MICROGREEN BUSINESS GUIDE · CADIZ, OH

Start a microgreen business in Cadiz, OH.

Most Cadiz residents do not realize that a profitable specialty crop can be grown indoors in the rolling hills of eastern Ohio. As the seat of Harrison County, Cadiz sits among St. Clairsville, Carrollton, and the larger Steubenville area near the Ohio River. This is hill and pasture country, not vegetable ground, so fresh-cut specialty greens are almost impossible to find locally. A small indoor grower can serve that whole area with little competition.

Quick Answer

You can start a microgreen business in Cadiz with under $400 in initial equipment and grow it into a $900 to $2,800 per month side income within 90 days. Here is the local demand picture, the unit economics at Cadiz wholesale prices, and the operating system used by working microgreen farms.

When restaurants in Harrison County or over toward Steubenville rely on greens trucked in from far away, how fresh do you honestly think those are by serving time?

What Cadiz buys today

Local and nearby restaurants are the anchor for a Cadiz grower. Kitchens across Harrison County and toward Steubenville have no real local source for fresh greens, so a grower delivering same-week becomes the obvious choice for any chef wanting a fresher plate.

Farmers markets and small grocers across Harrison County are the second channel. Shoppers in Cadiz and toward St. Clairsville will pay clamshell prices for living greens that stay fresh on the counter, and a weekly market stand turns into a base of repeat retail buyers in an area with few fresh options.

The indoor-climate angle is what makes Cadiz work all year. When an eastern Ohio winter shuts down the hill-country fields for months, your one-room setup keeps producing fresh trays every week, reaching buyers exactly when local supply disappears and prices climb.

If you were the only grower offering same-week trays to kitchens between Cadiz and St. Clairsville, what do you think that scarcity would do to what you could charge?

The math, in Cadiz prices

In eastern Ohio, microgreens commonly wholesale around $22 to $35 per pound and bring more per clamshell at retail.

Startup cost

$400

Trays, soil, seed, lights. Used gear cuts this in half.

Per-tray net

$20-$30

After seed, soil, packaging, delivery.

Trays per week

100

Target for $3K-$5K/mo at Cadiz pricing.

Break-even week

Week 4

First positive cash week. Most growers hit it.

What that looks like in Cadiz square footage

A 10 by 10 foot room on basic racking in Cadiz can produce more weekly trays than a first-timer expects, growing right through the cold eastern Ohio months.

Have you considered how an eastern Ohio winter shuts down local produce for months, and how that hands a year-round indoor grower a market no one else is filling?

Three things every working microgreen farm in Cadiz runs on

  1. A seed density and watering plan you trust. The number one cause of failed trays for new growers is over- or under-seeding. The cheat sheet inside Grown Like A Pro gives you grams per 10x20, soak hours, blackout days, harvest day, and watering for sixty-one varieties.
  2. A rotation tracker. Once you are running thirty-plus trays per week, you cannot remember what is in blackout, what is in light growth, what harvests Tuesday. A spreadsheet works for the first month. After that you need a system that pings you the day before each harvest and reorders seed before you run out.
  3. A customer + invoice layer. Restaurants in Cadiz want predictable weekly invoices and net-15 terms. Farmers market customers want clamshell tracking. Both want consistency. The app handles both.

The IKEA test

If you can follow an IKEA instruction sheet without screaming at the family, you can grow microgreens at a commercial level in Cadiz. The steps are about that difficulty: open the box, lay out the parts, follow the picture, repeat. Trays are the bookcase. Seed is the dowels.

If you ever did struggle with the IKEA bookshelf, that is exactly why Glappy lives inside the app. Glappy is the in-app coach that breaks every step down barney style, in your own language, from "how do I plant my first tray" to "why is this tray going leggy at day five and what do I do about it tonight." Type the question, get a step-by-step answer. There is no question too basic. The whole point is that a Cadiz grower starting today is not on their own.

What you are not buying

You are not buying a course. You are not buying a hype product. You are not buying seed from us, and you are not buying trays from us. We do not sell either. Grown Like A Pro is the operating system you run your Cadiz farm on. The growing happens in your basement.

Try Grown Like A Pro free for 30 days →

Cadiz microgreen FAQ

How much can I make growing microgreens in Cadiz?
A working microgreen farm in Cadiz produces $3,000 to $8,000 per month within 90 days of starting. The math: 100 trays per week, $20 to $30 net revenue per tray, harvested in a basement, garage, or spare room. The ceiling is set by how many restaurants and farmers market customers you can serve, not by the growing setup.
Is it legal to sell microgreens in OH?
Yes. In most of Ohio, microgreens fall under the state's cottage food law for direct-to-consumer retail at farmers markets and to private customers. Restaurant wholesale typically requires a basic food handler permit. Verify with the Ohio Department of Agriculture before you sign a wholesale contract.
What microgreens sell best in Cadiz?
Sunflower, pea shoots, and radish are the three highest-volume sellers in nearly every U.S. city, including Cadiz. Broccoli is the highest-margin variety because of its sulforaphane reputation with health-focused buyers. Specialty varieties like amaranth and shiso command premium pricing from chef-driven restaurants.
How much space do I need to grow microgreens in Cadiz?
A 10 by 10 foot room with two shelving units holds 60 to 80 active trays, which is enough to produce $3,000 to $5,000 per month. A basement, garage corner, spare bedroom, or sunroom all work in Cadiz's climate. Vertical shelving is the fastest path to higher revenue per square foot.
What is the best app for tracking microgreen production in Cadiz?
Grown Like A Pro is the operating system used by working microgreen farms in Cadiz. It handles seed density math, watering schedules, harvest timing, inventory, customer orders, and the financial side. Free 30-day trial with no credit card.
How long does it take to learn to grow microgreens commercially?
Most growers in Cadiz are selling their first trays within 30 days of starting. Commercial proficiency, meaning you can run 50-plus trays per week without losing crops to mold or under-seeding, takes 60 to 90 days. The seed density and watering math is the single biggest predictor of how fast you get there.
Do I need a license to sell microgreens in Cadiz?
For farmers market and direct-to-consumer sales in Cadiz, most growers operate under Ohio's cottage food law with no special license. For wholesale to restaurants and grocery stores, you typically need a basic food handler permit, a sales tax permit, and depending on volume, an inspection from your county health department.
How do I price microgreens to restaurants in Cadiz?
Restaurant wholesale in Cadiz runs $1.50 to $2.50 per ounce for standard varieties, $3 to $5 per ounce for specialty varieties like shiso, micro basil, or amaranth. Sell by the pound for repeat accounts. Local fresh commands a premium over the shipped-in product that most Cadiz restaurants currently buy.

Related guides

Once you have the Cadiz math in your head, the next read is the density chart that drives every tray you plant.

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