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Philly Start-Up GrowFlux Tweaks Lighting For Growing Indoor Agriculture Industry
The University City company has received a $250,000 grant to conduct research at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Colorado.
The University City company has received a $250,000 grant to conduct research at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Colorado.
GrowFlux offer technology and software to control lighting for indoor farms. Shown here is Second Chances Farm in Wilmington, an early customer. GrowFlux
07-12-21
Crops in greenhouses — an increasingly popular way to supply year-round fresh greens and other produce to places with cold winters — are most productive when they receive the right amount of light at the right time.
But there’s a downside. Greenhouses are energy hogs and typically generate more gasses than traditional field agriculture because of their lighting and heating needs. Those are terrible characteristics for a burgeoning industry at a time of growing concern over global warming.
GrowFlux, a Philadelphia agricultural technology start-up that is trying to make the industry more efficient, won a $250,000 grant last week from the Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator for research at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Colorado. The aim is to reduce energy consumption in greenhouses by fine-tuning the amount of artificial light that crops receive.
GrowFlux sells sensors that measure the amount of light, carbon dioxide, temperature, and humidity in indoor farms.GrowFlux
Simple timers are traditionally used to turn lights on and off in greenhouses, said Eric Eisele, GrowFlux’s chief executive, and cofounder. “They’re not dialing in the light in accordance with when the crop is actually using light most efficiently,” he said. “It results in a fair bit of energy that’s wasted.”
The GrowFlux system — to be further developed with the help of researchers at NREL and the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis — measures the natural light available and then adjusts the artificial light to add more when needed.
GrowFlux estimates that it can cut energy use by 20% to 30%.
While the grant, funded by the Wells Fargo Foundation, involves GrowFlux’s lighting controls, the University City company has a broader target with sensors that monitor carbon dioxide levels, humidity, temperature, and other factors that determine how well plants grow.
“They were one of the very first companies that were trying to essentially make farms like ours smart farms by using technology,” said Ajit Mathew George, founder and managing partner at Second Chances Farm in Wilmington, an indoor vertical farm that employs formerly incarcerated individuals.
“You don’t think of indoor vertical farms as being a place where technology plays an important part,” said George, who uses a GrowFlux app on his phone to monitor Second Chances Farm. “It does, and the more it does, the better our production is.”
Investor interest in indoor agriculture surged last year, with $929 million going into 41 deals in the United States, according to PitchBook Data Inc. That’s twice the amount invested the year before. Most of the money went into producers rather than into makers of components and technology like GrowFlux.
Eisele, 35, and Alexander Roscoe, chief technology officer, founded GrowFlux in 2017. Both are Drexel University graduates.
Eisele’s background is in interior lighting for humans. He worked for seven years in the research group at KieranTimberlake, a Philadelphia architecture firm. Rosco, 36, worked at Comcast on the build-out of national internet architecture.
GrowFlux’s first products, launched in 2018, were horticultural lights with built-in wireless technology. “The lighting space got very competitive in horticulture due to legalization of cannabis,” Eisele said.
The start-up, which now employs four, was competing with “the likes of Philips and General Electric and Osram,” Eisele said. GrowFlux dropped its lights in 2019 but kept developing its controllers.
Eisele and Roscoe declined to disclose their annual revenue but said they have raised close to $2 million from investors. The company has products in more than 100 farms, including indoor cannabis producers and greenhouses growing food like tomatoes and strawberries. The products are also used overseas, in Iceland and in an indoor vertical farm in Singapore that grows strawberries, Eisele said.
Trish Cozart, NREL’s program manager for the Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator, which in the past has worked with companies involved in traditional farming, said that over the next 30 years, global food production will have to increase by 60% to meet demand. NREL is part of the U.S. Department of Energy.
“It might not be possible to meet that demand through field-grown agriculture. Indoor agriculture is going to play a part. We don’t know how big of a part,” she said. But because indoor agriculture consumes so much energy, “we want to figure out how to combat that using innovative companies,” Cozart said.
Published July 12, 2021
I write about the business side of health care and the nonprofit sector.
USA: VIRGINIA - Maker of Hydroponic Farming Systems Gets $1 Million Grant, Relocates Headquarters To Scott's Addition
The grant will help the company move further into commercialization. The company had been awarded a $225,000 Phase 1 grant in 2019 to conduct scientific trials of its technology
June 24, 2021
A startup company that makes indoor, hydroponic farming systems has opened its new headquarters and production site in the Scott’s Addition area of Richmond.
The opening of the Babylon Micro-Farms Inc. office comes after the company received a $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation with the potential for $750,000 in follow-on funding to continue development of BabylonIQ, its technology platform designed to operate decentralized, automated micro-farms.
The grant will help the company move further into commercialization. The company had been awarded a $225,000 Phase 1 grant in 2019 to conduct scientific trials of its technology.
Babylon Micro-Farms also completed a $3 million investment round in the first quarter of this year. Investors include Virginia’s Center for Innovative Technology, Hull Street Capital, Venture South, and the CAV Angels Group.
The capital raised “helped us move here [to Richmond] and build our team,” Alexander Oleson, the company’s CEO who co-founded the business with Graham Smith, said Thursday as Babylon Micro-Farms hosted an open house at the headquarters.
