Part of what fairgoers spend on corny dogs and rides at the State Fair of Texas goes to a greenhouse on the fairgrounds that has given away more than 2 million servings of produce to nonprofits in Southern Dallas.
The program, Big Tex Urban Farms, marks its 10th year in 2026. It started in 2016 as a handful of planter boxes set up in a parking lot and now runs out of the Errol McKoy Greenhouse, close to the Texas Star Ferris wheel. Crops grow all year, and the program says it donates everything it harvests to nonprofit groups in the area.
The plants are grown hydroponically, in water instead of soil, which lets the greenhouse produce food indoors in tight spaces. Exhibits range from commercial-scale systems to smaller units that would fit in a home or a classroom, and visitors can also see microgreens, mushrooms and dragon fruit being grown.
The farm also teaches. Students from CityLab High School in Dallas spend a semester working in the greenhouse and learn every job in the operation, according to the program, and some have gone on to study horticulture or environmental science in college. School groups of all ages visit for tours and field trips through the year.
