"New York Is Ideally Suited For Greenhouse Production"

August 10, 2021

Intergrow Greenhouses is excited to announce the opening of its newest expansion in Upstate, NY. The 10-acre project will produce over 3 million pounds of fresh produce a year, feeding millions across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic all of the way down to the Southeast. 

“We’ve been operating in the US since 1998, and always in New York State.” says Dirk Biemans, president of Intergrow Greenhouses. “Our European partners saw the opportunity for greenhouse-grown produce here in the US back in the 90s and we quickly set up shop. The climate here in New York is ideally suited for our greenhouse production, resulting in the best flavor, quality, and consistency for our retail partners all year. We are primed for successful growth here in NY. With nearly 60% of the US population only 24 hours from us, and growing consumer demand for local and domestically grown produce, we’ve got to be ready."

And a local company they truly are. Biemans reports over 70% of the 350 employees at Intergrow are permeant residents of New York State and that number is growing. “Labor is an extremely important part of our business model, if we can recruit, train, and retain local labor it can yield huge advantages for us.”

The new facility will be outfitted with HPS grow lights, adding to Intergrow’s ever-increasing winter offerings. It also boasts diffused glass for better light distribution and heating and fertigation systems. However, Biemans reports there were several challenges and delays that threatened the project finishing on time.

“Ocean freight is crazy right now, not only have prices increased but there’s been a huge problem with on-time arrivals and customs issues. The majority of this project came in prefabricated from Europe, which offers a lot of benefits but our team and chosen suppliers were not quite ready for the logistical challenges in 2021. However, we were able to pull through, overcoming those challenges, and working with the cards we were dealt. This project was successfully completed on time putting us at a total of 105 acres under glass.”

For more information:
Intergrow Greenhouses
www.intergrowgreenhouses.com 

Lead Photo: Propagated tomato plants await their final placement in Intergrow’s Newest 10-acre greenhouse.

Agriculture Is Blooming In The Desert

August 9, 2021

Mainly produce and fruit, the UAE must import food because the arid environment is not conducive to growing a variety of leafy plants. While importing food ensures the population does not go hungry, it often results in more expensive, less fresh food, with a lower nutrient density. And, as we saw with covid-19 last year, food supply chains are fragile. Relying on other countries to grow your food is no longer always reliable.

Controlled environment agriculture, like greenhouses and vertical farming, offers a hyper-local alternative to importing food by making agriculture accessible in harsh environments. With the use of new technologies, companies can capitalize on the sprawling desert and sunshine. The UAE's three deserts offer a massive amount of real estate for building warehouses for vertical farms and an almost unlimited solar power supply. Although water is scarce, vertical farming uses over 90% less water than traditional farming.

Photo: an indoor vertical farm growing greens

Both the government and the private sector are funding an agricultural revolution

In 2018, the UAE government announced plans to be the top country in food security (measured by the Global Security Index) globally by 2051 and in the top ten by 2021--as of last year; it ranked 42. Like Singapore’s “30 by 30” plan, the government has since aggressively funded food startups and partnered with larger companies, including those from other agtech centers of excellence like the Netherlands and Korea.

In 2020, the Abu Dhabi Investment Office invested $100 million in agtech firms, including local vertical farm Madar Farms, US-based vertical farm AeroFarms, an irrigation company RDI, and a local fertilizer company called RNZ. The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) teamed up with Shalimar Biotech Industries to build twelve vertical farms. The MOCCAE and partnered with the Majid Al Futtaim group to build vertical farms in their malls. And it’s not all controlled environment agriculture. The Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (ADAFSA) approved five investment projects, worth $142 million, to establish fish, vegetable, fruit, cattle, and poultry farms on a total land and sea area of approximately 43 million square feet.