“A lot of it is about switching from an R&D organization to a sales organization,” Oleson said. “We have a backlog of orders to fill.”
Babylon Micro-Farms was founded in Charlottesville in 2017 by Oleson and Smith, who were University of Virginia students. The company announced plans to move its headquarters to Richmond earlier this year.
The company now has more than 30 employees working in a renovated 7,700-square-foot building on Carlton Street. The facility serves as the company’s main office as well as a research and development site for its indoor farming units designed to grow more than 40 different types of leafy greens, herbs and flowers.
From the Scott’s Addition site, the company staff also can remotely monitor the functioning of more than 40 of its indoor farming units that have been installed at customer sites including retirement communities, universities, and corporate cafeterias.
Several of the company’s 8-foot-tall, climate-controlled farming units stand in the main lobby of the headquarters, growing plants such as basil, kale, lettuce, and bok choy.
In a research area of the building, Babylon Micro-Farms is testing growing other produce such as strawberries and peppers in its hydroponic systems.
“Our hope is to be in hundreds of locations by the end of next year, mostly in Virginia, but really casting our footprint nationally,” Oleson said.
Photos: John Reid Blackwell
Karen Sizer, an account manager for Babylon Micro-Farms Inc., spoke with visitors on Thursday about the company’s hydroponic, indoor farming systems. The company, founded in Charlottesville in 2017, hosted an open house at its new headquarters in Scott’s Addition.
Alexander Oleson, co-founder, and CEO of Babylon Micro-Farms stands by one of the company’s 8-foot-tall, climate-controlled hydroponic farming units.
Babylon Micro-Farms Inc., a maker of indoor farming systems, has its headquarters and research facility on Carlton Street in the Scott’s Addition area of Richmond
(804) 775-8123
USDA Announces Grants For Urban Agriculture And Innovative Production
The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently announced the availability of up to US$4 million for grants to further support urban farming entrepreneurs and businesses looking to innovate.
Editor’s note: The following information is derived from an interview Agritecture conducted with Leslie Glover of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production. Read the USDA's News Release to learn more about the grants, or reach out directly to urbanagriculture@usda.gov with any application-related questions. Apply here!
Supporting Innovation In Urban Agriculture
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently announced the availability of up to US$4 million for grants to further support urban farming entrepreneurs and businesses looking to innovate.
“The number of individuals, groups, and community organizations seeking to build stronger local food systems is growing. It is encouraging to see the USDA continue to provide financial support to city stakeholders as applicants around the country aim to improve their communities through urban agriculture.”
— JEFFREY LANDAU, AGRITECTURE’S DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
Considering that over 6.7 billion people are projected to live in urban areas by 2050, these grants are essential to ensuring greater food security in the urban context and helping support food justice and equity. This enables farmers to better educate and unify communities to improve the locals’ overall health and permit them greater nutritional access.
As part of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production, Leslie Glover comments that “the purpose of UAIP competitive grants are to support the development of urban agriculture and innovative production activities by funding planning projects and implementation projects. Planning projects may be designed to initiate or support projects in the early stages of development, while Implementation projects may be designed to accelerate existing and emerging models of urban, indoor, and other agricultural practices that serve multiple farmers or gardeners or improve access to local food in the target area(s).”
Who Is Eligible To Apply?
Awarded by the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, this grant opportunity “is only eligible to nonprofit organizations, local or tribal governments, and any schools that serve any of the grades kindergarten through 12 in areas of the United States.”
More specifics on eligibility can be found in the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NFO), and supporting documents can be found here. Although seemingly limiting for non-eligible parties, Leslie adds that “non-eligible entities can be partners on a project” in order to benefit from this grant.
“This is a really great opportunity for for-profit businesses to partner with nonprofits to meet shared goals. For example, a school that wants to set up a small vertical farm as part of their science curriculum could apply for funds and partner with a local vertical farm operator for technical expertise. A city that is looking to promote various aspects of urban agriculture within its jurisdiction could be the lead and partner with a software designer to develop an online platform that helps facilitate the various aspects of urban agriculture that it wants to promote. The possibilities are endless, and for creative organizations, this is a golden opportunity.”
— DAVID CEASER, AGRITECTURE'S LEAD AGRONOMIST
Inspiring A Change
Previously awarded grants have seen great success in reshaping food production in built-up urban cities. Leslie shares that “last year’s grants were used in several ways from creating a citywide Agriculture Master Plan in New Haven, Connecticut, to providing fresh produce to food deserts and food insecure areas in targeted urban zip codes in Wichita and Sedgwick Counties in Kansas.”
VIEW MORE GRANT RECIPIENT PROJECTS
As for this new $4 million made available for grants this year, the USDA wants to continue inspiring and encouraging change. Leslie adds that “like last year, the goal is to serve communities in urban areas, suburbs, or urban clusters where access to fresh foods are limited or unavailable.” This is planned to be done “by leveraging collaboration, information sharing, and reporting on evidence-based impacts.”
If you’re interested in applying, reach out to Agritecture to be a supportive partner and strengthen your application! With our 10+ years of experience in local food systems planning, and our portfolio of 130+ clients in over 50 cities, our team of agricultural experts can help you make the strongest application.
