Indoor microgreens grown at home
Grow microgreens on shelves in a spare room or basement and sell year-round to restaurants and shoppers.
- C$1.5k-6k
- Side hustle
- From home
Estimates for a small start in Canada, not guarantees.
What it is
A small indoor growing setup using trays, shelves and grow lights. Microgreens grow in one to two weeks, so you can harvest and sell all year, even through winter.
Your first three steps
- Set up a small test shelf with a few crops and learn what grows well in your space
- Visit local restaurants and shops with samples and ask what they would buy weekly
- Check your municipality and public health unit about selling food grown at home
Who pays
Restaurants and chefs, local grocers, farmers' market shoppers and households through weekly subscriptions or delivery.
How it makes money
Selling harvested trays or small packed containers by weight or per unit, usually on weekly standing orders.
Skills that help
- Attention to detail and a steady daily routine
- Basic hygiene and food handling
- Selling to chefs and shops
- Planning a weekly planting schedule
Watch out for
- A home-based business licence or zoning permission may be needed: check with your municipality
- Food safety rules for fresh produce, including washing, packaging and labelling: check with your public health unit and provincial regulator
- Mould and contamination risks, so keep strict cleaning routines
- Electricity costs for lights, and humidity in your growing space
- Commercial general liability insurance before you sell to businesses
Deep research report · Canada
Everything you need to start: indoor microgreens grown at home
Researched with live web search for Canada: real startup prices, the licences and rules, what others charge, a break-even example, how to find your first customers and a 30-day launch plan. With sources.
- Startup costs with real prices
- Licences, registration and rules
- Pricing: what others charge
- Break-even example
- Finding your first customers
- 30-day launch plan
- Risks and how to reduce them
Questions people ask
How much does it cost to start a microgreens business at home?
Startup costs are typically estimated at around $1,500 to $6,000, depending on your shelving, trays, grow lights and space. Treat this as an estimate and price your own setup before buying.
How much can a home microgreens business earn?
Monthly revenue is typically estimated at around $800 to $4,000, depending on how much you grow and who you sell to. The estimate assumes at least about 10 hours a week.
Do I need a licence to sell microgreens from home in Canada?
Things to check: whether you need a home-based business licence or zoning permission from your municipality, food safety rules for washing, packaging and labelling with your public health unit and provincial regulator, and commercial general liability insurance before selling to businesses.
Other ways to run this business
Market garden selling veg boxes and at farmers' markets
Grow vegetables on a few acres of rented land and sell through veg boxes, markets and local restaurants.
- C$8k-40k
- Part-time
- Own premises
Small farm raising pasture-raised lamb or pork
Raise a small herd or flock on pasture and sell cuts directly to local households.
- C$10k-50k
- Part-time
- Own premises
Similar farming and garden ideas
Heritage poultry breeder
Breed chickens, ducks or other fowl at home and sell hatching eggs, chicks and young birds to backyard keepers.
- C$1.5k-6k
- Side hustle
- From home
Home-based farm produce broker
Match growers with bulk buyers by phone and online, and arrange shipping without owning a warehouse.
- C$1k-6k
- Side hustle
- From home
Online seed shop for local gardeners
Sell vegetable, herb and flower seeds online, picked for Canadian growing seasons and shipped from home.
- C$1.5k-6k
- Side hustle
- Online
Small flock farm-gate eggs
Keep a small flock of laying hens and sell fresh eggs to neighbours, at farmers' markets or at the farm gate.
- C$1.5k-6k
- Side hustle
- From home
Small flock fresh eggs for local households
Keep a small laying flock and sell fresh eggs to neighbours, by subscription, at the farm gate or at local markets.
- C$1.5k-6k
- Side hustle
- From home
Farm shop with online orders and pickup
Take weekly orders online for farm produce boxes, collected from your farm or a local pickup point.
- C$1k-6k
- Side hustle
- Own premises
Photo: TruongDinhAnh on Pixabay