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Grodan Plugs Are A Key Factor In The Success of Smart Indoor Gardens
“The recent changes in the world such as urbanization and the COVID-19 pandemic have further spurred the grow-your-own food movement
Lynn Radford
Finland-based Plantui produces smart indoor gardens for sale to consumers. The company has doubled its sales volumes over the past year, driven by a number of macrotrends including sustainability, food safety, local sourcing, healthy eating, and home cooking. Besides the innovative LED technology and closed-loop irrigation system, the Grodan plugs in which the edible plants are grown are a key factor in the success of these miniature ‘vertical farms’ in the home.
Biotech company Plantui Oy is aiming to solve some of today’s and tomorrow’s food challenges by enabling consumers to grow edible plants in their own homes. Founded in 2012 in Turku – a major hub for agriculture, manufacturing, and the high-tech inudstry in the southwest of Finland (which, incidentally, has been ranked the happiest country in the world for the third consecutive year) – it has developed a range of indoor ‘smart gardens’ that combine Nordic design and functionality with cutting-edge technology. The plug-and-play devices come with simple instructions, making it easy for consumers to produce fresh, ready-to-pick herbs, lettuces, tomatoes, chilies, and edible flowers for use in home cooking.
“The recent changes in the world such as urbanization and the COVID-19 pandemic have further spurred the grow-your-own food movement. People are looking for safe and sustainable solutions, and hydroponic growing is a good fit with this because it requires no soil and no pesticides,” says Kari Vuorinen, CTO of Plantui. “We’ve put all our knowledge and research related to plant science, nutrients, light, and technology into creating a patented indoor hydroponic growing method, from seed to plant. Our unique artificial lighting solution is based on a special photon stream that replicates the light of Finnish Lapland and optimizes photosynthesis. This results in more green mass and better quality, meaning the plants are much tastier and more nutritious than the ones you can buy in supermarkets.”
Automatically regulated
The device is sold with everything included: horticultural LED lighting, a water bowl with an integrated pump system, seed capsules, and nutrients, which are adjusted by the integrated microcontroller in line with the growth phase algorithm recipe. “After extensively testing relevant light spectra, we’ve programmed the computer in the device to automatically regulate the wavelength and intensity of the light and the water-pumping rhythms as the seeds progress through the germination, seedling and growth phases,” explains Martina Angeleri, head of plant science at Plantui. “So all the customer needs to do is fit the device together, fill the water bowl, insert the capsules, plug the device in and then keep the water and nutrients topped up roughly once a month. At the end of the harvesting period, they simply clean the device – and everything is dishwasher-proof – and then they can buy new capsules and start all over again. This solution supports local year-round growing, irrespective of the season. An indoor garden can produce three to four harvests a year, depending on which types of plants people choose to grow.”
Besides the automated lighting and irrigation system, the substrate is equally important in ensuring that Plantui can deliver on its 100% guarantee of success. “If the seeds don’t germinate you won’t have any plants, so the growing medium has to be failsafe,” says Kari. “That’s why we tested lots of different solutions when we first started out in 2013, including peat, sphagnum moss, coconut fibre and stone wool. Sphagnum moss was very promising in the growth stage but it’s not easy to get hold of. When we tested it against Grodan’s plugs, we found that they were just as good in the growth stage and actually achieved better performance in the germination stage – plus they are readily available in large quantities, so we’d hit the bullseye!” Plantui initially sourced the plugs through the Grodan distributor in Finland, but later started working directly with the company in the Netherlands. “Grodan has played a big part in our success with the plants and the device. For example, the company has tailored the existing plugs specifically to our needs by creating a slightly bigger hole for the seeds in the capsule.”
No risk of contaminants
Grodan’s plugs offer other important benefits in the Plantui Smart Gardens, according to Martina. “Stone wool is a homogeneous inert substance. Unlike with an organic material such as peat, we know for sure that the plugs are clean and pure with no risk of contaminants such as insects, bacteria or fungi. Therefore, we can rely on uniform and reproducible support for plants. This allows us to make things as easy as possible for users, as they don’t need to check the pH before adding the nutrients,” she explains. “Additionally, the density of the stone wool helps to prevent light from penetrating into the root zone, thus protecting the roots and avoiding the formation of algae in the substrate. And last but not least, no organic fibres can leach into the water and clog the active pumping system.”
Sustainability
Sustainability is a top priority for Plantui; its devices are energy-efficient, produce 100%-natural food with no pesticides or other additives, and help to reduce the carbon footprint in terms of food miles and food waste. “Stone wool is a good fit with this because basalt is an inexhaustible resource. Additionally, Grodan is the only company of its kind that is EU-certified for environmental excellence. At the end of the harvesting phase, the stone wool plugs can be separated from the plastic holders and both parts can be recycled, which supports our ‘100% recyclable’ message,” states Kari.
Path to sales growth
The company is already selling tens of thousands of devices annually, both to high-end department stores across Europe – including in the UK and Italy – and through its own web shop. It is on track to double its sales this year, having received a major boost from an agreement between Plantui and a leading European producer of home appliances which has recently started marketing and distributing Plantui’s products under its own brand. Additionally, promising negotiations are underway with retailers in countries including Switzerland and the Netherlands.
Exciting future
The future not only looks very exciting for Plantui because of the increasing sales of its devices, but also because it has patented its technology and growing method globally. “We ourselves are focusing on consumer products for now, and there may be opportunities to branch out into other channels such as food service. For example, a couple of hotels and restaurants are already using our devices. We’ve even developed a specific lighting programme exclusively for a chef at a one-star Michelin restaurant who now grows his own unique-tasting dill!” exclaims Kari. “But the technology itself is ready for use on a larger scale and we’re now licensing it to other companies. In fact, we’ve recently sold licences to two small-scale vertical farms. We believe that networking is the key to success nowadays, so we are looking to build a good network of partners around the world – including in the USA and China – who can help us to further expand our market, and we are pleased that Grodan forms a part of that,” he concludes.
Martina Angeleri PhD from Plantui Oy examines a liquorice seedling in a Grodan plug from a Plantui Smart Garden.
Airgarden Uses NASA-Designed Technology To Give Sustainable Produce An Easy Win
Airgarden, Australia’s very first vertical soilless gardening system, is making use of the technology for the benefit of anyone obsessed with sustainable design – or for those who just want access to more home-grown produce, faster
Does Your Home Benefit From The Use
of Astronaut Technology?
No. Let’s Change That, Shall We?
Airgarden, Australia’s very first vertical soilless gardening system, is making use of the technology for the benefit of anyone obsessed with sustainable design – or for those who just want access to more home-grown produce, faster.
The game-changing gardening system is said to sprout 5 times more home-grown produce, 3 times faster, with 95% percent water. What’s more, is that the Airgarden takes up 1sqm of space so your petite inner-city apartment is no excuse to not get your green thumb on.
“The idea stemmed from wanting to grow fresh produce that was good for us, and the environment while living in the inner city,” said co-founder Prue Bauer, who started Airgarden with her brother Tom. “We were sick of throwing out so much of what we bought and wanted quality produce that didn’t cost an arm and a leg. More and more people are thinking about what they are putting in their bodies and the cost of organic food was unsustainable long term, so we knew there has to be a better solution.”
NASA-developed aeroponics technology – which has been approved by horticulturalists – is typically used to grow plants in space. Tom and Prue wisely repurposed that to allow anyone to grow their own urban farms with no digging, weeding, or watering required.
Even if the game-changing potential for giving life to your inner-city apartment doesn’t win you over. The money-saving potential surely will. With Airgarden, budding home-gardeners can sprout up to 150 different types of fruits and vegetables to feed a family of four each week. That is a significant cut to the weekly grocery run, and an easy way to incorporate more lush, leafy greens in your diet.