US: NEW YORK - 21st Century Fund Awards FeedMore WNY $100,000 For Expanded Freight Farms Greenery
In 2020, FeedMore WNY served more than 16 million meals to WNYers who were homebound due to quarantine
by queenseyes
March 17, 2021
Recognizing the needs of the community is an integral component of the 21st Century Fund. Making sure that those needs are met is another. The Fund – “a giving circle open to anyone who wants to give back in Western New York” – designates significant awards to worthy organizations that submit applications for consideration. This year, FeedMore WNY is the recipient of $100,000, which will allow the non-profit to continue on with its efforts to feed those struggling during the pandemic.
In 2020, FeedMore WNY served more than 16 million meals to WNYers who were homebound due to quarantine. This was accomplished via the group’s 300 pantries, soup kitchens, emergency shelters, etc., throughout Erie, Niagara, Cattaraugus, and Chautauqua counties.
FeedMore WNY will be using the significant funds to expand its GrowMore for Good project, by allowing the organization to double its capacity, which in turn will ensure that fresh produce will be available to over 129,000 individuals. The expansion of a FeedMore-operated Freight Farms Greenery™ (the organization’s second hydroponic container farm) means that FeedMore will be able to produce 200 lbs. of produce each week. The group’s initial hydroponic “container farm” will supplement the effort. This food will be harvested and distributed within 24 to 48 hours, according to FeedMore.
This is an incredible effort that will allow more people to access healthy foods, instead of relying upon less wholesome canned foods.
In order to receive the crucial funding, FeedMore WNY made it to the final four, out of a streamlined pool of 30 applicants, before coming away with top honors. Homespace, Jericho Road, and OLV Charities were the other three finalists – all four projects can be found here.
Members* from across the country ended up casting their votes for FeedMore WNY, knowing how imperative it is to get healthy foods into the hands and onto the tables of disadvantaged households. The existence of ‘food deserts’ and the fight for ‘food justice’ go hand-in-hand. Compounded by the pandemic, it’s more important than ever to offer people food security, for healthier futures.
“FeedMore and all the clients we serve across Erie, Niagara, Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties are overwhelmingly grateful for the generous support from the 21st Century Fund which will allow us to purchase our second container farm. The indoor, vertical growing, hydroponic farm will allow us to double our output of crops to enable us to put fresh, nutritious and fragile produce into our clients’ hands within 48 hours of harvest,” said Tara A. Ellis, FeedMore president and CEO.
“Our giving circle is a great way to introduce people to philanthropy,” said Ted Borowiak, 21st Century Fund Co-Chair. “We are always accepting members and encourage anyone including families, school groups or organizations to learn more about our membership options. Once you are a member, you are a member for life, allowing you to stay informed on new projects underway and make an impact in our community over and over again.”
The next 21st Century Fund grant process will open in the fall of 2021. For more information about the 21st Century Fund and membership details, visit www.21stcenturyfund.org.
*Members pay a one-time fee to join the 21st Century Fund and come together every other year to vote on awarding a $100,000 grant to one deserving organization for a specific project that will benefit the community. The 2018 winner chosen by members was the Niagara Falls Boys & Girls Club’s 17th Street Clubhouse Revitalization Project.
Tagged with:21st Century Fund, FeedMore WNY, food deserts, Freight Farms Greenery, GrowMore for Good, Tara A. Ellis, Ted Borowiak
Funding Now Available To Help Farmers Withe FMSA
Farmers are working to improve food safety on the farm, and prepare for Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) inspections, but this requires both assistance and resources
February 10, 2021
A hoop house with tomatoes and peppers grown in New Mexico. Photo Credit: USDA Photo by Bob Nichols.
Farmers are working to improve food safety on the farm, and prepare for Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) inspections, but this requires both assistance and resources. We are excited that the Food Safety Outreach Program (FSOP) applications have just opened up and will provide organizations with funding to assist and help farmers and small food businesses with both FSMA and food safety.
FSOP is a federal grants program that funds community-based organizations, non-governmental organizations, cooperative extension, and local, state, and tribal governments’ programs focused on food safety and FSMA. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) recently announced $9.6 million in FSOP grant funding this year – the most funding ever available and an increase of almost $2 million from last year.
The deadline for applications is Thursday, April 1, 2021.
Application Details
FSOP projects should focus on outreach, education, and assistance for farmers and small processors around food safety practices and the new FSMA rules. There are two types of projects eligible organizations can pursue to receive FSOP funding: Community Outreach and Collaborative Education and Training Projects. There is no match requirement.
Community Outreach Projects
FSOP will once again offer Community Outreach Projects, to support the development of new food safety programs and to help groups build capacity to address the needs of their communities. Awards can be between $80,000 and $150,000 for projects lasting up to two years. Community Outreach Projects must:
Create, implement or expand food safety education to niche, underserved, or non-traditional audiences.
Be led by a team with a record of strong community partnerships and working with others to educate target audiences.
Create and implement a customized food safety training and outreach program for various types of farms or food processors, including those working with conservation systems, sustainable businesses, and organic food producers.
