Bringing The Future To life In Abu Dhabi

Amid the deserts of Abu Dhabi, a new wave of entrepreneurs and innovators are sowing the seeds of a more sustainable future.

Image from: Wired

A cluster of shipping containers in a city centre is about the last place you’d expect to find salad growing. Yet for the past year, vertical farming startup Madar Farms has been using this site in Masdar City, Abu Dhabi, to grow leafy green vegetables using 95 per cent less water than traditional agriculture. 

Madar Farms is one of a number of agtech startups benefitting from a package of incentives from the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) aimed at spurring the development of innovative solutions for sustainable desert farming. The partnership is part of ADIO’s $545 million Innovation Programme dedicated to supporting companies in high-growth areas.

“Abu Dhabi is pressing ahead with our mission to ‘turn the desert green’,” explained H.E. Dr. Tariq Bin Hendi, Director General of ADIO, in November 2020. “We have created an environment where innovative ideas can flourish and the companies we partnered with earlier this year are already propelling the growth of Abu Dhabi’s 24,000 farms.”

The pandemic has made food supply a critical concern across the entire world, combined with the effects of population growth and climate change, which are stretching the capacity of less efficient traditional farming methods. Abu Dhabi’s pioneering efforts to drive agricultural innovation have been gathering pace and look set to produce cutting-edge solutions addressing food security challenges.

Beyond work supporting the application of novel agricultural technologies, Abu Dhabi is also investing in foundational research and development to tackle this growing problem. 

In December, the emirate’s recently created Advanced Technology Research Council [ATRC], responsible for defining Abu Dhabi’s R&D strategy and establishing the emirate and the wider UAE as a desired home for advanced technology talent, announced a four-year competition with a $15 million prize for food security research. Launched through ATRC’s project management arm, ASPIRE, in partnership with the XPRIZE Foundation, the award will support the development of environmentally-friendly protein alternatives with the aim to "feed the next billion".

Image from: Madar Farms

Global Challenges, Local Solutions

Food security is far from the only global challenge on the emirate’s R&D menu. In November 2020, the ATRC announced the launch of the Technology Innovation Institute (TII), created to support applied research on the key priorities of quantum research, autonomous robotics, cryptography, advanced materials, digital security, directed energy and secure systems.

“The technologies under development at TII are not randomly selected,” explains the centre’s secretary general Faisal Al Bannai. “This research will complement fields that are of national importance. Quantum technologies and cryptography are crucial for protecting critical infrastructure, for example, while directed energy research has use-cases in healthcare. But beyond this, the technologies and research of TII will have global impact.”

Future research directions will be developed by the ATRC’s ASPIRE pillar, in collaboration with stakeholders from across a diverse range of industry sectors.

“ASPIRE defines the problem, sets milestones, and monitors the progress of the projects,” Al Bannai says. “It will also make impactful decisions related to the selection of research partners and the allocation of funding, to ensure that their R&D priorities align with Abu Dhabi and the UAE's broader development goals.”

Image from: Agritecture

Nurturing Next-Generation Talent

To address these challenges, ATRC’s first initiative is a talent development programme, NexTech, which has begun the recruitment of 125 local researchers, who will work across 31 projects in collaboration with 23 world-leading research centres.

Alongside universities and research institutes from across the US, the UK, Europe and South America, these partners include Abu Dhabi’s own Khalifa University, and Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence, the world’s first graduate-level institute focused on artificial intelligence. 

“Our aim is to up skill the researchers by allowing them to work across various disciplines in collaboration with world-renowned experts,” Al Bannai says. 

Beyond academic collaborators, TII is also working with a number of industry partners, such as hyperloop technology company, Virgin Hyperloop. Such industry collaborations, Al Bannai points out, are essential to ensuring that TII research directly tackles relevant problems and has a smooth path to commercial impact in order to fuel job creation across the UAE.

“By engaging with top global talent, universities and research institutions and industry players, TII connects an intellectual community,” he says. “This reinforces Abu Dhabi and the UAE’s status as a global hub for innovation and contributes to the broader development of the knowledge-based economy.”

Stop & Shop Sending Produce In Self-Driving Grocery Vehicles

JANUARY 16, 2019

Stop & Shop will launch driverless grocery vehicles in the greater Boston area beginning this spring. The vehicles will bring a selection of Stop & Shop produce as well as meal kits and convenience items directly to customers so they can shop right at their doorsteps.

Part of an engagement with San Francisco-based startup Robomart, the vehicles will address consumers’ growing interest in selecting their own fresh produce when shopping via online or mobile and will deliver an even more convenient grocery shopping experience for Stop & Shop customers in the Boston area. The new service will also offer the potential for the brand to expand beyond its existing brick-and-mortar stores.

“This is one way in which we’re leveraging new technology to make shopping easier for our customers – by essentially bringing the store to them,” said Mark McGowan, Stop & Shop president. “We also recognize that many of our customers want the opportunity to make their own choices when it comes to fresh produce, and we're proud to be the first retailer to engage with Robomart to address our customers’ needs with their cutting-edge solution.”