Airgarden is already being picked up in some sustainably-minded restaurants across Australia, including Halcyon House’s Paper Daisy restaurant, Manly Boathouse, and Wild Canary. Undoubtedly that list is going to be growing in no time, especially given as it’s a way for a restaurant to grow their own on-site garden without actually having the space (or rooftop) to do so.
Click & Grow 25 Is An Efficient, Self-Monitoring Indoor Garden
“I started the company with a dream to make fresh food available and accessible for everyone and with the Click & Grow 25, we finally made it happen in a sustainable way,” said Mattias Lepp, founder, and CEO of Click & Grow
Written by Dawn Hammon
June 9, 2021
In a world struggling to find balance between busy lifestyles and healthy living, Click and Grow 25 aims to offer an easy-to-use way to grow organic food inside your home.
The smart indoor garden only takes up as much space as a microwave, yet with stacking trays, you can grow fresh produce for one person, two people or an entire family. With such a compact design, anyone can incorporate the Click & Grow 25 into their apartment, home or office.
The system is intuitive and does most of the work for you. Simply select your proprietary biodegradable Smart Soil plant pods, which are similar to the design used in single-serve coffee machines. Each pod is pre-loaded with seeds and soil. Once planted, the built-in technology takes over, monitoring the growth of leafy greens, fruits, and herbs.
This self-growing garden takes care of plants automatically by maintaining optimal levels of moisture, nutrients, root oxygen and pH. The device ensures perfect conditions needed to grow lush produce at a faster rate than you will find in an outdoor garden. Plus, the direct garden-to-table aspect offers a higher nutrient content than store-bought food, often pulled from the field weeks before. All plants are organic without the need for fertilizers and pesticides.
Click & Grow 25 not only provides convenience, but its energy-efficient design consumes just 200 kWh of electricity per year, which equates to about $40 in large urban areas. An associated app lets users know when it is time to add more water and offers harvesting tips as well as recipes.
“I started the company with a dream to make fresh food available and accessible for everyone and with the Click & Grow 25, we finally made it happen in a sustainable way,” said Mattias Lepp, founder and CEO of Click & Grow. “With the impact of population growth and the demand on our natural resources, it is inevitable for us to become more self-sufficient. I believe we are all going to be growing some of our food at home soon and I’m certain we’ve developed the best solution to do just that.”
Click & Grow 25 recently launched via Kickstarter, where it was fully funded in the first 20 minutes. At the time of writing, it had raised over $500,000 of the $35,000 goal.
Images via Click & Grow
SCOTLAND: Intelligent Growth Solutions (IGS) Vertical Farming Solutions
With vertical farming now starting to take off around the world, one Scottish company is rapidly becoming recognized as a world leader in providing the technology required to make vertical farms flourish
CLIMATE FOR CHANGE
IGS -produce grown in trays
With vertical farming now starting to take off around the world, one Scottish company is rapidly becoming recognized as a world leader in providing the technology required to make vertical farms flourish.
As David Farquhar, CEO at Intelligent Growth Solutions (IGS), explains, his company has patented several technologies that give IGS’s automated, human-free, vertical tower ‘farms’ a huge edge over the competition. There are at least three major challenges facing any company wanting to design ‘box’ systems for vertically farming plants, Farquhar explains.
“If you put plants into a sealed metal box you are putting a natural process into an unnatural housing, so you have to create the perfect weather and climate for them. This means solving three big problems,” he says.
David Farquhar, CEO at Intelligent Growth Solutions (IGS)
Most plants will tolerate 18 hours or so of sunlight a day, but as living, breathing organisms, they need a period of rest every 24 hours. Plus LED lighting, which replaces sunlight in these sealed structures, is very energy hungry. So the first challenge is how to devise and control the perfect lighting environment.
IGS solved this with several patented processes. “All the LED lights that you see around you have an inherent flicker,” Farquhar explains. This is because they use single-phase electricity. This is basically a sine wave and in the middle of each wave the current is off, so LEDs flicker 50 times a second,” he explains.
IGS’s process uses three-phase electricity and also clusters the LEDs into colours and wavelengths so that it can tune the lights to give the plants exactly, but only, what they need to optimise growth and minimise cost. “We have a worldwide patent on using all three phases of mains electricity at low voltage to power LEDs. This is a unique invention and gives us a huge advantage,” he comments.
Green light stresses plants, so the idea is not to simply deliver the equivalent of blanket sunlight throughout the growing life of the plant. By tuning the LEDs so the plants only get the wavelengths that really benefit them IGS maximises the growth potential and minimises climate impact.
“By being extremely precise and giving the plants only the parts of the spectrum they need, we can reduce the amount of power we need. So we only need 50 percent of the amount of energy that vertical farms generally require,” Farquhar says. That adds up to a very significant energy saving for the farmers.
The second big challenge comes from the fact that plants take in water, carbon and nutrients and as part of the transpiration process they ‘exhale’ warm, humid oxygen. That mix is deadly to other plants around them so the trick is to deliver the right amount of air at the right temperature and speed, while extracting the hot, humid oxygen, and then rebalancing everything in an environmentally efficient fashion.
IGS cools the oxygen and captures the condensed water vapour. Mixed with CO2 this cool air is then blown back into the tower at a temperature that offsets the unwanted heat generated by the LED lights. Because LEDs are not 100 percent efficient, only two-thirds of the energy they consume is released as light, the other third is released as heat. The sealed tower farms need to support multiple, precise microclimates so IGS’s algorithms and processes ensure that the tower farms stay at the perfect temperature for crops.
“That is our second really big invention, and that is all patented as well,” Farquhar says.
The third really big achievement in IGS’s approach is that its towers are completely automated. There are no humans in the loop. “The reason for eliminating humans from the loop is that humans can make mistakes. They can also accidentally bring pests, diseases and other contaminants into the tower environment and they add no value,” he says.
No humans mean no wages in the growth area (though some employment is needed outside), eliminating another massive cost to farmers. Bringing seed trays into the towers and removing trays of fully grown plants is done robotically.
“Our towers are powered by AI, using growth recipes, a full knowledge of the environment the plants require, the nutrients and water volumes required and so on. It knows what vegetables, root and fruit crops are on each tray, how old they are and when the tray is mature. Because of this, we do not need pesticides and we do not need to wash (and bruise) the finished crops. As a result, we virtually double the shelf life of the crops produced, which supermarkets love,” he comments.
IGS’s growth towers create zero emissions. “We have had SEPA visit our towers and they have confirmed this,” he notes.
Once the system has been installed for a vertical farm, the resulting produce is ready to be shipped as a first harvest to supermarkets in something between two and three weeks. So the system is generating cash in less than a month.
Click image to read the full report online
One tower system will create somewhere around 25 tonnes of food, depending on the crops being grown. Each tower is around nine metres tall with a 6x7m base. They are paired together which means that as a unit they will produce between 40 and 50 tonnes of food per annum.
There is a corridor between the pair for the robot to fetch and carry new and mature trays. The whole system is bio-secure with an airlock and positive air pressure inside to make it impossible for pests and diseases to contaminate the tower.
Farquhar says that IGS is already talking to property developers around Europe who are looking at erecting large multi-storey car park-like buildings to house multiple vertical towers. This will create some real scale to vertical farming and will help to give towns, cities and countries vastly improved food independence and nutritional security.
According to Farquhar, IGS’s towers are already producing several lines of seed and starter plants to populate other farms.
This in turn will go a long way towards making these local farmers independent of outside nurseries for new plantings.