Collaborative Education and Training Projects
Collaborative Education and Training Projects aim to fund state-wide, multi-state, or multi-county food safety training projects. Grant awards are available for $200,000 to $400,000 for projects up to three years. These projects must:
Be led by a project team with a track record of community partnerships and serving the educational needs of the target audiences.
Create and execute food safety education and outreach for various types of farms or food processors, including those working with conservation systems, sustainable businesses, and organic food producers.
Additional Funds Available for Outreach to Communities of Color
An additional $150,000 is available for applications to either project type that increase outreach to communities of color through the Collaborative Engagement Supplements. Organizations applying for this supplemental support must include a significant collaboration with either one or more of the following universities, colleges, or organizations: 1890s, 1994s, Insular Areas, Alaska Native-Serving and Native Hawaiian-Serving (ANNH), Hispanic Serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities (HSACU), and community-based organizations serving socially disadvantaged populations.
Regional Centers Funds
There is also funding available for the four regional centers focusing on food safety and FSMA. Current centers include:
Southern Region: University of Florida (also “Lead Regional Center”)
Western Region: Oregon State University
North Central Region: Iowa State University
Northeast Region: University of Vermont
Program Changes for FY 2021
The FSOP RFA changes highlight a few recommendations the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition requested, and we are thankful for NIFA’s continued partnership, and efforts to ensure these changes.
NIFA clarified that the additional Collaborative Engagement Supplements must be in direct partnership with a Minority-Serving Institution or an organization working to serve farmers of color that have been historically underserved, and that the proposed budget must adequately reflect this partnership. NSAC appreciates this clarity and looks forward to further analyzing the racial equity impact of FSOP grants.
NSAC is also excited about the new requirements for Regional Centers to partner with an 1890, 1994, ANNH, HSACUs and/or community-based organizations serving socially-disadvantaged populations within their region, which will help ensure outreach and resources to farmers of color continues to be prioritized.
NSAC also appreciates the clarity that Community Outreach Projects can be used for FSMA training for the organization’s staff with minimal food safety experience and that organizations must have relationships with the target audience.
Upcoming FSOP Webinar for Tribal Staff
On Friday, February 19, 2021, from 2:00-3:00 p.m. Eastern Time the United South and Eastern Tribes, in partnership with Intertribal Agriculture Council, Indigenous Food and Agriculture Initiative, National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, and National Institute of Food and Agriculture, will be hosting a FSOP webinar for anyone who works with indigenous producers. For more information, and to register for the webinar, click here.
Additional Resources
For additional application details and requirements, see the FY 2021 Request for Applications.
Additional information is also available via Grants.gov and on the NIFA FSOP webpage.
You can read more about analyzing FSOP awards through an equity lens here.
You can also learn more about FSOP through the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition’s Grassroots Guide to the Farm Bill.
USA - ALASKA: Big Grants & New Ideas
VH Hydroponics has modular growing systems, cabinets, and shipping containers for scalable vertical farming to meet the needs of anyone
Customized Vertical Farming
VH Hydroponics has modular growing systems, cabinets, and shipping containers for scalable vertical farming to meet the needs of anyone - individuals, organizations, communities, hotels, and schools - who want fresh, healthy choices and food security.
Multiple Delicious Options
Micro-Grant Scoping Pre-Application
Due February 15th
$1.8 million dollars in Mico-Grants for Food Security are available in 2021.
Full details at the State of Alaska Department of Natural Resources Division of Agriculture
The first step is to submit the Pre-Scoping Application by the February 15th deadline.
USA VIRGINIA: Regional Board Approves Agreement For AeroFarms To Receive $200,000 Grant
The company plans to build the largest indoor growing facility to date in Cane Creek Centre, a joint industrial park owned by Danville and Pittsylvania County via the Danville-Pittsylvania Regional Industrial Facility Authority
January 11, 2021
AeroFarms, the company that announced in December 2019 it would bring 92 jobs to the region and invest $42 million over three years, will get a $200,000 state grant if it meets up to a performance agreement approved Monday by the Danville-Pittsylvania Regional Industrial Facility Authority.
The RIFA board unanimously passed a resolution during its meeting Monday to sign a performance agreement with the company for a $200,000 grant from the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
Matt Rowe
"They have all intention of moving forward with the project in the near future," said Pittsylvania County Economic Director Matt Rowe. "I think you will see some activity out there soon."
The company plans to build the largest indoor growing facility to date in Cane Creek Centre, a joint industrial park owned by Danville and Pittsylvania County via the Danville-Pittsylvania Regional Industrial Facility Authority.
AeroFarms specializes in chemical-free vertical farming and announced in December 2019 that it plans to bring 92 jobs and invest about $42 million in the Dan River Region over three years.
The company must meet the jobs and investment goals before it gets the $200,000 from the state’s Agriculture and Forestry Industries Development Fund, Rowe said during an interview with the Danville Register & Bee Monday afternoon.
"It's guaranteeing to them that if they do those things, they'll get the money," Rowe said. "The company signed the agreement two weeks ago."
The agreement is among the company, Danville, Pittsylvania County, RIFA, and the state.
The Newark, New Jersey-based company's process involves growing such crops as leafy green vegetables in stacks at a rate said to be 390 times more productive than field-grown plants. It uses no soil, sunlight or chemicals and takes place indoors, where the environment is brought to the crops.