Just this month, His Royal Highness Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Ali Al Nuaimi, aka the “Green Sheikh,” flew to the US to visit Gotham Greens and the Green Bronx Machine--a Bronx-based organization that brings urban agriculture into school. In the past, he partnered with Stephen Ritz, founder of the Green Bronx Machine, to bring agricultural education and plant science initiatives to Dubai. Longtime friends with shared values on education and wellness, the two will partner on building farms in the UAE and developing culturally specific educational materials for children.

The 'Green Sheikh' collaborates with the founder of the Green Bronx Machine to educate kids in Dubai about farming in the desert.

In the private sector, Dubai is home to many different agtech companies. Badia farms produces lettuce, herbs, and microgreens for chefs, caterers, and restaurants. Madar farms is experimenting with other agtech solutions like container farms and indoor “kitchen gardens” for chefs. Crop one is planning to build the largest vertical farm in the world and partner with Emirates airlines. Green Factory Emirates partnered with veteran indoor growing experts from the Netherlands, GrowGroup IFS, to develop the world’s largest indoor farm (including vertical farming and traditional farming techniques) that will yield 10,000 tons of food annually. & Ever is not building a farm in Dubai yet, but their headquarters is based there. In Abu Dhabi, Pure Harvest opened a ‘smart’ hydroponic tomato farm that utilizes bees in its greenhouses. Another excellent use of indoor growing, Al Aliyo Hydrofarms is a hydroponic farm growing organic fodder for livestock.

Aquaculture is also present. Fish Farm boasts the largest fish farm in the UAE, with three fish hatcheries providing a local, sustainable source of shrimp, hammour, sea bass, and sea bream.

The future is bright and green

Given its large swaths of desert and government commitment to food security, it is no surprise that agtech is becoming a booming sector in the United Arab Emirates. Vertical farming and other local food initiatives have the potential to bring fresher, more nutrient-rich food to the region, provide jobs, educate the youth and continue to show the world that the UAE is always on the cutting edge of new technologies.

Philips LEDs Contribute To A Higher Winter Production of Excellent Quality Cucumbers

July 21, 2021

LED systems clearly add value to year-round growth concepts for cucumbers. Jan Biemans of Tielemans Groentekwekerij from Boekel, the Netherlands and Eric van den Eynde from Kontich, Belgium have determined this after their first growth under a hybrid grow light solution. In 2020, they both upgraded their existing HPS installations with Philips LED toplighting systems from Signify. Despite the differences in their greenhouses, installations, and goals, their conclusions were unanimous: LED contributes to an efficient, high winter production of excellent quality.

Uniform distribution

Eric and Lander van den Eynde’s company close to Antwerp consists of 2 ha of unlit tomatoes and 2,1 ha of lit, high-wire cucumbers. “We have been growing under HPS lights for two years already, which complemented the natural light with 180 µmol/m²/s”, says Eric. “However, in winter the fruits did not reach the desired weight of 350 to 400 grams. Therefore, light had to be added and LED is the most efficient solution for that. Our question to Signify was how we could fulfill that in the smartest way.” Multiple light plans were calculated in consultation with their installer and the plant specialists from Signify. Because of the limited height of the greenhouse (gutter height 5 meters), the Philips GreenPower LED toplighting linear was chosen, because that gives the most uniform light distribution.  

Half of the HPS lamps were removed, and for each removed lamp 2,9 linear LED modules were installed. This brought the total light intensity to 223 µmol/m²/s, divided between 87µmol/m²/s HPS and 136 µmol/m²/s LED in red, blue and a bit of white working light. The total installation gives 24% more PAR-light, while the energy usage (at equal lighting hours) is about 7% less.

 “The light division is nice and equal, even when only the LED lights are on”, the grower continues. “The latter is the case every now and then in the Spring and Autumn especially, when the heat radiation from the HPS lights is not always wanted.”