Find out more at www.intelligentgrowthsolutions.com
This article appeared in The Herald COP26 report on the sustainable food sector in Scotland
USA - INDIANA: Planning A $1.7 Million Expansion Spread Over Four Years
GroPod, a Heliponix LLC brand, announced plans to grow its operations in southern Indiana, with plans to create up to 30 new, high-wage jobs in Vanderburgh County by the end of 2025
GroPod, a Heliponix LLC brand, announced plans to grow its operations in southern Indiana, with plans to create up to 30 new, high-wage jobs in Vanderburgh County by the end of 2025.
GroPod will invest more than $1.7 million over the next four years to expand its operations in downtown Evansville in order to support the production of its primary product, the GroPod system, which is a smart garden appliance that allows consumers the ability to grow vegetables, herbs and specialty plants in their homes.
“With our strong agricultural tradition and booming tech sector, Indiana offers an ideal environment for companies like GroPod that are at the intersection of ag and technology to flourish,” said Interim Indiana Secretary of Commerce Jim Staton. “Choosing to plant its roots in Evansville, GroPod will not only create high-skilled, high-wage jobs, but it will also bolster a growing industry that is developing innovative solutions, improving agricultural products consumed around the world, and providing consumers with a sustainable food source.”
Massey co-founded GroPod in 2016 with Ivan Ball, and the pair initially funded the business through pitch competition awards, including Gold and Black Awards totaling $100,000 from the Elevate Purdue Foundry Fund in 2018. Since then, the company has raised more than $1 million from investors. GroPod’s parent company, Heliponix, was recently awarded a National Science Foundation Small Business Innovation Research grant for $256,000 with a $50,000 Elevate match to research an LED lighting system to maximize the production of leafy vegetables.
“The city of Evansville is honored to be the home of GroPod,” said Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke. “I’m grateful to the commitment of Scott and his team for their innovation and entrepreneurial spirit.”
For more information:
GroPod
www.gropod.io
Publication date: Wed 26 May 2021
This Weeks Episode - Season 3 Episode 33
Join Harry Duran, host of Vertical Farming Podcast, as he welcomes to the show serial entrepreneur, Dave Dinesen
Join Harry Duran, host of Vertical Farming Podcast, as he welcomes to the show serial entrepreneur, Dave Dinesen. Dave is the CEO of CubicFarm Systems, a local chain agtech company that provides unique automated onsite commercial-scale food and livestock feed technologies. Dave is committed to applying technology to address global challenges like food security and climate change.
In this episode, Harry and Dave discuss the impact the pandemic has had on the vertical farming industry, why Dave places such a high value on equity in the workplace, and the critical tipping point we’ve arrived at for the future of our food supply.
Listen & Subscribe
New Greenhouse Design Shines With More Growing Capacity
Lettuces, Asian greens, herbs, and more. These are just a few types of produce that Shayne Johnson of Grampa G’s farm in Pillager has experimented with growing in the middle of winter in Central Minnesota
30-04-2021
University of Minnesota Extension
Lettuces, Asian greens, herbs, and more. These are just a few types of produce that Shayne Johnson of Grampa G’s farm in Pillager has experimented with growing in the middle of winter in Central Minnesota.
Photo: Shayne (left) and Louise Johnson of Grampa G’s farm in Pillager, outside their deep winter greenhouse prototype, 2018. Courtesy of University of Minnesota Extension
“Nothing we’ve tried to grow has failed,” said Johnson, who sells the farm’s product to local food co-ops and customers in the area by word of mouth.
How does Grampa G’s do it? With the help of a prototype deep winter greenhouse made possible by a collaboration with the University of Minnesota Extension Regional Sustainable Development Partnerships (RSDP) and the College of Design Center for Sustainable Building Research (CSBR).
In fall 2020, this collaboration released new designs for a farm-scale winter greenhouse (FSWG v1.0). These new solar winter greenhouse designs seek to improve both the productivity and profitability of extended season vegetable and produce production in Minnesota, creating a more resilient, local food system.
“Our partnerships with Minnesota farmers and the Center for Sustainable Building Research to develop these farm-scale winter greenhouse designs will make winter production more accessible to small- and mid-sized farmers in Minnesota and beyond,” said Greg Schweser, statewide co-director of RSDP’s Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems program who has helped lead related research and outreach with Daniel Handeen, winter greenhouse designer and CSBR research fellow.
Evolution in solar winter greenhouse design
The farm-scale winter greenhouse designs rely on passive solar principles, similar to the earlier deep winter greenhouse design (DWG 2.0), but build on and incorporate lessons learned from the deep winter greenhouse prototypes in the field. The deep winter greenhouse at Grampa G’s farm is one of five prototypes in Greater Minnesota, supported by RSDP.
Farm scale winter greenhouse under construction at Appetite for Change in Minneapolis, 2021. Photo credit: Daniel Handeen.
The new farm-scale designs have a larger footprint that increases growing capacity. They also include variations in foundations and thermal storage specifications to accommodate different budgets.
“These designs keep evolving and getting better. That’s what I find so cool about them,” Johnson said. “The University adjusts based on our experiences and feedback with the technology.”
RSDP and CSBR partners iteratively developed the farm-scale winter greenhouse designs with input from growers like Johnson and Carol Ford, Extension project coordinator, and an early winter greenhouse pioneer. Ford has helped spread the word and grow a network of deep winter greenhouse adopters and enthusiasts.
“It’s always been about not just making this technology effective for me, but then having it be something that other farmers would feel engaged to do,” Ford said, during a recent podcast interview about this work.
Since their release in November 2020, the farm scale winter greenhouse designs have had more than 1,150 downloads. Solar winter greenhouse designs are freely available and can be downloaded from the RSDP Deep Winter Greenhouse resource website.
Farm scale designs ripe for testing
Schweser noted the designs are now ripe for testing and recommends a similar, regional prototype approach that proved successful with the earlier deep winter greenhouse design.
Open house at the Lake City Catholic Worker Farm deep winter greenhouse, 2018.
In the earlier prototyping process, university and community partners prioritized both research and education, testing the design’s performance and hosting outreach events that have attracted hundreds of participants.
“It’s turned out to be so much more than just the prototype and initial support,” Johnson said. “It’s now this long-standing relationship. We connect with other greenhouse operators and are regularly in touch with our university partners throughout the year.”
Schweser hopes to see similar results with prototypes of farm-scale winter greenhouses in the coming years. University and community partners could then evaluate their performance in the field and improve existing cost estimates before encouraging more widespread adoption.
After field testing, Schweser believes the new structures could open up opportunities for smaller and more diverse farmers to grow more produce and be more profitable.
“The new farm-scale design, more so than the smaller deep winter greenhouses, is far more affordable to construct, and is an appropriate scale for most small direct-market farmers,” Schweser said. “It has the potential to be an equity-building, level-playing field technology to sustainably and profitably grow produce in the winter.”
Johnson is also optimistic about the potential of the new farm-scale winter greenhouse designs.
“I love to see the evolution of these greenhouses taking shape,” Johnson said. “We are learning from our accomplishments and defeats, and then we make them better. That’s what’s exciting about this work and these partnerships—if anyone can make these designs better, this initiative is the one to do it.”
Those with questions about the University of Minnesota's farm scale winter greenhouse designs and related work can contact RSDP's Greg Schweser (schwe233@umn.edu), statewide co-director of the Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems program.
Urban Crop Solutions Appoints New Global Sales Director
Having spent over 25 years in horticulture equipment, Filip brings invaluable experience in the international sale of turnkey projects
Urban Crop Solutions is pleased to announce the appointment of Filip Meeuws as their new Global Sales Director. Having spent over 25 years in horticulture equipment, Filip brings invaluable experience in the international sale of turnkey projects.
Establishing the feasibility of a vertical farming project that may be the first of its kind in a location is no easy feat. That is why Urban Crop Solutions has built a free feasibility calculator into its sales strategy. Filip remarks that “I truly like Urban Crop Solutions’ transparent approach, focused on hard facts and figures. There is alignment across the entire team in that we do not want to make a sale and wash our hands. We want to set our customers up for success and be with them, long after their first harvest. That is very different from traditional sales, but also fulfilling to achieve”.