AeroFarms co-founder and CEO David Rosenberg points to an illustration of what the company’s vertical farming process looks like at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research in December 2019. The company announced then that it was bringing 92 jobs and $42 million in investment to Cane Creek Centre. File photo
Vertical growing uses LED lighting and aeroponic mist on leafy greens in stacks that can reach as high as 40 feet. It mists the greens’ roots with nutrients, water, and oxygen, using 95% less water than field farming and 40% less than hydroponics, according to the company’s website.
The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Pittsylvania County, Danville, and the Southern Virginia Regional Alliance to secure the project for Virginia.
Incentives for the company include $190,000 in grant money from the Virginia Tobacco Commission, $200,000 from the Governor’s Commonwealth Opportunity Fund, and the $200,000 that's part of the agreement approved by RIFA.
No money will go to the company until it meets its obligations, Rowe said.
Rowe said he was not sure when construction would start on the 150,000-square foot building for AeroFarms.
"Given the COVID situation, I don't want to go on the record for a specific time," Rowe said.
Lead photo: Alina Zolotareva, marketing director and product champion at AeroFarms, offers some of the company’s leafy greens for sampling at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research in December 2019. The company announced then that it was bringing 92 jobs and $42 million in investment to the Dan River Region. File photo
Tags Grant Aerofarms Rifa Agreement Matt Rowe Economics Agriculture Commerce
Finance Industry Danville And Pittsylvania County Money Danville
Almost 900.000 Euro Grant For Swegreen's AI-Driven Vertical Farming Project
The research partners Swegreen, Mälardalen University, and RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, have teamed up together to digitalize the urban farming industry and restructure the urban food industry towards climate neutrality with the help of Artificial Intelligence
Swedish AgTech rising star Swegreen, together with research partners RISE and Mälardales University, secures funding from Vinnova, for a 9,1 MSEK (approx. 880.000 euro) project aiming to develop further Swegreens’ platform for AI-driven vertical farming and to evolve a digitalized supply chain from farm to fork.
The research partners Swegreen, Mälardalen University, and RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, have teamed up together to digitalize the urban farming industry and restructure the urban food industry towards climate neutrality with the help of Artificial Intelligence. The core for the partner’s research is Swegreens’ innovation for hyper-local vertical farming and building connected and circular models for integration of those facilities in host buildings.
The cluster started off earlier this year with the project ‘NeigbourFood’, funded with 2 MSEK by Swedish Innovation Agency Vinnova, to further develop a data-driven monitoring and optimization for precision farming in closed-loop indoor environment for Swegreen’s offer for Farming as a Service FaaS. The clusters' new project, called ‘AIFood’, has now been granted with 9,1 MSEK, corresponding to approx. 1 Million USD, to enhance the local and sustainable food production systems in urban environments with help of digital technologies.
"A data-driven approach on Vertical Farming has been Swegreens’ main focus from day one, and sustainability is embedded in our DNA as a greentech company," Andreas Dahlin, CEO of Swegreen, says. "Hand in hand with our technological development, our concrete collaboration with the leading research and academic institutions of Sweden gives us the upper hand to lead this industry’s development as a spearhead enterprise – and our partnership with RISE and Mälardalen University keeps our position on the edge of the development, globally speaking," Andreas Dahlin continues.
The call ‘AI in the service of the climate’ has been launched by the Swedish Innovation Agency Vinnova to support initiatives that focus on use of Artificial Intelligence for minimizing various industries' climate-negative impact. The agricultural and food sector accounts for 30% of the global GHG emissions, and vertical farming can create urban symbiosis as a key factor for resource efficiency and integration of farming facilities into urban infrastructure for significant global greenhouse gas emission cutback.
The ‘AIFood’ project runs for two years and focuses on a proof of concept for autonomous orchestration of vertical farming facilities modelling, and on development of an AI-based platform for precision farming, integration of vertical farms into host buildings, and autonomous interaction of the production facilities with the after-harvest actors.
Dr. Baran Cürüklü, from Mälardalen University – a vibrant AI development academic center – is the Project Lead for the cluster. "AI can go beyond narrow and specific contributions. In this project, our aim is to demonstrate that complex and intricate systems can be orchestrated by AI, and contribute to rapid transition to a more sustainable agriculture, and even innovative services connecting the whole chain from producer to citizens," says Dr. Baran Cürüklü.
The project has a close collaboration with two other national project platforms as reference groups: Sharing Cities Sweden, a national platform for sharing economy with four testbeds in Stockholm, Umeå, Gothenburg and Lund, and a cluster called Fastighetsdatalabb which focuses on data-related advancement of the real-estate sector.
Dr. Charlie Gullström, senior researcher at RISE, Sweden’s major research institution and head of Sharing Cities Sweden’s Stockholm testbed, plays an indispensable role in this project. She convenes an interdisciplinary climate panel connected to this project including household name researchers who focus on the climate aspect of the project. Dr. Alex Jonsson from RISE is another senior researcher that attends to the needs for the project from a technical perspective.