More and heavier fruit

The new installation was ready in September of 2020. To take maximum advantage of the higher light level, a planting distance was chosen of 50 cm (2,5 plant/m2). Lighting was begun directly after planting on October 2nd. Van den Eynde: “The plants reacted well. Our goal is to have a growth speed of six new leaves per week, and we could keep up with that pace effortlessly. The higher density of the stalks did ask for an altered pruning policy, but that did not have any effect on our labor planning. The most important goal was a higher average fruit weight. That was realized right away. Furthermore, we cut more cucumbers and they were of a good color. Our customer is very satisfied, and therefore so are my son and I.”  

Winter production

Tielemans Groentekwekerij consists of 12 ha of greenhouses at two locations in Boekel. Cucumber is the most important crop. The company realizes two high-wire growths per year, from the beginning of January till the end of November, which formerly received 95 µmol/m²/s extra PAR-light from HPS lamps during the lighting season.

“In 2020 we received the request from our producers’ association to adapt 3,0 ha for winter production”, says growth manager Jan Biemans. “In order to realize sufficient production, weight, and quality in the darkest period, quite some additional light had to be installed. We looked at different options and made calculations. The choice was made for Signify’s Philips GreenPower LED toplighting compact, in combination with the GrowWise control system. With that we can dim the LED installation and tune the light level even better to the crop’s needs.”

Longer light in the evening

According to the light plan, the toplighting compact grow lights (providing 2.600 µmol in red and blue for optimal efficiency) were attached to the trellis in between the rows of HPS lights, raising the light level with 144 µmol/m²/s to 240 µmol/m²/s. The stalk density was chosen at 2,25 stalks per m2. Biemans: “We are content with the achieved winter production, and I am happy with this hybrid solution’s flexibility. The LED installation enables us to continue lighting longer in the evening without the additional heat. The plants did fine and got through the winter well.”

The growth manager thinks he can get even more out of it by decreasing the width of the row distance. “In the future I think we can benefit even more by adding far-red light”, he adds. “One variety showed some contracted leaves in darker periods, but the other variety did not do this at all. Overall, we are happy with the results.” Erik Stappers, plant specialist at Signify adds: “Full LED with far-red has proven itself by now. The role of far-red light in a hybrid installation with more LED than HPS is being investigated at the moment. Indeed, we do see differences between the varieties there.”

Let me know in case you have any questions.

The Farm is Merging With Food Retail Spaces

By: Sylvain Charlebois

July 13, 2021

Canadians have started to notice that grocers have begun to sell plants in miniature greenhouses.

We’ve seen gardens on rooftops, vertical farms close to stores and even some selling gardening equipment to gardeners who are shopping for food. The farm is essentially merging with the food retail spaces we roam as consumers. It’s quite interesting.

We’re slowly witnessing the rise of the ‘grow-cer.’

For years, customers accepted the myth that food just magically shows up at the grocery store. But COVID-19 got many of us to think differently about supply chains – how food is grown, produced, transported, packaged and retailed.

With the addition of new farmgate features for city dwellers, grocery stores are slowly becoming the gateway to an entire world most of us rarely see: farming.

Sobeys has provided one recent example of what’s going on. The second-largest grocer in Canada recently signed a partnership agreement with German-based Infarm to get greenhouses into many outlets across the country. Infarm units were installed last year in British Columbia and can now be found in many other locations across the country.

Infarm units enable Sobeys to offer fresh herbs and produce grown hydroponically, which requires 95 percent less water, 90 percent less transportation, and 75 percent less fertilizer than industrial agriculture. And no pesticides are used.

Available produce grown inside the store includes leafy greens, lettuce, kale, and herbs such as basil, cilantro, mint and parsley. Expansion plans include chili peppers, mushrooms, and tomatoes. The growing cycle for most of these averages five weeks.

While Sobeys doesn’t have to worry about infrastructure and extra capital to change a store’s allure, it can get rid of these miniature vertical farms if proven unpopular or unnecessary. That works well for Sobeys and the consumer.

But it’s not just Sobeys. Other grocers now have decent-sized vertical farms inside the store or close to them.

The gardening rate in Canada has gone up by more than 20 per cent since the start of the pandemic last year. For consumers, growing their own food was about pride and taking control of their supply chain in some way.