Filip Meeuws
With a background in the export and installation of tree nurseries, automated greenhouses, and horticulture projects across Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and North America – Filip is well accustomed to dealing with multiple markets and their specific needs. He moreover possesses technical knowledge of a diverse range of solutions.
Onto the question of why vertical farming, Filip responds “because it’s forward-thinking and innovative – and a challenge. There is a huge difference between selling a system that is already established, and that of something so brand new. In that respect, vertical farming is a whole different ball game, and the role comes with a lot of responsibility”. Referring in particular to Urban Crop Solutions’ new ModuleX Plant Factory – their scalable modular system with a labor efficient BenchCarousel – Filip adds “this technology has the potential to totally change the game for the indoor vertical farming industry, and I’m excited to be a part of its global roll-out”.
For more information:
Urban Crop Solutions
Grote Heerweg 67, 8791 Beveren-Leie (Waregem), Belgium
800 Brickell Avenue 1100 Suite, Miami (FL 33131), USA
+32 56 96 03 06
info@urbancropsolutions.com
sales@urbancropsolutions.com
urbancropsolutions.com
23 Apr 2021
iFarm Partners With Contain Inc., Increases Accessibility of Vertical Farms
Dedicated to securing lease financing for indoor growers, Contain Inc. works with private lenders to facilitate leases and create custom insurance solutions
On February 11th, 2021, iFarm officially became a partner with and an official vendor of Contain Inc., an indoor agriculture fintech platform operating in North America and Europe that connects indoor growers with the resources they need. Growers now have the opportunity to lease iFarm vertical farms through Contain Inc.
Dedicated to securing lease financing for indoor growers, Contain Inc. works with private lenders to facilitate leases and create custom insurance solutions. The company organises financing for all indoor farming needs, including LED, greenhouse equipment, and entire plant growth systems like vertical farms.
Why Lease Financing is Important
Building or equipping a vertical farm can require significant amounts of capital, yet indoor growers typically lack financing options when compared to their outdoor farming counterparts. 75% of indoor growers are looking for funding, and many will not receive it from traditional agriculture banks and traditional business banks as farm lending in the United States declined at an average pace of 2% throughout 2020. While it is slightly easier to seek financing options in Europe, there is still great room for improvement.
By becoming an equipment vendor, iFarm has made its vertical farms more accessible to those who are interested in vertical farming but face the obstacle of high capital investment. Through Contain Inc., indoor growers can now lease iFarm’s vertical farms and LED systems without a need for high investment. By acquiring vertical farming equipment more easily, prospective indoor farmers can also scale their operations more quickly and cost-effectively.
How It Works
If you would like to start your indoor farming journey with iFarm, but need financial support, simply sign up to Contain Inc.’s exclusive leasing platform and complete a simple application form. The application requires you to input company basics, financial essentials (i.e. what amount is needed for lease), primary equipment to be purchased, and principal financial institutions. The algorithms can match you to a pool of 28 equipment and financial lenders, ranging from small shops to some of the largest banks in the world. The minimum lease size is typically around $75,000 with no upper limit. Contain Inc. will review your application and decide whether you are eligible for financial support.
Contain Inc. also provides a “Leasing Calculator”, which is a short quiz to help growers figure out their odds of obtaining lease financing offers through Contain Inc.
Get in touch with iFarm today to discuss how to invest in or to lease vertical farming technology.
Technology Capital Markets Veteran Tom Liston Appointed VP of Corporate Development For CubicFarm Systems Corp
Liston is a technology investor, advisor, and a Chartered Financial Analyst® with over 20 years of experience in capital markets
Strong Track Record of Shareholder
Value Creation With
Disruptive Technologies
VANCOUVER, B.C., April 6, 2021 – CubicFarm® Systems Corp. (TSXV: CUB) (“CubicFarms” or the “Company”), a local chain agricultural technology company, today announced the appointment of Thomas Liston as Vice President (VP) of Corporate Development.
Thomas (Tom) Liston will provide CubicFarms with strategic business development and capital markets advisory services in his role as VP of Corporate Development. Liston is a technology investor, advisor, and a Chartered Financial Analyst® with over 20 years of experience in capital markets. He’s the founder of Water Street Corp and currently serves on several boards of directors for public and private technology companies, and he has a strong track record of shareholder value creation in that capacity. He has served on the Board of Directors of WELL Health Technologies (TSX: WELL) since April 2018 and Tantalus Systems Holding Inc. (TSX.V: GRID) since January 2021.
Prior to his current role, he was the Chief Investment Officer of a leading technology-focused venture capital firm and was responsible for leading the firm’s investments in Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), FinTech, and Healthcare Information Technology (IT) sectors. Two of these investments were among the top exits in Canadian technology in recent years.
“My focus is working with disruptive technology companies in sectors with compelling macro tailwinds, which has resulted in the delivery of strong returns for shareholders. I was drawn to CubicFarms because the Company’s best-in-class indoor growing technologies uniquely fit this theme,” said Tom Liston.
Liston began his career with Yorkton Securities as a Research Analyst covering public Software and IT Services companies. In 2003, he joined Versant Partners in the same role and was quickly promoted to Director of Research while maintaining his coverage of technology companies. In 2012, Versant Partners’ team was acquired by Cantor Fitzgerald, where he served as Director of Canadian Research and covered the technology sector. Liston has been consistently ranked among the top technology analysts in several surveys, including StarMine, Brendan Wood, Greenwich Associates, and Reuters. During his tenure as a Research Analyst, he had received more StarMine stock-picking awards than any other technology analyst.
“Tom is a capital markets veteran in technology with proven experience identifying underrecognized companies and assisting in unlocking value for shareholders. He’s uniquely experienced to work with a disruptive technology company of our size on the journey to achieve industry leadership,” said Dave Dinesen, CEO, CubicFarm Systems Corp.
A respected member of both the technology community and his alumni organizations, Liston completed a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Finance from the University of New Brunswick (UNB) and a Master of Arts in Economics and Finance from Queen’s University. In 2017, he was the recipient of the UNB Faculty of Management’s Certificate of Achievement and UNB also recognized Liston with the Proudly UNB Alumni Award of Distinction in 2020.
About CubicFarms
CubicFarms is a local chain, agricultural technology company developing and deploying technology to feed a changing world. Its proprietary ag-tech solutions enable growers to produce high quality, predictable produce and fresh livestock feed with HydroGreen Nutrition Technology, a division of CubicFarm Systems Corp. The CubicFarms™ system contains patented technology for growing leafy greens and other crops onsite, indoors, all year round. CubicFarms provides an efficient, localized food supply solution that benefits our people, planet, and economy.
For more information, please visit www.cubicfarms.com.
On behalf of the Board of Directors
“Dave Dinesen”
Dave Dinesen, Chief Executive Officer
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release may contain forward-looking statements which include, but are not limited to, comments that involve future events and conditions, which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may vary materially from those statements. General business conditions are factors that could cause actual results to vary materially from forward-looking statements.
Media Contact:
Andrea Magee
T: 236.885.7608
E: andrea.magee@cubicfarms.com
Investor Contact:
Adam Peeler
T: 416.427.1235
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Improved Product Consistency
Introducing Travaglini FarmTech, a new business division that has been established by Travaglini S.p.a., the world leader in meat, cheese, and fish processing equipment. Travaglini FarmTech will deliver turnkey vertical farm solutions to food processors to help them improve product consistency and simplify their supply chain dynamics
12-03-2021 Philips Lighting
ITALY, Milan- Introducing Travaglini FarmTech, a new business division that has been established by Travaglini S.p.a., the world leader in meat, cheese, and fish processing equipment. Travaglini FarmTech will deliver turnkey vertical farm solutions to food processors to help them improve product consistency and simplify their supply chain dynamics.