Dr. Gullström adds: "I believe that urban food production can speed up climate transition because it has the potential to engage citizens in local consumption and circular business models that both reduce food waste and unnecessary transports. AI allows us to explore how to complement existing agricultural systems by actively involving stakeholders in the value chain as a whole. In this way, AIFOOD really points the way to a new green deal."
Sepehr Mousavi, Chief Innovation Officer of Swegreen remarks: "We are proud of this collaboration with leading Swedish research institutions and researchers and see it as a successful model for how a private entity could collaborate with academia and offer its assets as a research infrastructure for the good of the whole industry, in a planet and prosperity win-win model."
"This green transformation of the food sector is dependent on empowering factors such as innovation and circularity enhancement, a connectivity-based and data-driven approach through the whole chain; and application of Artificial Intelligence as an exponential enabler. Autonomous control of the vertical farming facilities for maximum resource efficiency, scalability and preciseness of operations is of extreme and fundamental importance for both the industry and our company to move forward," adds Sepehr Mousavi.
For more information:
Swegreen
Andreas Dahlin, CEO of Swegreen
andreas.dahlin@swegreen.se
www.swegreen.se
Vertical Harvest To Study Expansion of Greenhouse Concept Into Chicago
An innovative greenhouse that backs up to the Millward Street parking garage now has $500,000 in hand to study expanding into Chicago
With $500K Grant It Will Look At Potential For
Vertical Greenhouses At Housing Developments
June 26, 2019
Michele Dennis deposits sweet mix in Vertical Harvest’s revolving planters in May. The private-public partnership was recently awarded a $500,000 Fannie Mae grant to study an expansion into Chicago.
An innovative greenhouse that backs up to the Millward Street parking garage now has $500,000 in hand to study expanding into Chicago.
The Federal National Mortgage Association, or Fannie Mae, awarded Vertical Harvest a grant of that sum through its Sustainable Communities Innovation Challenge.
The grant program is a partnership with the National Affordable Housing Trust, which presents exciting prospective growth opportunities for the community greenhouse formed a decade ago by valley residents Nona Yehia, Penny McBride and Caroline Croft Estay.
“I think the National Affordable Housing Trust has 1,452 sites that they’re going to be developing in the next 10 years,” said Sam Bartels, Vertical Harvest’s business development director.
“Jackson has always been our proof of concept and our pilot,” she said. “We’ve had people from all over the world contact us on a weekly basis about how they could do this.”
While adding Vertical Harvest-like facilities around the country and planet may be the long-term vision, the product of the grant is initially much more narrow. The half-million dollars will be put toward a feasibility study that will analyze the efficacy of building vertical greenhouses at three existing affordable housing developments in the Chicago area, Yehia said.
The study will assess what model of greenhouse could be integrated into the developments, and what products would best serve the Midwestern metropolis market. It will also look at programs that could be integrated into greenhouses and that provide ancillary benefits for the community, she said.
“Could you put a commercial kitchen in there?” Yehia said. “A food hub? Or even a day care center?”
The existing Vertical Harvest is far from an ordinary business. It’s a public-private partnership, for one, relying on town of Jackson property, and funds from the Wyoming Business Council and philanthropic groups and people. More than a dozen employees at the three-story central Jackson workplace have special needs, and volunteers assist as well.
“Vertical farming is the fastest-growing industry of farming,” Yehia said. “It’s such a nascent field, and it has so much potential impact. We’re really the only ones looking at the social impacts.”
Vertical Harvest’s annual harvest is around 100,000 pounds of produce, all hydroponically grown on 1/10th of an acre.
Yehia anticipates the study, which will be authored by in-house employees, will take about 18 months to complete. Work is set to start in October. This next step of Vertical Harvest’s evolution is “exciting,” she said.
“From the get-go this is what the team had in mind: to grow and replicate this model,” Yehia said. “We’ve always had our eye toward that end goal.”
Yehia’s architectural firm, GYDE Architects, is collaborating on the study.
Contact Mike Koshmrl at 732-7067 or env@jhnewsandguide.com.
Buffalo, New York - Vertical Farming Co-Op Growing Into New Space On East Side
Michael Zak, the chairman of vertical farming organization GroOperative, is moving his company to a 4,200-square-foot space at Clinton and Bailey avenues.
DMFOTOGRAPHY
By Dan Miner – Reporter, Buffalo Business First
October 10, 2018
Michael Zak has been searching for ways to make a big impact on inner-city Buffalo youth since he was a teenager.
Now the 34-year-old will have his chance.
Zak, the chairman of vertical farming organization GroOperative, is moving his company out of the small basement he leases underneath Buffalo Roots in University Heights to a 4,200-square-foot space at Clinton and Bailey avenues. He has room to grow the second-story space out to 20,000 square feet.
The move was supported with a $100,000 grant award won during this year’s Ignite Buffalo competition. Zak said he is also launching a $100,000 capital campaign in which people can buy shares of common stock in the company, earning them a small dividend while supporting urban farming in Buffalo.
The new home is expected to give GroOperative the scale to be a profitable enterprise while meeting the surging demand for its basil, lettuce and micro-green products. Zak said he will be able to grow more fish – which provide fertilizer for his plants and are also sold to customers – and expand his mission of teaching children about sustainable agriculture.
