderNews reported. In August 2025, it merged with competitor Soli Organic, projecting $200 million in first-year revenue. Earlier in 2026, it announced expansion into Walmart, Fresh Market and Harris Teeter stores.

But the vertical farming industry has faced steep headwinds. Facilities demand heavy upfront capital and ongoing energy costs to replace sunlight.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture paused new federal loan guarantees for controlled-environment agriculture at the start of 2026, citing high delinquency and default rates. That pause extends through at least the end of 2026. Other major vertical farming companies that have closed since 2022 include Plenty, InFarm and Bowery.

What workers can do

WorkSource Snohomish County offers Rapid Response services for displaced workers, including unemployment benefits guidance, job-search help and retraining programs. Affected employees can contact WorkSource at [email protected] or (425) 921-3426. The state Employment Security Department also runs a dislocated-worker program reachable at 800-318-6022.

The closure adds to a difficult summer for Snohomish County manufacturing workers. No Meat Factory USA announced in July that it will permanently close its 200,000-square-foot Stanwood plant on Sept. 16, eliminating 123 jobs.

No information has been released about what will happen to the Marysville building or its lease.