“With vertical farming
we can grow and process consistent, high-quality produce in one location that can be close to retailers and consumers. We have full control over the entire process.”
- Luca Travaglini, leader Travaglini FarmTech
The challenge
Travaglini S.p.a. builds on 68 years of expertise in developing extremely accurate climate control, industrial automation, processing, and packaging equipment. The company is partnering with Philips Lighting, the world leader in lighting, to establish Italy’s first vertical farm research lab in Milan. This facility will be used to develop a state-of-the-art model for vertical farming growth strategies and technologies. The Italian vertical farm research lab will focus primarily on the production of leafy greens.
The right lighting
Vertical farming is a reply to the environmental problem that exists today in horticulture – how to provide fresh food to urban environments in a way that’s efficient and sustainable. “With vertical farming we are looking to answer many of the questions that the food industry is facing today and that will only become clearer and more pressing in the coming years,” said Travaglini. We can grow and process consistent, high-quality produce in one location in a vertical farm that can be close to retailers and consumers. Plus, we can fully control the entire supply chain, from seed to packaging.”
Luca Travaglini, leader of Travaglini FarmTech division said, “We chose to work with Philips Lighting because they have the strongest expertise in this field, and we trust them to help us expand our skillset and knowledge base over the long-term.
Photos Courtesy of Philips Lighting
Click here for more information.
Providing An Affordable And Efficient Way To Grow Vertically Anywhere
A farming system that works just as well in a greenhouse in Africa or in an indoor environment in Sweden might sound too good to be true, but GROWPIPES farming system has been designed to do exactly that
A farming system that works just as well in a greenhouse in Africa or in an indoor environment in Sweden might sound too good to be true, but GROWPIPES farming system has been designed to do exactly that. “Our system works in all countries, whether in the North with less sunlight or in the South where there is a water shortage,” says Christer Tilk with GROWPIPES.
It all started four years ago in Gothenburg, Sweden. When setting up their first test facility they wanted their vertical farm to be as efficient as possible, but all available systems came with a high price tag. “Besides, they were hard to handle, as either the pipes were not easy to clean after harvest or they had an uneven water flow, drowning some of the plants while others dried out. Via an LED supplier, we came into contact with Christaan Delport a South African farmer with a long experience in hydroponics and we decided to join forces.”
(f.l.t.r.) Christiaan Delport and Christer Tilk
Christiaan: “I started off with growing animal nutriment, but I encountered some struggles with drought and property buying. This made me decide to do something on a small scale that could scale up easily. We started testing our pipes that are 15 cm tall to grow vegetables and leafy greens. Farming on small areas is what we are looking at, as space is one of the biggest limitations that farmers face.”
Christiaan emphasizes that although farming is a risky industry, growing indoors takes away most of the risks. “Last year we had heavy rains, which hindered the harvest greatly. We also face droughts, and water is short in South Africa anyway. We have plenty of sun so we do not need LED here, but being able to control water and temperature makes farming a lot less risky here.
GROWPIPES setup
Contrary to field farming, indoor farming hardly wastes any water.” Growing indoor also extends the growth season, which in some African countries is short. “On a normal farm, you might plant only a few crops per square meter. But once you have bought the property, the space above it is free. Our main objective is to help people make good use of that.”
GROWPIPES system is in line with recent urbanization trends. “As people are moving from the farms to the cities, cities need more fresh produce. We provide them local produce and many jobs on the sides. But also in villages jobs are needed, and our system can bring in foreign currencies.”
Lettuce harvest
“The whole idea is to provide an affordable alternative for vertical farmers,” Christer adds. “There are many systems, but they are often high priced and will take a lot of time to pay off. We have designed a LEGO-sort of structure of 15 cm, so it is adjustable to any height. We tested it meticulously, without any leakage. That is important, as we aim to address water scarcity as well.” Christiaan explains: “We are looking at the needs of different target groups, and aim to find solutions for them.”
As GROWPIPES is a very adjustable system it can easily be designed to make use of any space. A project that they are working on includes hanging the system in a conveyor system allowing harvesting and growing in different spaces. “With the right set up, it will be able to reach 50.000 plants per 100m2. It is like a library of greens, and easy to handle. More importantly: it can be scaled up without too much effort,” says Christer.
Growpipes in a greenhouses
Christiaan adds: “Vertical farms need a lot of initial capital and investors have to wait long for their pay-back. With our system, you can start as small as you want and scale up whenever you feel like. Still, GROWPIPES biggest benefit is that we need 2ha to produce the same as conventional farming that uses 50ha.”
For more information:
GROWPIPES
Christer Tilk, CEO
christer@growpipes.com
+46 707 208 810
Christiaan Delport, Farmer
africa@growpipes.com
+27 764 737 894
www.growpipes.com
Publication date: Thu 4 Mar 2021
Author: Rebekka Boekhout
© VerticalFarmDaily.com
USA - LOS ANGELES: Indoor Urban Farm Planned For Century City
Planet to Plate’s proposal at Century City could bring renewed momentum to the business park after Strauss Brands’ proposal for a $60 million facility became mired in controversy in 2019
Feb 19, 2021
New York-based Planet to Plate Inc. wants to operate an urban farm within an industrial building in Milwaukee’s Century City business park.
The company’s plans consist of spending $150,000 to renovate a portion of the industrial building at 3945 N. 31st St. for an indoor growing operation, according to a permit recently filed with the city.
The industrial building is owned by an affiliate of Good City Brewing, which has offices and distribution operations in the space. Planet to Plate operations would be confined to an approximately 8,900-square-foot space within the building, said Christopher Corkery, Planet to Plate chief executive officer.
Planet to Plate aims to bring hyper-local fresh greens to the Milwaukee market, allowing food businesses to reinvest in “food deserts” and improve the socio-economic conditions of these areas,” according to a building code variance and commercial alterations permit filed with the city.
“Really the goal is to create supply chain resilience in food systems and create new jobs in food tech,” Corkery said, adding that because of the coronavirus pandemic, food security has never been more relevant.
Planet to Plate at Century City would be operational by this spring pending city approval, Corkery said.
Planet to Plate’s proposal at Century City could bring renewed momentum to the business park after Strauss Brands’ proposal for a $60 million facility became mired in controversy in 2019. Strauss Brands withdrew its proposal days after Ald. Khalif Rainey, whose district includes Century City, pulled his support for the project due to public pressure.
The Century City Business Park is located at the former site of the A.O. Smith and Tower Automotive manufacturing complex, which once employed thousands of workers. After Tower Automotive shut down the operation in 2006, the site was acquired by the city, which has spent years converting it into a business park.
While Spanish train maker Talgo Inc. and Good City Brewing have established operations in Century City, efforts to attract more companies to the area have been slow in-part because of location challenges including crime, facility security, employee safety, and its distance from the freeway.
Last year, Planet to Plate received special use permits from the city to operate an urban farm at the Cecilia Annex building and an adjacent vacant parking lot near the northwest corner of West Wells Street and North 27th Street on Milwaukee’s west side.
However, due to the scale of the project and coronavirus-related challenges, Planet to Plate has shifted its focus to the smaller Century City proposal, which Corkery said will be a more immediate response to local food systems disrupted by the pandemic.
“It’s something we (still) hope to do but obviously that’s a grander project and COVID certainly disrupted much of the business community,” Corkery said. “We hope to continue on (the Cecilia Annex building) project in the future.”
Brandon covers startups, technology, banking, and finance. He previously worked as a general assignment and court reporter for The Freeman in Waukesha. Brandon graduated from UW-Milwaukee’s journalism, advertising and media studies program with an emphasis in journalism. He enjoys live music, playing guitar, and loves to hacky sack.
