Dive Brief:

• Former Amazon executive Anna Fabrega stepped down as CEO of indoor farming company Local Bounti just months after assuming the role, part of a broader restructuring the company said will save $3.2 million a year.
• Co-founder Craig Hurlbet will take back the role of chief executive effective immediately, the company said in an update Friday. He had served as co-CEO until June 2023, when he transitioned to senior vice president of strategy.
• Local Bounti is “working diligently to achieve breakeven cashflow” as it prepares to scale production early next year, Hurlbet said in a release. The vertical farming company, a supplier of Sam’s Club, expects full-year sales for 2023 to hit $28 million, a 44% increase over the previous year.

Dive Insight:

Indoor farming companies have struggled to keep their heads above water this year after investor funding nosedived alongside broader concerns over the economy. Surviving companies are making big changes to ensure financial stability after a string of bankruptcies in the sector.

Local Bounti is revamping its C-suite as two new production facilities are expected to come online early next year. A planned greenhouse in Washington state will start operating in early January, while a facility in Texas will begin production later in the month due to unexpected delivery delays of certain equipment.

The company also has added capacity to its Georgia facility in support of a contract with “a large club customer,” allowing the produce supplier to double its run rate in December. In late 2022, Local Bounti announced an agreement with Sam’s Club to supply leafy greens to its stores using the facility in Byron, Georgia.

Fabrega, who became CEO in June, was brought on to help expand Local Bounti's reach. She spent nearly a decade at Amazon scaling initiatives, including the e-commerce giant’s convenience store and prepared foods businesses.

As expansion plans come close to being realized, Local Bounti is now working to keep costs down through organizational changes and new efficiencies.

“Our primary objective is to drive greater efficiency at every level of the business through optimization of our cost structure and further flattening of our organization to enable faster decision making and enhance strategic initiatives,” Hurlbet said in the release.