“This is becoming the business I always wanted it to be,” said Zak, who was part of GroOperative’s founding team in 2014. “We’ll be able to take up to 20,000 square feet of space, employ 20 to 30 people, provide fresh produce for people in the Buffalo area and teach children about sustainable farming systems.”
The African Heritage Food Co-Op will lease first floor space in the building, which was last home to Willowbrook Farms and is in a section of the city known for its cluster of food distribution warehouses.
GroOperative is built as a farming cooperative, and Zak said the goal is to support more owner-operators working alongside him. He expects to move into the new space by January.
UGA Researchers Receive $5 million To Help Reduce Energy Costs of Indoor Farming
By: Merritt Melancon University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
September 15, 2018
Photo courtesy of UGA CAESUGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Department of Horticulture’s Professor Marc van Iersel, right, is leading an interdisciplinary team which hopes to integrate new lighting technologies, big data and better growing practices to reduce energy costs in greenhouses and plant factories. Dorothy Kozlowski
One of the steepest barriers to profitable controlled-environment agriculture is the energy cost associated with providing the plants enough light, but new research being pioneered by University of Georgia could cut those costs by 50 percent.
With the support of a $5 million grant, a UGA-led team is working to develop strategies to increase the efficiency of lighting for controlled-environment agriculture: the practice of growing plants in greenhouses or plant factories.
Professor Marc van Iersel, of the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES) Department of Horticulture, is leading the effort. The U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute for Food and Agriculture Specialty Crop Research Initiative funded the project, called “LAMP: Lighting Approaches to Maximize Profits,” earlier this summer.
“When you are talking about a greenhouse or plant factory, up to 60 percent of their total costs can go to energy and about half of that goes to lighting,” said van Iersel, who has studied ways to reduce the lighting and irrigation costs in greenhouses for more than a decade. “So, if we can reduce those lighting costs, that would be a really big deal. The economic feasibility of plant factories is still questionable because it is so expensive to provide electric light to the plants.”
Currently, high costs and energy usage make it difficult for all but the most valuable crops to be grown profitably in controlled environments. Reducing the costs and carbon footprint of controlled-environment agriculture could open the door to more food being grown in arid, frigid or urban areas or for ornamental plants to be grown more efficiently.
U.S. growers spend about $600 million per year on electricity for lighting in their greenhouses and plant factories. Using informatics, engineering, high-efficiency LED lights and state-of-the-art greenhouse management practices, van Iersel hopes that they will be able to reduce the lighting energy costs by 50 percent.
“This will increase the narrow profit margins in the industry while reducing carbon dioxide emissions associated with energy production,” he said.
The team received the grant funds late this summer and has started work on its prototype lighting systems and strategies to optimize crop growth and quality.
“Having team members with such different areas of expertise is critical to the success of the project,” van Iersel said. “Together, we will be able to do things that none of us can do by ourselves.”
Informatics will be used to schedule lighting around peak power-use times, reduce light use to compensate for natural sunlight and further refine lighting efficiency. Horticulture researchers and engineers will look at the possibility of growing plants with limited-spectrum lighting, which could reduce energy use and be used to manipulate crop growth and quality.
“We want to help producers answer a few simple questions,” van Iersel said. “One: Is lighting cost-effective in their specific situation? Two: If lighting is cost-effective, are high-pressure sodium or LED lamps the better option? And three: What is the most cost-effective way to use those lamps?”
They’ll also be calculating the carbon footprint of each scenario to see if growing indoors makes environmental sense.
Answering these questions could help growers decide when it may be feasible to grow crops in a harsh environment and when it makes better sense to ship food to a location. Their findings could also have substantial impact on the way military deployments provide fresh food to troops or how fresh produce is supplied to desert or arctic locales.
CAES team members dedicated to the project include van Iersel, horticulture professor Paul Thomas, agricultural economist Ben Campbell and impact evaluation expert Kay Kelsey.
UGA faculty Mark Haidekker, WenZhan Song, Javad Mohammadpour Velni and Tom Lawrence, all of the College of Engineering, will contribute to the project, as will UGA Terry College of Business energy informatics experts Rick Watson and Maric Boudreau.
Collaborators from other institutions include Jennifer Boldt at the USDA Agricultural Research Service in Toledo, Ohio; Neil Mattson and Kale Harbick at Cornell University; A.J. Both at Rutgers University; Bruce Bugbee at Utah State University; and Tessa Pocock at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
For more information about the project, visit http://www.facebook.com/HortLAMP/.
Mahindra Automotive North America Announces Third Round Of Urban Agriculture Grants Totaling $100,000 To Six Non-Profits
Mahindra Automotive North America Announces Third Round Of Urban Agriculture Grants Totaling $100,000 To Six Non-Profits
NEWS PROVIDED BY Mahindra Automotive North America
TROY, Mich., July 28, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Now in its third year, the Mahindra Urban Agriculture Grant Program announced donations totaling $100,000 in funding or Mahindra farm equipment to six southeast Michigan non-profits on Thursday evening, July 27. The presentations took place at the second of three shows in the Mahindra Summer Concert Series at Lafayette Greens in downtown Detroit. These concerts build on the musical foundation laid by the Mahindra Group's Mahindra Blues Festival in Mumbai, India, which launched in 2011 and is the largest and finest presentation of legendary blues artists in Asia.
