Exeter Town Council Considers Turning Schartner Farm Into Massive High-Tech Agricultural Project

By Frank Prosnitz

August 8, 2021

On a crisp October morning, leaves turning the color of the rainbow and pumpkin patches filled with pumpkins awaiting children to turn them into Jack-O-Lanterns, thousands of parents, children, and grandparents would flock to Schartner Farm in Exeter.

They’d likely find the home-cut French Fry stand, and inside freshly baked pies, homemade jams and newly picked apples of every variety, fresh vegetables and fruits, and an array of Mums.

But that was all a few years ago, before the 150-acre farm closed when a fire partially destroyed its main building in 2015, leaving fields that once produced corn and strawberries, pumpkins, and large variety of vegetables, to go fallow. The farm was founded more than a century ago, in 1902.

Farm buildings were left behind decaying, greenhouses in disrepair, and nearby residents fearful that the land would become a strip mall, the likes of which are found only in Rhode Island’s more urban areas.

On Wednesday, the Exeter Town Council will hold a public hearing on a proposal for a zoning change that will allow for the development of a high-tech farm, with huge parking areas for trucks, a building the size of the Warwick Mall, and a 13 acre solar farm. 

Some in the community are fearful the council will approve the zone change and a project that will forever change the character of the land, and possibly the community. Others see it as providing a needed food source, making the property productive again.

The zone change, proposed by Richard Schartner of RI Grows, would establish a Controlled Environmental Agricultural Overlay District that, according to the town’s public hearing notice “would contain eligibility and process standards for establishing Controlled Environmental Agriculture (“CEA”) facilities which provide a controlled environment for year-round production of food and plants using a combination of engineering, plant science, and computer managed greenhouse control technologies to optimize plant growing systems, plant quality and production efficiency. The “CEA” facilities would also include onsite solar power as a ‘by-right’ accessory use to the primary CEA agricultural facility.”

In other words, high-tech greenhouse that are driven by technology, a building that would reportedly be 35 feet high and cover 20 acres, powered by solar energy.

The council’s public hearing is being held at the Metcalf School and begins at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

In June, Rhode Island Grows broke ground for a 25-acre indoor tomato farm on Schartner Farm. At the time it was reported, the farm would have hydroponics technology, powered by solar energy, using recycled rainwater.

According to the RI Department of Environmental Management, the tomato farm facility would cost $57 million and take eight months to build, produce 14 million pounds of tomatoes, and employ 80 people. DEM said it is only the first phase of the $800 million project that will eventually add 10 greenhouses over the next decade.

“As industrial agricultural in other areas of the country and central America have squeezed out local farms, this self-sufficient facility will enable the Schartner family to continue their century of farming in Rhode Island with another 100 years,” the DEM said in a statement.

Opponents of the proposed zone that would permit the new high-tech farming, are concerned that the process is more manufacturing than farming and “since a CEA (Controlled Environmental Agriculture) does not need farmland, should a huge CEA be located on a farm when preserving what’s left of Rhode Island’s farms is critical?” wrote Megan Cotter of the Exeter Democratic Town Committee.

“The project would negatively impact the scenic beauty of Route 2 and disrupt the quality of life for all in the vicinity,” she wrote. Cotter emphasised she’s not opposed to high-tech farming but feels it’s more appropriate in industrialized locations.

Another Exeter resident, Asa Davis, who owns more than 100-acres in town, is a strong proponent of the project.

“If you really want to preserve things like natural resources for future generations, you don’t use them,” Davis wrote. “Traditional agriculture can wear land out, and uses a lot of water, fertilizer and pesticides. The 1930’s Dust Bowl in the Midwest was man-made, not a natural occurrence. If we want to preserve water and farming resources for future generations, CEA looks like a good solution. The greenhouse is big, but it’s got a dirt floor. If it doesn’t work out, it wouldn’t be hard to remove it and revert to traditional farming – nowhere near the cost or effort of removing a shopping mall.”

Lead Photo: On Wednesday, the Exeter Town Council will hold a public hearing on a proposal for a zoning change that will allow for the development of a high-tech farm, with huge parking areas for trucks, a building the size of the Warwick Mall, and a 13 acre solar farm.

