Intern – CEA (Controlled Environment Agriculture)

📍 Goodyear, AZ

🕒 Non-Exempt | Internship

Department: Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA)

Reports to: Crew Lead – CEA

🌱 Grow Your Career with Duncan Family Farms 🌱

At Duncan Family Farms, we believe our primary responsibility is to produce clean, healthy, life-giving food. As a leading certified-organic grower, we cultivate thousands of acres of produce that ships directly from our farms to processors across the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

Our crops include spinach, spring mix lettuce, kale, arugula, and culinary herbs. Through innovative growing programs and sustainable farming practices, Duncan Family Farms has become nationally recognized as a showcase of progressive farming techniques.

With continued growth and expansion of our technological capabilities, we are looking for motivated individuals to join our team and gain hands-on experience in Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA).

🌿 Internship Overview

The CEA Intern will provide technical and operational support within controlled growing systems such as greenhouses or indoor production environments.

This internship offers hands-on exposure to modern agricultural technology and production systems, including:

• Environmental control systems (temperature, humidity, CO₂, lighting)

• Irrigation and fertigation systems

• Seeding and propagation techniques

• Crop monitoring and quality evaluation

• Sanitation and food safety compliance

• Production workflow and yield optimization

Interns will work under supervision to assist with daily operations while building practical knowledge of controlled-environment crop production.

🌱 Key Responsibilities

Under supervision, the intern will:

• Assist with seeding, propagation, and transplanting within controlled growing systems

• Support monitoring of environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity, airflow, and lighting cycles

• Assist with irrigation and fertigation setup and verification

• Help collect and record production data such as germination rates, growth stages, and harvest yields

• Support harvesting operations based on production schedules and quality standards

• Assist with sanitation protocols including tray washing, tool cleaning, and area disinfection

• Support inventory tracking for growing media, seed stock, and production inputs

• Observe and learn preventative maintenance procedures for CEA systems and equipment

• Maintain clean and organized work areas in compliance with food safety and audit standards

• Follow all company policies, safety procedures, and food safety regulations

• Perform other duties as assigned

🎓 Qualifications

Education / Experience

• Currently enrolled in or recently graduated from a program in:

  • Agriculture

  • Plant Science

  • Horticulture

  • Agricultural Engineering

  • Environmental Science

  • Sustainability

  • Or a related field (preferred)

• Basic understanding of plant biology or crop production principles is helpful but not required.

Other Requirements

• Strong attention to detail

• Ability to follow technical instructions

• Ability to work effectively in a team-based production environment

• Must be 18 years of age or older

• Strong work ethic and willingness to learn

💪 Work Environment

• Ability to stand, bend, and move throughout greenhouse or indoor growing facilities for extended periods

• Ability to lift up to 35 pounds occasionally

• Must be comfortable working in warm, humid greenhouse environments and refrigerated storage areas when necessary

If you are passionate about agriculture, sustainability, and innovative food production, we encourage you to apply and grow with us.