Marhindra Automotive North America executives with the Urban Agriculture Grant winners: Front row, from left: Kieran Neal (Neighbors Building Brightmoor); Lionel Bradford (The Greening of Detroit); Holly Glomski (Pingree Farms); Coleman Yoakum (Micah 6 Community) Seated on tractor: Rick Haas (President & CEO, Mahindra Automotive North America) Behind tractor: Ashley Atkinson (Keep Growing Detroit); Rich Ansell (VP, Marketing, Mahindra Automotive North America); Patti Allemon
By awarding these grants, Mahindra Automotive North America (MANA) renewed the company's commitment to this region's robust urban agriculture movement, as well as continued to fulfill its parent company, the Mahindra Group's global corporate social responsibility initiatives.
Since the program's inception in 2015, Mahindra has donated a combined total of $300,000 in cash and farm equipment to ten non-profits in support of sustainable farming and gardening in Detroit. In 2017, the Mahindra Urban Agriculture Grant Program expanded to accept applications from urban agriculture programs in Pontiac.
"The progress our urban agriculture partners are making, with assistance from Mahindra's grants, is very commendable," said Richard Haas, MANA's President and Chief Executive Officer. "I am amazed by the innovative ideas these groups present for funding. We couldn't be prouder of the impact the company's support is having on accessibility to fresh, nutritious produce at affordable prices to residents within each organization's service area."
This year's program also marks the second grant-making collaboration between MANA and Mahindra North America (MNA), which manufactures and markets the company's line of tractors and farm equipment in the United States and Canada.
Cleo Franklin, MNA's CMO/Vice President of Strategic Planning, said, "Through this urban agriculture grant we have the privilege of collaborating with our sister company in donating a tractor. The tractor will be put to good use in supporting a nonprofit organization's efforts to have a positive impact on the city through their urban farming program. Driving positive change is an inherent part of our company's culture and core values, and is reflected in the good works of these organizations."
This year's recipients and the programs the grants will support, including four that received Mahindra funding in 2015 and 2016, are listed below.
- Full Circle Foundation ($7,075): to fund a summer intern employment program for developmentally disabled teens and young adults (2015 & 2016 grant recipient)
- The Greening of Detroit ($20,000): to support the Build-A-Garden program that provides assistance to gardeners across the city. (2015 & 2016 grant recipient)
- Keep Growing Detroit ($20,000): to install technology that will enable low-income individuals and families to use government issued EBT bridge cards to buy produce and seedlings from the Grown in Detroit program. (2015 & 2016 grant recipient)
- Neighbors Building Brightmoor ($22,000): to partially fund, along with Mahindra North America, the purchase of a Mahindra tractor with attachments (2015 & 2016 grant recipient)
- Micah 6 Community ($8,000): to build a 2,000 square foot greenhouse at the Webster Community Center in Pontiac. (1st year recipient)
- Pingree Farms ($26,010): to purchase a Mahindra tractor for use at the 13-acre farm site. (1st year recipient)
"Mahindra is committed to lifting up and celebrating the communities in which we operate," said Anand Mahindra, Chairman of the Mahindra Group. "There are few better examples of our RISE philosophy in action than the work Mahindra Automotive North America is doing in Detroit. MANA's pioneering Urban Agriculture Grant Program continues to lift up Detroit residents by giving them access to fresh, sustainable produce and inspiring work opportunities for the underserved."
Mr. Mahindra continued, "Also, MANA's new summer music series celebrates creative expression and community-building in the Motor City. To see these two initiatives working harmoniously is to truly know Mahindra."
An estimated 1.2 million pounds of fresh food have been grown and distributed to Detroit residents through the efforts of the groups that received Mahindra grants or equipment over the past two years. Among other outstanding results, the company's donations supported the opening of a Garden Resource hub in Southwest Detroit, and the purchase of a delivery vehicle to support the entrepreneurial efforts of the Full Circle Foundation's trainees at the Edible Garden.
About Mahindra Automotive North America
Mahindra Automotive North America (MANA) is Mahindra's North American automotive headquarters. In addition to leading all North American activity, MANA is a comprehensive automotive design, engineering, and vehicle development center. Established in 2013 and located in Troy, Michigan, MANA's team of veteran executives, engineers and designers, working with affiliate Mahindra automotive teams in India, Korea and Italy, is playing a key role in growing Mahindra's global automotive business. Visit: www.mahindranatc.com
About Mahindra
The Mahindra Group is a USD 19 billion federation of companies that enables people to rise through innovative mobility solutions, driving rural prosperity, enhancing urban living, nurturing new businesses and fostering communities. It has a leadership position in utility vehicles, information technology, financial services and vacation ownership in India and is the world's largest tractor company, by volume. It also enjoys a strong presence in agribusiness, components, commercial vehicles, consulting services, energy, industrial equipment, logistics, real estate, steel, aerospace, defense and two-wheelers. Headquartered in India, Mahindra employs over 200,000 people across 100 countries. Learn more about Mahindra on www.mahindra.com / Twitter and Facebook: @MahindraRise.
SOURCE Mahindra Automotive North America | Related Links http://www.mahindranatc.com