Welcome To Our Farm Within A Farm

August 5, 2021

What is CEA?

Over the past year or so you may have heard us at Vertical Harvest referring to our “conversion” project – the construction of which has been the cause of some product delays and shortages. But now all of the hard work and waiting has come to fruition as we are now ready to welcome you into our new Micro Farm: A Farm Within a Farm. 

The idea emerged when we noticed an increase in demand from our local chefs and grocery stores to supply more microgreens and petite greens. This happened to align with an internal ambition we have been fostering to implement a fully Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) system within our greenhouse. The new compartment has 4,000 sq feet of rack systems growing micro and petite greens fully independent of the whims of nature. 

This farm is our next iteration for creating efficient and scalable growing systems. As we are seeing greater fluctuations in our local and national climates it has become increasingly important to us to delve into the capabilities of a growing system that is fully self-contained and not dependent on external changes in light and temperature. Instead, the greens will be nurtured in light and temperature conditions that are ideal to their growth cycles. This space has also increased our greenhouse production by 200%, meaning we can get our community more of the greens it loves both at home and when dining out. 

Though our Maine greenhouse will incorporate some different technology, it will have a tray system that is very similar to this new compartment; so we have also reserved a portion of this new space to trial products and improve growing methods to ensure that our Westbrook greenhouse will have all the resources and information needed to hit the ground running when it plants its first seeds. We are already growing in the new space, training our employees on the new system, and getting our greens to customers. Vertical Harvest has always integrated different techniques and changed to growing demands, this project has been challenging and rewarding and will go on to influence all of our future greenhouses. 

They Left The City To Start A Farm, And This New Wave of Farmers Is Urban-Raised, University-Educated And Committed To Environmental Practices

By Cristina Petrucci

July 20, 2021

Many have chosen to leave the city to improve work-life balance, have more space or find more affordable housing. Choosing to leave the city to switch careers and become farmers? Yes, this is also happening.

Going from urbanite to full-fledged farmer is one giant leap of faith. A 2018 Statistics Canada report said that the proportion of younger people and women taking up farming has increased.

The profile of the typical Canadian farmer is changing. These new farmers are typically urban-raised, university-educated, and have a strong commitment to environmental and sustainable practices. And many do not have a family history or background in farming.

“I never had a green thumb,” said Aminah Haghighi. “I could barely keep houseplants alive.” Haghighi is the founder and head lettuce of Raining Gold Family Growers, established in January 2021 and based in Hillier, Prince Edward County. She is currently farming a quarter of an acre and has a direct-to-consumer sales approach. Starting in January, Haghighi had to be quick on her feet to determine what she could sell at that time.

“I came up with the idea of selling microgreens as that is something you can grow indoors under lights on shelves,” she said. Her efforts paid off. She had a total of 80 CSA (community-supported agriculture) subscribers and raised just under $10,000 in revenue. “That was the first time I felt connected with the community, because they wanted to see me succeed,” she says.

Ultimately, what led her to become a farmer is her keen ability to solve problems and to do it as quickly as possible.

Oh, and the pandemic also played a major role.

“A few weeks before the first lockdown in Ontario, my second daughter was born,” she explained. “Everything was slowly coming to a halt all over the world, and I didn’t really know what grocery stores would look like and we all thought the world was basically ending.” That’s when Haghighi decided to rip up the grass in her Toronto home and start growing in her small backyard garden.

Providing food security for her family during the whirlwind that was the first few months of the pandemic, and having something of her own, was why she started gardening. “As a mom who had no control over my body or control over my time, this was sort of a way to regain control in my life.”

Questions of food security and sustainability also crossed Judy Ning’s mind during the initial months of the pandemic. Along with her husband Hans and their two children, they left Montreal to pursue their dream of having a homestead.

“Our hospitality business took a major hit, and we made the decision to give that up, sell our house, and chase our dream 10 years ahead of time,” Ning writes.

Paper Kite Farm was born in February 2021 with their first seedlings and, in June, they started selling their garden veggies and ready-made meals and beverages at the Picton Farmers’ Market every Sunday.