Stop & Shop customers in the Boston area can summon a Robomart vehicle with a smartphone app. Upon the vehicle’s arrival, they head outside, unlock the vehicle’s doors and then personally select the fruits, vegetables and other products they would like to purchase. When finished shopping, they simply close the doors and send the vehicle on its way. The vehicles’ RFID and computer vision technology automatically records what customers select to provide for a checkout-free experience, with receipts emailed within seconds.

“For decades, consumers had the convenience of their local greengrocer and milkman coming door to door, and we believe that by leveraging driverless technology we can recreate that level of convenience and accessibility,” said Robomart founder and CEO Ali Ahmed. “We’re extremely excited to bring our vision to life with Stop & Shop, one of the most pioneering and forward-thinking grocery chains in the world.”

All Robomart vehicles are autonomous, electric and remotely piloted from a Robomart facility. Throughout their delivery journey, these refrigerated vehicles will be restocked with fresh Stop & Shop goods to ensure customers are provided with the best selection.

The collaboration with Robomart is the latest example of Stop & Shop’s efforts to tap technology to enhance the grocery shopping experience and increase efficiencies. The brand recently opened a mechanized micro-fulfillment center in the Hartford, CT, area in partnership with Takeoff Technologies and, along with Giant/Martin’s, is introducing hundreds of robots in its stores.

Other Ahold Delhaize brands are investing in innovation as well, including Albert Heijn with the upcoming launch of the first fully automated distribution center in the Netherlands. Further, Ahold Delhaize is partnering with universities through its Artificial Intelligence for Retail Lab to accelerate research in AI and robotics.

On the Heels of Digital Sales Boost, Kroger Launches First-Ever Unmanned Delivery Service

Nuro and The Kroger Co. announced the launch of the first-ever unmanned delivery service available to the general public.

Since August, the companies have operated a self-driving grocery delivery service in Scottsdale, AZ, with an autonomous Prius fleet accompanied by vehicle operators. The autonomous vehicles have completed nearly one thousand deliveries to the general public.

With this launch, the fleet is expanding to include Nuro's custom unmanned vehicle known as the R1. The R1 travels on public roads and has no driver, no passengers and only transports goods. Nuro has been developing the R1 since 2016, and announced its partnership with Kroger, America's largest supermarket retailer, in June.

"Nuro envisions a world without errands, where everything is on-demand and can be delivered affordably. Operating a delivery service using our custom unmanned vehicles is an important first step toward that goal," explained Nuro President and co-founder Dave Ferguson.

"Kroger customers are looking for new, convenient ways to feed their families and purchase the products they need quickly through services like pickup and delivery," said Yael Cosset, Kroger's chief digital officer. "Our autonomous delivery pilot with Nuro over the past few months continues to prove the benefit of the flexible and reliable technology. Through this exciting and innovative partnership, we are delivering a great customer experience and advancing Kroger's commitment to redefine the grocery experience by creating an ecosystem that offers our customers anything, anytime, and anywhere."

Kroger experienced 60 percent digital sales growth in the third quarter, and its seamless coverage area now reaches more than 90 percent of customer households.

Kamchatka Won’t Get Its Vegetables: Renova Greenhouse Project Is Frozen

The Renova company, owned by a Russian billionaire, Victor Vekselberg, has stopped the construction of the greenhouse complex within the Kamchatka Priority Social and Economic Development Area. The decision is allegedly related to the fact that the ministry of agriculture are considering minimizing state support in the greenhouse construction sector.

The price of a kilo of tomatoes and cucumbers in the Kamchatka markets and trade chains has reached 10.60 euros. The local authorities during the presentation of the full-scale project of the greenhouse complex construction promised that the produce of Renova would cost significantly less. Thus, the cucumbers were supposed to cost no more than 1 euro and tomatoes up to 1.50 euros per kilo. The local administration shrug their shoulders.

“We had high hopes for the Renova project. The land plot is completely ready for the construction. It is hard to say what has caused the delay, but the project is not developing. Possibly it is related to the minimization of state support”, mentioned the minister of Food and Food Production for the Kamchatka region, Mr. Aleksandr Kurchenko.

Strangely enough, even the administration of the Kamchatka region are not aware of the actual reasons for freezing the project within the Priority Social and Economic Development Area. It seems that the resident company have not informed the authorities about their decision.

In April 2018 the governor of Kamchatka, Mr. Vladimir Ilyukhin, personally presented the project of the Renova greenhouse complex construction within the Priority Social and Economic Development Area to the general public.

“One of the companies within the GK Renova are ready to construct the greenhouse complex in the Elizovsky region on an acreage of 15-20 ha. According to the preliminary calculation made by the investor, a kilo of cucumbers produced there will cost 1 euro and a kilo of tomatoes up to 1.50 euros”, mentioned mister Ilyukhin in April.