Natufia Labs Raises $3.5M For Its Indoor Garden Appliance, Relocates To Saudi Arabia
Natufia makes an automated home gardening appliance about the size of a refrigerator that automatically controls elements such as lighting, as well as water and nutrient dispensing
Natufia Labs, the Estonia-based automated kitchen garden startup, announced today that it is relocating to Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). KAUST is also leading a $3.5 million investment round in Natufia, awarding $2 million through the KAUST Innovation Fund. This brings the total amount of money raised by Natufia to $4.7 million.
Natufia makes an automated home gardening appliance about the size of a refrigerator that automatically controls elements such as lighting, as well as water and nutrient dispensing. The $13,000 Natufia cabinet uses seedpods that are placed in a special unit to germinate before being transferred to pots to grow and be harvested. Right now, Natufia’s appliance can grow leafy greens, herbs, and flowers.
In a press announcement sent to The Spoon, Natufia Labs CEO and Founder Gregory Lu said, “From Estonian icy-snow winters to the arid climate of Saudi Arabia, sustainable access to food supply is a global issue, so it is more than natural that this technology is thriving from Saudi Arabia.”
Problems with our existing food supply chain were revealed by the COVID-19 pandemic last year, causing a surge of interest in consumer indoor agriculture products. A new wave of high-tech appliances automate all the “hard” parts about growing food, allowing people to more easily grow and control their own food supply. Other players in the space including Gardyn, AeroGrow and Click & Grow have all seen demand increase during the pandemic.
With its new funding, Natufia said it will accelerate the development of its next models, hopefully bringing the price down to something more affordable for even more people.
FILED UNDER: CONNECTED KITCHEN FUNDING NEWS SMART GARDEN
How This Vertical Farm Grows 80,000 Pounds of Produce per Week
To some, the pristine growing conditions and perceived mechanical interference of a vertical farm can seem unnatural, but at Bowery Farming “interference” is actually not the goal at all. “We don’t really think about how people are involved in the growing process, but how to take people out of the growing process”
Bowery Farming uses technology to prioritize accessibility and sustainability in their produce growing operations
To some, the pristine growing conditions and perceived mechanical interference of a vertical farm can seem unnatural, but at Bowery Farming “interference” is actually not the goal at all. “We don’t really think about how people are involved in the growing process, but how to take people out of the growing process” says chief science officer Henry Sztul. “Our goal is actually to have as few people walking around our plants as possible.”
Bowery Farming is a network of vertical farms working to reengineer the growing process. Using a system of light and watering technology, Bowery is able to use 95 percent less water than a traditional outdoor farm, zero pesticides and chemicals, and grow food that tastes as good as anyone else’s.
Bowery Farming uses vertical farm-specific seeds that are optimized for flavor instead of insect resistance and durability. Seeds are mechanically pressed into trays of soil, and sent out into growing positions, or racks within the building that have their own lighting and watering systems. Each tray gets its own QR code so that they can be monitored and assigned a customized plan for water and light until they’re ready to be harvested.
Irving Fain, Bowery Farming’s founder and CEO contemplates the prediction from the United Nations that 70 to 80 percent of the world’s population will be living in and around cities in the next 30 years. “Figuring out ‘how do you feed and how do you provide fresh food to urban environments both more efficiently as well as more sustainably?’ is a very important question today, and an even more important question in the years to come.”
Video: Babylon Micro-Farms To Expand, Relocate To Richmond
Co-founded in 2017 by University of Virginia students Alexander Olesen and Graham Smith, Babylon Micro-Farms started when Olesen and Smith first designed a low-cost micro-farm to provide nutritious produce for food-insecure refugees in the Middle East
Richmond—Governor Ralph Northam today announced that Babylon Micro-Farms, a Virginia-based company that develops and produces remotely controlled, indoor hydroponic systems for growing fresh herbs, vegetables, and salad greens, will invest $140,000 to expand operations and relocate to the City of Richmond. Babylon’s new location in Scott’s Addition will enable the company to expand its capabilities in manufacturing, software development, and research and development so it can begin distributing nationally and internationally. Virginia successfully competed with Arizona and California for the project, which will create 24 new jobs.
“We are thrilled to celebrate the growth of innovative Virginia businesses like Babylon Micro-Farms,” said Governor Northam. “The company’s dynamic, high-tech systems are helping to address food insecurity during the pandemic and getting fresh, local produce into the hands of more people. This expansion demonstrates the success that entrepreneurs can find in our Commonwealth, while also maintaining a strong commitment to environmental sustainability.”
Co-founded in 2017 by University of Virginia students Alexander Olesen and Graham Smith, Babylon Micro-Farms started when Olesen and Smith first designed a low-cost micro-farm to provide nutritious produce for food-insecure refugees in the Middle East. Motivated by the desire to bring benefits of sustainable hydroponic farming to those who need it most, the pair set out to develop technology that would automate the complex aspects of indoor farming and in doing so, make this transformative method of crop production accessible to anyone. Babylon’s key innovation was developing a technology system that enables its own staff to remotely manage the light, water, and nutrients for its farming systems.
“The demand for Babylon Micro-Farms’ engineered indoor farming systems is growing in assisted living facilities, student centers, restaurants, and across the globe,” said Secretary of Commerce and Trade Brian Ball. “This expansion will enhance the company’s development and distribution of its products, and the addition of 24 new jobs is welcome as we work toward economic recovery amid this global health crisis.”
“Richmond is an exciting city with a rapidly expanding start-up and technology scene,” said Alexander Olesen, CEO, and Co-Founder of Babylon Micro-Farms. “We hope to attract some of the leading talent to our new headquarters in Scott’s Addition.”
The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with the City of Richmond to secure the project for Virginia. Babylon Micro-Farms is eligible to receive state benefits from the Virginia Enterprise Zone Program, administered by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development. Funding and services to support the company’s employee training activities will be provided through the Virginia Jobs Investment Program.
“Richmond has proven to be fertile ground for innovative companies, and Babylon Micro-Farms’ environmentally friendly, technology-driven, indoor farming methods provide healthy food options for many people,” said Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney. “We’re excited to welcome them to Richmond, and look forward to the company growing its product and its presence in our city.”
“Babylon Micro-Farms’ relocation to the City of Richmond and the expansion of its operations represents an exciting opportunity for the city,” said Senator Ghazala Hashmi. “Not only is the venture bringing new jobs, the company’s use of innovative technologies for indoor farming offers a model for fresh and healthy produce that is grown locally and within urban settings. I am delighted that the company will be a part of Scott’s Addition.”
“We are excited to welcome Babylon Micro-Farms to Richmond,” said Delegate Jeffrey Bourne. “We admire the company’s ingenuity and commitment to sustainability and food accessibility. Its presence will be a great addition to our community as well as create valuable new jobs.”
Is AppHarvest the Future of Farming?
In this video from Motley Fool Live, recorded on Jan. 28, Industry Focus host Nick Sciple and Motley Fool contributor Lou Whiteman discuss AppHarvest, one such SPAC that is looking to disrupt the agriculture industry. Here are the details on what AppHarvest wants to do, and a look at whether the company represents the future of farming.
Special purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs, are red-hot right now, with investors clamoring to get into promising young companies.
In this video from Motley Fool Live, recorded on Jan. 28, Industry Focus host Nick Sciple and Motley Fool contributor Lou Whiteman discuss AppHarvest, one such SPAC that is looking to disrupt the agriculture industry. Here are the details on what AppHarvest wants to do, and a look at whether the company represents the future of farming.