Their farm is situated in North Marysburgh, Prince Edward County, and the Ning family are currently farming a quarter of an acre while also raising laying hens.

Ning had a rural upbringing and is ethnically Hmong, a hill tribe people. “We are found all over Southeast Asia and my parents were born in Laos,” said Ning. “Farming was and still is a huge part of the Hmong culture. While I didn’t always appreciate the garden in my youth, I’m now doing my best to tap back into my heritage.”

Her husband, Hans, is of Tawainese heritage and, as such, the Ning family are growing several Asian varietals in their row beds, such as bok choy, mizuna, napa cabbages and yard long beans. They are also growing berries and fruits in their food forest and permaculture beds.

The path to farming is not easy. The uncertainties and lack of control when dealing with crops have created pangs of self-doubt. “I want to quit everyday,” said Haghighi. “Ten times a day I’m like ‘Oh my God, what am I doing?’ but then 25 times a day I think this is totally what I’m supposed to be doing.”

On the operational front, issues like tackling insects without the use of pesticides, choosing the right soil for seedlings and managing the upfront costs of equipment are hard to ignore.

“In the early days getting financing was one of the biggest hurdles that we faced,” said Stephanie Laing. Laing and her partner, Heather Coffey, founded Fiddlehead Farm in 2012 and grow more than 50 types of vegetables year-round in their market garden of 10 acres in Demorestville, Prince Edward County.

Laing found that most lending institutions were used to farms that were “hundreds to thousands of acres” in size, not the smaller operations such as Fiddlehead.

Fortunately, Laing and Coffey could rely on the assistance of their families to co-sign the mortgage on their farm. They also relied on grants, which they’ve taken advantage of for some early infrastructure, such as their wash station, irrigation pond and some equipment.

It had always been a goal for Laing and Coffey to start a farm. With their respective environmental studies and landscape ecology background, as well as “WWOOF-ing” (Willing Workers on Organic Farms) for two years, they felt ready. They decided to settle in Prince Edward County to be midway between their families in Newmarket and Montreal.

“I think for our first six to eight years we didn’t take a single vacation; we just worked non-stop,” said Laing. She recalled how “overeager” they were initially, adding a flock of laying hens and a handful of pigs along with turkeys and ducks. Financially that was not viable, so they focused solely on their market garden and increasing their CSA membership.

Despite the hurdles in their early years, Laing is satisfied with where they are now. “I am happy with what I do for a living,” she said, “I would love it if it paid a bit better, but I really enjoy the work.”

With almost 10 years running their farm, Laing’s advice for new farmers, or those looking to become farmers, is to treat it as a business. “One of the reasons we have been successful is because we have always paid really close attention to our finances.” They’ve always “planned down to the penny,” ensuring that their farm is both survivable and sustainable.

They are now able to enjoy the fruits of their labour and set money aside to invest for things down the road, like getting the farm to be as off grid as possible.

She encourages new farmers to ask themselves what they want from the farm: to either work full- or part-time for it. “It’s a business and it’s also really involved with your life, and you need to think of those two things together,” she adds.

“I have a crazy amount of people that message me all the time saying that I’m living the dream and they wish they could do what I’m doing,” said Haghighi.

Harvesting Cherries At Night To Protecting Apples With Nets, Record Heat Takes Toll On Fruit Crop

By Tyne Morgan

July 12, 2021

Record-breaking heat that blasted the West over the weekend is also proving to be lethal to crops. Even with the heat breaking a bit on Monday, daily records were tied or broken over the weekend across California, Nevada and Arizona, with extreme heat also hitting Idaho and portions of the Pacific Northwest.

Much of the West and Southwest have been under a heat warning for more than a week, with more than 28 million Americans seeing triple-digit heat, including Arizona, Nevada, California’s Central Valley and even parts of Washington State.  The relentless heat comes just more than a week after the Pacific Northwest saw a “thousand year” heat wave that killed hundreds.

The heat and extreme drought conditions are also fueling wildfires, as well as causing orchards and farm workers to change their schedules in order to beat the heat. That’s as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says last month was officially the hottest June on record.