It was intended that the greenhouse complex produce would cover the need for fresh vegetables in the region by 40-43%.

In addition to other favorable conditions, a certain amount of gas from a Kamchatka gas field was specifically reserved for the Renova project.

The news on freezing the project has been very negatively taken by the local residents.

“What do they mean 'frozen'? The electric power line alone costs more than 6 million euros. And now what?”

“We will never have cheap vegetables”, Kamchatka residents write on social media.

Unfortunately, the disappointment of not getting cheap vegetables is not the only bad news for the locals. The administration have ensured them that most likely they will not have cheap meat or milk either.

Source: k-vedomosti.ru

Publication date : 12/4/2018 

Kroger to Sell Groceries, Meal Kits in Walgreens Stores

DECEMBER 04, 2018

The Kroger Co. and Walgreens announced two initiatives, building on the exploratory pilot the companies announced in October, combining America's food and grocery authority with Walgreens global expertise in pharmacy, health and beauty.

Kroger and Walgreens are expanding their exploratory pilot to introduce Kroger Express and Home Chef retail meal kits. The concept will offer 2,300 Our Brands and national products, including produce, meat, dairy, grocery and meal kits.

"We are redefining the customer experience in a variety of ways through Restock Kroger, including innovative partnerships like our test-and-learn pilot with Walgreens. We are excited to enter the next phase of the pilot," said Robert Clark, Kroger's senior vice president of merchandising. "The Kroger Express concept creates easy access to our most popular Our Brands products through a fill-in grocery shopping experience for Walgreens customers, and our Home Chef Express meal kits provide customers with an on-demand solution for tonight's dinner."

"We're pleased to continue working together to explore new concepts that expand product selection to provide a better shopping experience and greater value for our customers," said Richard Ashworth, Walgreens president of operations.

Kroger Express — a curated assortment of 2,300 products, selected using customer data and insights provided by Kroger subsidiary 84.51° — will soon be offered at the 13 Walgreens test stores in northern Kentucky, near Kroger's Cincinnati headquarters. The Kroger Express selection will include Home Chef meal kits, national products and Kroger's popular Our Brands products, highlighting America's largest natural and organic brand Simple Truth, along with dairy, meat, produce, frozen and meal solutions.

The first concept is operational in Florence, KY. The remaining 12 pilot stores will be operational early next year.

As announced in October, the participating pilot stores are offering a one-stop shopping experience where customers can access products from both brands and order groceries on kroger.com for pickup at Walgreens. Kroger Express marks an expansion of the original offering.

Today also marks the launch of Home Chef Express meal kits in 65 Walgreens locations in the Chicago area.

The new offering enhances the reach of Home Chef's Express products, already available at certain Kroger Family of Stores, including select Mariano's stores in the Chicago area. During the pilot, Walgreens will offer three unique Home Chef Express meal kit options, with recipes rotating bi-weekly. Other recipes are available for delivery through homechef.com, where shoppers can find additional weekly variety.

Each meal serves two and starts at $8.50 per serving. Information about participating locations is available at homechef.com/grocery.

"Customers have responded favorably to the retail meal kits at our Mariano's stores in the market and other Kroger Family of Stores located in different cities. The Walgreens expansion provides more Chicagoans convenient access to a quick, simple meal," added Clark.

"Making Home Chef Express meals available at Walgreens is another way Home Chef is making meal time easy," said Pat Vihtelic, Home Chef CEO and founder. "The Express recipes, which cook in 15 minutes, are meals anyone can cook and everyone will love."

Walmart’s E-Commerce Chief Marc Lore: Food Delivered ‘Right Into Your Fridge’ Is The Future

Walmart is about to take food delivery to a whole new level, Walmart’s e-commerce chief told CNBC. Marc Lore, the president and CEO of Walmart’s U.S. e-commerce business, stated in an interview that “delivery right into the fridge” could be in the cards as Walmart expands its delivery services.

Lore, who co-founded Walmart subsidiary Jet.com, envisions consumers getting a “one-time code” at the start of the process.

Then, the delivery person arrives “with a camera on their chest. You can watch it on your iPhone and see them come in, put it in your fridge and leave, to sort of build confidence and trust in these Walmart associates doing it. So, ... imagine going out to work, coming home, and there it is. The stuff’s in your fridge already.”

The next step beyond that would be “not even having to order” the food you’re getting, said Lore, who has served as the head of Walmart e-commerce since September 2016. “How about just being able to keep you in stock on everything you need and not even have to think about it? That’s the future.”

Walmart has been investing heavily in its e-commerce platforms, acquiring a host of websites. Lore said 4,700 of the big-box retailer’s stores, which the company is leveraging as “hybrid warehouses” to compete with Amazon’s rapid delivery services, are within 10 miles of 90 percent of the U.S. population. The company is planning to roll out same-day delivery to 40 percent of the population by the end of this year, and to 60 percent of the population by 2019.