Nick Sciple: One last company I wanted to talk about, Lou, and this is one I think it's -- you pay attention to, but not one I'm super excited to run in and buy. It was a company called AppHarvest. It's coming public via a [SPAC] this year. This vertical farming space. We talked about Gladstone Land buying traditional farmland. AppHarvest is taking a very different approach, trying to lean into some of the ESG-type movements.
Lou Whiteman: Yeah. Let's look at this. It probably wouldn't surprise you that the U.S. is the biggest global farm exporter as we said, but it might surprise you that the Netherlands, the tiny little country, is No. 2. The way they do that is tech: Greenhouse farm structure. AppHarvest has taken that model and brought it to the U.S. They have, I believe, three farms in Appalachia. The pitches can produce 30x the yields using 90% less water. Right now, it's mostly tomatoes and it is early-stage. I don't own this stock either. I love this idea. There's some reasons that I'm not buying in right now that we can get into. But this is fascinating to me. We talked about making the world a better place. This is the company that we need to be successful to make the world a better place. The warning on it is that it is a SPAC. So it's not public yet. Right now, I believe N-O-V-S. That deal should close soon. [Editor's note: The deal has since closed.] I'm not the only one excited about it. I tend not to like to buy IPOs and new companies anyway. I think the caution around buying into the excitement applies here. There is a Martha Stewart video on their website talking up the company, which I love Martha Stewart, but that's a hype level that makes me want to just watch and see what they produce. This is just three little farms in Appalachia right now and a great idea. This was all over my watchlist. I would imagine I would love to hold it at some point, but just be careful because this is, as we saw SPACs last year in other areas, people are very excited about this.
Sciple: Yeah. I think, like we've said, for a lot of these companies, the prospects are great. I think when you look at the reduced water usage, better, environmentally friendly, all those sorts of things. I like that they are in Appalachia. As someone who is from the South, I like it when more rural areas get some people actually investing money there. But again, there's a lot of execution between now and really getting to a place where this is the future of farming and they're going to reach scale and all those sorts of things. But this is a company I'm definitely going to have my radar on and pay attention to as they continue to report earnings. Because you can tell yourself a story about how this type of vertical farming, indoor farming disrupts this traditional model, can be more efficient, cleaner, etc. Something to continue paying attention to as we have more information, because this company, like you said, Lou, isn't all the way public yet. We still got to have this SPAC deal finalized and then we get all our fun SEC filings and quarterly calls and all those sorts of things. Once we have that, I will be very much looking forward to seeing what the company has to say.
Whiteman: Right. Just to finish up along too, the interesting thing here is that it is a proven concept because it has worked elsewhere. The downside of that is that it needed to work there. Netherlands just doesn't have -- and this is an expensive proposition to get started, to get going. There's potential there, but in a country blessed with almost seemingly unlimited farmland for now, for long term it makes sense. But in the short term, it could be a hard thing to really get up and running. I think you're right, just one to watch.
Developing And Improving Productivity In Vertical Farms
Growing food in our increasingly variable climate is a challenge. Growing crops in a controlled environment provides an alternative approach to conventional farming which is free from the pressures created by extremes and variations in our weather, isolated from pests and allows crop growth at a wider range of latitudes
27-01-2021 | Agritech Tomorrow
Growing food in our increasingly variable climate is a challenge. Growing crops in a controlled environment provides an alternative approach to conventional farming which is free from the pressures created by extremes and variations in our weather, isolated from pests and allows crop growth at a wider range of latitudes.
Vertical farming is a relatively recent development with the first commercial vertical farm being reported as developed in 2012 in Singapore. Grand View Research estimated that the value of the vertical farming market would reach almost US$10 billion by 2025.
Developing indoor vertical farms requires a good understanding of all the requirements each crop plant will need for optimal growth and development. As a relatively new technology, research can have a big impact on how successful these enterprises will be in the longer term with expertise in plant physiology supporting improvements to these systems.
Dr. Antony Dodd’s research into the plant circadian clock had found that optimizing growing conditions to match the clock resulted in plants that contained more chlorophyll, allowing them to convert more of the available light into biomass and grow faster. Experimentally, productivity could be doubled by matching the circadian rhythm to the photoperiod in the growing environment. The capacity to control conditions precisely within a vertical farm means that the environment can be fine-tuned to the requirements of the crop to maximize yield.
In 2019 Dr. Antony Dodd was awarded a Royal Society Short Industry Fellowship to support the development of a collaboration with LettUs Grow. The collaborative team combines expertise in biological science with engineering, with Dr. Dodd’s research group providing expertise on optimal circadian rhythms, light quality, and plant physiology to inform developments in light provision for crop plants in vertical farming systems.
The team, from LettUs Grow, University of Bristol, and the John Innes Centre, have worked together on several projects since the fellowship was first awarded. This has not only enabled them to develop strategies to better analyze the performance of plants within vertical farms, but also to identify the areas of research which would accelerate the development of aeroponics for precision agriculture. And so together they have developed a Roadmap for aeroponics development.
The impacts so far have been:
Awarded a Royal Society Industry Fellowship supported the development of a team to develop improvements to aeroponics technology through the incorporation of circadian biology and plant physiology
· Development of a roadmap to inform on what future research is required to accelerate sustainable growth in vertical farming using aeroponics, reducing operational costs whilst maximizing productivity
· BBSRC funding has supported two studentship schemes to help LettUs Grow improve their processes to optimize lighting regimes for crop growth
Jack Farmer, Chief Scientific Officer and co-founder of LettUs Grow said: “Vertical farming is an emerging industry with a lot to offer that, alongside both greenhouse and organic agricultural practices, offers a potential pathway towards continuing to meet the worlds demand for nutritious produce without degrading large tracts of agricultural land. In many ways, each of these attempt to move forward from the chemically-driven intensive agricultural practices of the recent decades towards a system that factors-in environmental externalities.
However, if we want to manifest the environmental benefits vertical farming has to offer, we need to maximize productivity and efficiency for growers. We know it is important as a technology provider to collaborate with the best plant scientists to get the most out of our systems – elegant engineering will only take you so far. Internal collaboration between growers, engineers, and scientists is foundational to what we do here, and it’s been a real pleasure to expand that collaboration to include the talented staff at the John Innes Centre.”
LettUs Grow are now developing systems to allow growth of crops which are more technically challenging such as strawberries and tree whips through their award-winning aeroponic system, which is already being used to produce leafy green crops such as salads and herbs.
There are numerous benefits to be gained from growing crops in vertical farms. We are better able to keep out pests and disease reducing the requirement for pesticides, we can maintain an optimum environment for efficient plant growth which speeds up time to harvest and enables more accurate scheduling of crops thereby reducing food waste. Vertical farms can be located close to urban conurbations reducing food miles and year-round production means that we can become less reliant on imports, guaranteeing local food supply chains which in turn can stabilize prices as well as product consistency.
The next steps for further impact from this research will involve tackling the knowledge gaps identified in the roadmap and implementing changes to identify key growing formulae for specific crops which will allow vertical farming businesses to become more productive. This in turn will enable the potential benefits of vertical farming to be fully realized.
Source and Photo Courtesy of Agritech Tomorrow
Israel’s Vertical Field Inks Deal To Deploy Its Farming System In UAE
Ag-tech company to launch pilot in Emirates ahead of wider roll-out; its vertical farming system could lessen food insecurity in water-scarce Gulf state
By LUKE TRESS
Produce grown using Israeli start up Vertical Field's farming system. (Courtesy/Vertical Field)
Vertical Field, a startup that has developed a vertical farming system, has signed an accord with an Emirati company to deploy its products to the United Arab Emirates.
The Israeli ag-tech firm signed the agreement with Emirates Smart Solutions & Technologies, Vertical Field said in a statement on Wednesday.