Trying to Beat the Heat with Nighttime Harvest

According to Reuters, the hottest days last month forced farm laborers to start picking cherries at 1 a.m., earlier than the normal 4 a.m. start. According to Reuters, headlamps and roving spotlights were used to aid the workers in an earlier start time in order to beat the daytime heat that threatened the workers’ safety. The extreme heat also made the fruit too soft to harvest during the day.

Reuters reports Northwest Cherry Growers still expects to see an average-sized cherry harvest this year.

"We think we probably lost about 20% of the crop," B.J. Thurlby, president of the Northwest Cherry Growers, a grower-funded trade group representing top cherry producer Washington and other Western states, told Reuters.

As reported on "The Packer" earlier this month, the Northwest Cherry Growers said the heat will force some growers to abandon a portion of their crop due to the damage caused by the heat. The issue surrounds quality. The Northwest Cherry Growers says fruit exposed to such a prolonged period of intense heat wouldn’t meet the stringent standards upheld by the Northwest growers. Unfortunately, that means that a few growers lost some or all of their crop this season.

The hot weather taking a toll on the cherry crop comes as USDA's latest sweet cherry production forecast showed production higher than 2020, but down 6% from what producers saw in 2019. USDA says the later blooming varieties were well behind the rest of the crop, which is already leading to lower yields.

Shipping Concerns

Also according to "The Packer," with temperatures topping 105 degrees for several days from June 27-30 in Wenatchee, Wash., shipping was also impacted by the extreme heat. Shippers said the heat wave could reduce the crop volume some and hold back sizing temporarily but expressed confidence there will be plenty of high-quality Washington cherries for retailers to promote in July and into August. Some are even hydro cooling cherries and taking other steps to take the heat out of fruit and using advanced sorting technology to send only strong fruit to market.

Eyes on the Apple Crop 

But it’s also adding uncertainty to what the Washington apple crop will produce this year. Apples are Washington’s most valuable crop, with an estimated revenue of $2 billion each year. Apple harvest is still six weeks away, but the heat has caused the apples to stop growing for now.

"We really don't know what the effects are. We just have to ride it out," Todd Fryhover, president of the Washington Apple Commission, told Reuters.

The Washington Apple Commission says growers are doing what they can to protect their fruit against sunburn. That includes using expansive nets and spraying water vapor above the trees.

USDA's meteorologist Brad Rippey expects the heat to continue in the West for the remainder of July. View his forecast here. 

Lead Photo: Heat and extreme drought are causing orchards and farmworkers to change their schedule in order to beat the heat. NOAA says last month was officially the hottest June on record, as heat continues to blast the West.

Farmers Already Forced To Abandon Crops As Additional Water Restrictions Loom

By Tom Karst

July 12, 2021

Bringing into focus some of the California crop losses caused by the 2021 drought, Western Growers has released a series of videos called “No Water = No Crops.”  

The videos feature three California farmers who talk about the losses they are suffering this year.

“This is one of the most difficult decisions I’ve had to make in a long time,” Joe Del Bosque of Del Bosque Farms, Firebaugh, Calif., who sacrificed his asparagus field that still had five years’ productivity left, said in one video. “Seventy people are going to lose their jobs here. Next year, there will be no harvest here. Those 70 people lose two months of work. It’s a very difficult hit for them.”

Another video features Ross Franson of Fresno, Calif.-based Woolf Farming.

“Around this time of year, we’d normally be prepping for harvest,” Franson said in the video. 

The farm has started knocking down almond trees in its 400-acre orchard, he said. 

“But due to the dire drought that’s going on in the state of California right now, we made the decision to pull these trees out simply because we didn’t have the water to irrigate them.”

“These trees are all dead, and they shouldn’t be,” Jared Plumlee of Booth Ranches said in one video. The company produces citrus in Orange Cove, Calif., and destroyed 70 acres of trees because of the drought.

“It’s just a shame. This block had probably 20 years of productive life, and we were forced to push it out.”

Western Growers president and CEO Dave Puglia said in a news release that the future of agriculture in California is being compromised by the regulatory uncertainty of water deliveries to farms.

“Is that really what you want? Do you want a bunch of dust blowing through the center of the state interrupted by fields of solar panels, which don’t employ many people?” Puglia said in the release. 

“It is a question that needs to be posed to Californians, generally, and their political leaders. Is that what you want? Because that is the path you are on.”

Lead Photo: Joe Del Bosque of Del Bosque Farms, Firebaugh, Calif. points to a melon field that was plowed under because of the drought.

The Collaborative Farm: Where Agriculture Meets The Entertainment World

By GetNews

July 13, 2021

The Collaborative Farm is an emerging destination in Milwaukee that survives as the rebrand of an organization formally known as Growing Power. The Farm is redefining urban agriculture and how the entertainment industry can impact its operations remarkably to sustain several communities. The new and improved organization was made possible by Tyler Schmitt, best known to his peers as Tymetravels. His phenomenal vision to put together agriculture and music to expand urban farming has been making waves, making his novel initiative an extraordinary breakthrough. 

Schmitt majored in Entrepreneurship with a minor in Sustainability at the University of St. Thomas then later moved to live in the national parks in Wyoming. When Growing Power collapsed, Schmitt came home from Jackson Hole to lend a hand to Will Allen and his father Tom Schmitt to solve the intricate issues involved in urban farming—from solar aquaponics to increasing food production while keeping operations sustainable. 

Schmitt developed Ultimate Farm Collaborative to redesign not just farms but also cities in the near future. Collab Official, on the other hand, is the record label he created in order to unite various music artists under the umbrella of an extraordinary cause. The Farm Music Festival is its annual event, which is designed to generate funds to sustainably operate the farm. 

This coming October 1–3, Milwaukee’s last remaining farm will be hosting a music festival to create awareness on the value of urban farming through hip-hop and EDM music. Schmitt hopes that the upcoming event will make a difference in the lives of urban farmers. The upcoming event will also give the good people of Milwaukee an opportunity to experience The Collaborative Farm up close. When music meets agriculture, the possibilities are out of this world. 

The Collaborative Farm has a whole lot of surprises in store for the future as it is in the process of developing and recruiting a solid and hardworking team that will help it realize its goals. In the coming months, it will open an art studio, which will also be a coffee shop. The coffee shop will be the front store to increase foot traffic day in and out long-term. Additionally, it is working on establishing the vertical farm that Growing Power was positioned to pursue in the past. 

Moreover, the founder of Ultimate Farm Collaborative sees the company staying with The Collaborative Farm long-term. In the next couple of years, it will either purchase or design a second facility. The annual music festival at The Collaborative Farm will continue and expand as a creative label through the efforts of Collab Official. 

The novel idea behind The Collaborative Farm serves as an inspiration to those who have been supporting urban farming and those who wish to try sustainable living by growing their own produce. As the entertainment aspect of the whole operation continues to fund the needs of the farm that provides produce for locals, Tyler Schmitt hopes to continue to make promising collaborations that will impact the community significantly in the coming years.

Media Contact
Company Name: Ultimate Farm Collaborative Inc.
Contact Person: Tyler Schmitt
Email: Send Email
Phone: 4145874320
Country: United States
Website: http://www.ultimatecollab.com

Vertical Farming: Ugandan Company Develops Solution for Urban Agriculture

We speak to Lilian Nakigozi, founder of Women Smiles Uganda, a company that manufactures and sells vertical farms used to grow crops in areas where there is limited space.

Image from: How We Made It in Africa

1. How Did You Come Up with the Idea to Start Women Smiles Uganda?

Women Smiles Uganda is a social enterprise formed out of passion and personal experience. I grew up with a single mother and eight siblings in Katanga, one of the biggest slums in Kampala, Uganda. I experienced hunger and poverty where we lived. There was no land for us to grow crops and we didn’t have money to buy food. Life was hard; we would often go to sleep on empty stomachs and our baby sister starved to death.