Vertical Field will set up pilot vertical farms in the Emirate of Umm Al Quwain ahead of a wider roll-out in the UAE, the company said. The pilot will aim to determine which crops are best for the local market and will be supported and overseen by Vertical Field’s Israeli agronomists.
The firm expects the project to expand into a multimillion-dollar venture that will include distributing Vertical Field’s products to additional Gulf states, the company said.
Roughly 80 percent of agricultural food products in the UAE is imported from abroad, amounting to $10 billion in trade in 2018. The increasing cost of transporting food and concerns over food security played a part in the new partnership, Vertical Field said.
“Arid desert regions face many challenges surrounding the production of high-quality agricultural produce at low prices. With the help of various agricultural technologies and new developments, we believe that we can successfully align the demands of the market with competitive prices without compromising quality,” Guy Elitzur, Vertical Field’s CEO, said in a statement.
Maher Makalde, the CEO of Emirates Smart Solutions & Technologies, said, “We are excited for the opportunity to partner with Vertical Field and bring advanced Israeli vertical technology that enables the growth of produce in a controlled and predictable way, overcoming harsh outdoor climate conditions.
“Our goal is to establish food security that is independent of imports and to develop a high-quality agricultural infrastructure that reaches the retail market,” Makalde said.
An illustration of vegetables growing on walls by Vertical Field. (Courtesy)
Vertical Field’s soil-based installations are made up of separate blocks of plants that can be rearranged at will to produce locally sourced vegetables. This green wall of vegetation is suitable for growing vegetables in stores, offices and apartment buildings, or anywhere in urban areas, which have little space but many walls.
The firm, formerly called Green Wall Israel, said that products grown with its farming method are pesticide-free, generate less waste than conventional agriculture and utilize 90% less water, growing in precise quantities in a controlled environment with shorter growing cycles.
Produce in its containers can grow 365 days a year and is free of the limitations usually imposed by seasons, weather, climate and location.
The farms are modular, expandable and moveable, with fully automated crop management and a sterile environment that requires significantly less human contact. The crops that are currently offered include lettuce, basil, parsley, kale, mint and others, and are competitively priced, the firm said in a statement.
Israel and the oil-rich UAE signed a US-brokered normalization agreement in September, opening the way for business and tourism between the two countries, after years of covert trade exceeding $1 billion annually by some estimates.
The UAE, a federation of seven desert sheikdoms dependent on petrodollars, has been keen to cash in on the influx of Israeli investment and travel, particularly after the pandemic diminished demand for oil and hammered international tourism.
Earlier this month, Vertical Field signed an agreement with Moderntrendo S.R.O, an agricultural distributor in Ukraine, to deploy its plant installations in supermarket chains nationwide.
In December Vertical Field also signed a “multi-million dollar” agreement with Israeli discount supermarket chain Rami Levy for the installation of its vertical farming containers on the stores’ premises.
Vertical Field is based in Ra’anana in central Israel and was founded in 2006.
The Mexican Tec Graduates Who Are Using Vertical Farming To Eradicate Hunger
Vertical farms use 90% less water than traditional agriculture and can meet the challenge of feeding more than 9 billion people
Vertical farms use 90% less water than traditional agriculture and can meet the challenge of feeding more than 9 billion people
Por Susan Irais
January 11, 2021
Not all fruit and vegetables can be grown using this technique, but a great variety can. (Photo: Courtesy of Verde Karma Fresh)
Every night, seven million people go to bed hungry in Mexico. It is estimated that the coronavirus pandemic will cause that figure to increase. According to the latest report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 130 million people will be affected by chronic hunger worldwide by the end of 2020.
Unfortunately for Mexico, the traditional agricultural industry uses a lot of resources and wastes a large amount of what it takes from the land.
For example, 34% of total production ends up in landfills due to inefficiencies during processing, storage, and transportation. What’s more, 40 billion liters of water are wasted annually due to poor irrigation.
“Fresh” products travel 300 to 1,000 kilometers and have already lost 45% of their nutritional value by the time they hit the shelves. But there is a complementary option for agriculture: vertical gardens.
Vertical Farming
“Vertical farming –in controlled environments– is a method of growing in vertically stacked layers, optimizing growing conditions and soil-less cultivation techniques, such as hydroponics,” says Leo Lobato Kelly, CEO of Verde Karma Fresh, a vertical farming company from Monterrey, Nuevo León.
The modern concept of vertical farming was proposed in 1999 by Dickson Despommier, Professor of Public and Environmental Health at Columbia University in the United States.
Due to climate change, this method has become a real alternative for countries like Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, the Netherlands, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and now, Mexico.
Karma Verde Fresh (KVF) has spent the last five years developing farming systems and growing a variety of vegetables, sprouts, and seedlings in Monterrey, Nuevo León. “This has been achieved through an association with two universities and Tec graduate agronomists, using natural substrates, in this case: tezontle (volcanic rock). This substrate can be washed without contaminating the soil. By substituting mineral products, you allow fields to regenerate themselves, which is highly beneficial to the soil,” says the CEO of Karma Verde Fresh.
Not all fruit and vegetables can be grown using this technique, but a great variety can be (Photo: courtesy of Karma Verde Fresh).
Vertical farming systems use 90% less water and 95% less space than traditional farming and are 100% herbicide and pesticide-free. “Our crops can be adapted to any space, which allows us to be closer to the consumer, reduce our carbon footprint, and promote local purchases that are fresher,” says Leo Lobato.
Vertical farms keep crops fresh for longer, so they don’t lose any nutrients, using state-of-the-art LEDs that are extremely energy efficient. Energy can also be generated from renewable sources and this creates job opportunities.
Traditional Agriculture Plus Vertical Farming
“Vertical farming is another option within the agricultural industry, though it is intended as a way of complementing rather than replacing traditional agriculture,” adds Tagino Lobato from KVF.
Not all fruit and vegetables can be grown using this technique, but a great variety can be, “enough to have a balanced diet,” according to Leo Lobato.
For example, KVF produces lettuce, microgreens (mustard), Ballerina lettuce, Alexandria lettuce, peas, beetroot, large-eared lettuce, radish, Italian lettuce, and sunflowers, as well as others such as astro arugula, rocket arugula, spinach, coriander, chard, strawberries, and tomato seedlings.
Vertical farms are very beneficial. For example, they use 90% less water than traditional agriculture and they can be built anywhere, which means many spaces could be repurposed. (Infographic: Karma Verde Fresh)
This type of initiative hopes to feed the 150 million people who will be living in Mexico by 2050, of whom approximately will be in 80% urban areas, according to FAO estimates.
Karma Verde Fresh saw a great entrepreneurial opportunity in vertical technology. “We need this in all communities because we all need to eat better without damaging the planet. Vertical farming in a controlled environment has many possibilities. We can take it to schools or food bank centers,” says the co-founder of Verde Karma Fresh.
The company wants to make this innovation in agriculture available to everyone, so they are looking to make the technology accessible. For example, “we already have one of these vertical farms in Dr. Adriana Elizondo’s house in the Linda Vista neighborhood of Guadalupe in Monterrey. She’s farming with this prototype from her bedroom,” says Leo.
Karma Verde Fresh has two versions of the growing system: one for crops (KVF-AG6) and one for seedlings (KVF-AG10). (Photo: Karma Verde Fresh)
Mexico, The Land of Opportunity
The Lobato technology has already made deals with 20 international universities to take their equipment and establish laboratories. “By involving universities, we are hoping to find Mexican ingenuity that will produce better technology and create more employment opportunities in all Spanish-speaking countries,” he says.
KVF doesn’t just want to sell the technology but also to lower the costs by using Mexican technology. Sources of financing are being set up for all of the entrepreneurs who wish to take vertical farms to different levels.
The end product from vertical farms promotes local purchases that are more nutritious (Photo: Courtesy)