Growing up like that, I pledged to use my knowledge and skills to come up with an idea that could solve hunger and, at the same time, improve people’s livelihoods, particularly women and young girls living in the urban slums. In 2017, while studying business at Makerere University, I had the idea of developing a vertical farm. This came amid so many challenges: a lack of finance and moral support. I would use the money provided to me for lunch as a government student to save for the initial capital of my venture.

I managed to accumulate $300 and used this to buy materials to manufacture the first 20 vertical farms. I gave these to 20 families and, in 2018, we fully started operations in different urban slums.

2. Tell Us About Your Vertical Farms and How They Work.

Women Smiles vertical farms are made out of wood and recycled plastic materials. Each unit is capable of growing up to 200 plants. The product also has an internal bearing system which turns 360° to guarantee optimal use of the sunlight and is fitted with an inbuilt drip irrigation system and greenhouse material to address any agro-climatic challenges.

The farms can be positioned on a rooftop, veranda, walkway, office building or a desk. This allows the growth of crops throughout the year, season after season, unaffected by climatic changes like drought.

In addition, we train our customers on how to make compost manure using vermicomposting and also provide them with a market for their fresh produce.

Image from: How We Made It in Africa

3. Explain Your Revenue Model.

Women Smiles Uganda generates revenue by selling affordable, reliable and modern vertical farms at $35, making a profit margin of $10 on each unit. The women groups are recruited into our training schemes and we teach them how to use vertical farming to grow crops and make compost manure by vermicomposting. Women groups become our outgrowers of fruits and vegetables. We buy the fresh produce from our outgrowers and resell to restaurants, schools and hotels.

We also make money through partnering with NGOs and other small private organisations to provide training in urban farming concepts to the beneficiaries of their projects.

4. What Are Some of the Major Challenges of Running This Business?

The major challenge we face is limited funds by the smallholder farmers to purchase the vertical farms. However, we mitigate this by putting some of them into our outgrower scheme which helps them to generate income from the fresh produce we buy. We have also linked some of them to financial institutions to access finance.

5. How Do You Generate Sales?

We reach our customers directly via our marketing team which moves door to door, identifying organised women groups and educating them about the benefits of vertical farming for improved food security. Most of our customers are low-income earners and very few of them have access to the internet.

However, we do also make use of social media platforms like Facebook to reach out to our customers, especially the youth.

In addition, we organise talk shows and community gatherings with the assistance of local leaders with whom we work hand in hand to provide educational and inspirational materials to people, teaching them about smart agriculture techniques.

6. Who Are Your Main Competitors?

Just like any business, we have got competitors; our major competitors include Camp Green and Spark Agro-Initiatives.

Image from: The Conversation

7. What Mistakes Have You Made in Business and What Did You Learn From Them?

As a victim of hunger and poverty, my dream was for every family in slums to have a vertical farm. I ended up giving some vertical farms on credit. Unfortunately, most of them failed to pay and we ended up with huge losses.

This taught me to shift the risk of payment default to a third party. Every customer who may need our farms on credit is now linked to our partner micro-finance bank. By doing this, it is the responsibility of the bank to recover the funds from our customers and it has worked well.

8. Apart from This Industry, Name an Untapped Business Opportunity in Uganda.

Manufacturing of cooler sheds for the storage of perishable agricultural produce is one untapped opportunity. Currently, Ugandan smallholder farmers lose up to 40% of their fresh produce because of a lack of reliable cold storage systems.

Providing a cheap and reliable 24/7 cold storage system would dramatically reduce post-harvest losses for these farmers.

Smart Acres CEO On The Latest Addition To The Hydroponic Vertical Farming Industry In Abu Dhabi

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September 13th, 2020

Smart Acres is here with lettuce at the helm. In an exclusive interview with Abu Dhabi World, Smart Acres CEO Abdulla al Kaabi reveals what this means to Abu Dhabi and the farming community on the whole. 

If you love healthy produce, and who doesn’t, then this news is going to please you and your tastebuds no end. The only drawback at the moment is they’re not for sale in supermarkets just yet, but it won’t be long before they are.

The launch of Smart Acres, the UAE’s latest addition to the hydroponic vertical farming industry, this week means that a line of the freshest, most nutrient-dense greens for UAE residents and businesses alike is now being produced in containers on the Armed Forces Officers Club in Abu Dhabi, with the aim to expand across the UAE.

So we headed over to the St. Regis Abu Dhabi to meet Smart Acres CEO Abdulla al Kaabi to find out more.

Tell us about your background?

I am from a tech and farm background. My father has a passion for farming and gardening; he’s very  strict about anybody who messes around with his garden or farm. My father has a few farms across the UAE, where he grows crops and dates.  When he heard that I was pursuing a project in the agriculture sector he got excited and actually gifted me a farm, which I am grateful for and will keep. However, Smart Acres, rather than the farm my father gifted me, is an urban farm.

How was Smart Acres first developed?

View fullsize

CEO Abdulla al Kaabi (centre)

Smart Acres was founded in 2017 and local testing began in July 2019. Smart Acres was developed by a team of experts,  including myself, Director Sean Lee, and Lead Project Manager, Aphisith Phongsavanh with the aim of improving food security within the United Arab Emirates and developing the country’s farming capabilities, providing a solution to potential socioeconomic threats such as pandemics and climate limitations the Middle East currently endures.

Tell us more

We planted lettuce and after a few harvests, we decided to expand from two containers to eight containers. From the two insulated containers, the yield was 3.5 tons annually, which was our proof of concept. For the proof of concept, our target weight for each lettuce head was 140g. However, we have reached an average of 200g per head. I don’t think any other vertical farm here reached that quality or weight in terms of vegetables at this size.

How would you describe Smart Acres?

It is a one-of-a-kind agriculture system that is designed to produce some of the highest yields of crops within the UAE’s vertical farming industry while introducing a new future for clean foods and allowing both business to business (B2B) and business to consumer (B2C ) sectors to locally sourced produce.

Tell us about the containers

We invested heavily in the containers, not just financially, and it took us a while to partner up with n.thing, a South Korean vertical farming technology company, to bring the best vertical farm here in the UAE. We had talks with other companies before and we decided to go with this one, in terms of risk, in terms of technology they are using. And the system we are using in the containers is hydroponics (growing plants without soil)  which has been used by growers for hundreds of years. 

Techno advancements mean we were able to implement the Internet of Things for operations, which helps us to monitor the entire farm in terms of humidity, temperature, and even the nutrients that go inside the plants. Now we have our expansion plan from eight to 78 containers, which eventually will produce more than 140 tons of produce annually. We are currently in talks with private and public entities in terms of the expansion. We are also planning to have a research and development center in order to start growing our own potato seeds in a controlled environment.

Will Smart Acres just be growing lettuce?

In our current eight containers, we grow four types of lettuce;  Lolo rosso , green glace, oakleaf Batavia, but we are able to grow 30 types of lettuce.  Currently, we are testing new methods to improve the quality and weight of the existing lettuce. The results of last month’s test resulted in lettuce whose individual heads weighed more than 200 grams on average. However, we aim to grow more than just lettuce. We have plans to eventually grow baby spinach, mature spinach, and baby arugula. Smart Acres’ vision is to expand to meet the demand of popular produce in the region such as strawberries,  and, as I previously mentioned, a shift and emphasis on cultivating potato seeds.

Where can we buy your smart lettuces? 

We are now supplying restaurants and hotels for free to get ourselves known, and we have had great feedback from them. We have also partnered with several restaurants and cafes around the country including Inked and Fae Cafe, and have plans to have our produce in the kitchen of dozens of other F&B outlets. The recent initiative by HH Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Presidential Affairs, and Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (ADAFSA), stating that all major grocery stores in the capital must allocate space for local produce mean we are perfectly poised to enter local supermarkets. We have had lots of offers from Abu Dhabi Holding and other government entities that are members in the food security committee to buy our whole produce. Currently, we are focused on our actual produce itself, in terms of quality, weight.

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Tagged agriculture system Abu Dhabi, CEO Abdulla al Kaabi, Clean foods UAE, food security UAE, SMART ACRES Abu Dhabi, st regis abu dhabi, UAE Climate Change Risks and Resilience, UAE farms, UAE’s vertical farming industry, vertical farming Abu Dhabi