For many others, though, gardening remains a luxury due to the lack of space or time. Since a trip to the grocery store is inevitable for most of us, grocers are bringing the farm to the store so consumers can have both the farming and the retail experience at once.

Before COVID, farmers desperately tried to get closer to city dwellers so their work could be appreciated. Campaigns over the years brought mixed results. Farming is still largely misunderstood.

Debates on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and the use of chemicals have also divided urban and rural communities. City dwellers have always respected farmers and the hard work they do. But many consumers who are/were looking for natural and organically-produced goods have grown leery of farming in general.

This has attracted the attention of environmental groups opposed to many farming practices.

Grocers are starting to realize that bridging two worlds under one roof can help elevate their roles as ambassadors to an entire supply chain. Farmers can’t be replaced, of course, and they can’t be in stores.

For years, we saw pictures of farmers on packages and posters. It was nice, but it wasn’t real. The hard work, and everything else that comes with farming, can only be properly conveyed when visiting a farm or working on one for a while.

The pictures likely won’t disappear from grocery stores but they don’t really tell the whole story.

The new grow-cer brings the imagery of farming in retail to a new level. Grabbing a living plant or produce off a living plant is certainly real and increasingly valuable for Canadians longing for local and freshness. It just can’t get more local than growing it in the grocery store.

COVID-19 eliminated many rules for grocers. Every business played a part. Grocers sold food, processors manufactured it, and restaurants provided ready-to-eat solutions. Lines between sectors were already becoming blurred before COVID, given the crossing of concepts and elimination of lines between sectors.

For example, some of us have heard of the ‘grocerant’ concept, which has embedded food service into grocery stores. Consumers can relax, enjoy food before, during or after their grocery shopping.

But COVID blew up the blurred lines.

Grocers are becoming brokers, connecting various functions of the supply chain. Farming connects with retail by way of new initiatives that we’re now seeing everywhere.

For example, restaurants are selling meal kits through grocers’ apps. Few saw that coming.

Food brokering for grocers is no doubt the next frontier of growth.

Whether it will last is unknown. But grocers are embracing the fact they have the privilege of interacting with consumers every day. That privilege, more than ever, comes with a responsibility to show consumers the true value of food by being knowledge brokers.

If that means growing more food in stores, so be it.

Dr. Sylvain Charlebois is senior director of the agri-food analytics lab and a professor in food distribution and policy at Dalhousie University.

University of Florida 2021 Greenhouse Training Online Courses: Greenhouse 101

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May 3, 2021, Urbanagnews

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Finding trained growers is a major challenge for our industry. Your best investment is to upskill your own workers to make better crop management decisions by learning the underlying horticultural science of plant growth. Greenhouse 101 is a great introduction to the Greenhouse Training Online program offered by the University of Florida IFAS Extension. It is designed for people with no formal training in horticulture that work in the greenhouse or nursery industry. Topics covered are plant parts and functions, photosynthesis and growth, greenhouse technology, flowering, compactness and branching, irrigation, nutrition, and plant health. The course is offered in English and Spanish.

Join over 660 growers who have graduated from Greenhouse 101 since 2015 in our award-winning program and receive a customized certificate of completion. Rated 4.4 out of 5 stars by grower participants.

The course runs from May 31 to June 25, 2021. The cost is $US249 per participant, with a 20% discount if you register 5 or more. The course is completely online and includes pre-recorded videos, an interactive discussion board with Ph.D. professors, and quizzes. The course material is available any time of the day, and two new modules are activated each week during the course, for a total of 8 learning modules. 

Click here to register (http://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/training/).

Download The Flyer

For more information, go to http://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/training/, or contact Greenhouse Training, Environmental Horticulture, University of Florida, USA, Email: greenhousetraining@ifas.ufl.edu.

OGVG And Blue Radix Introduce Autonomous Greenhouse Management In Ontario

The Ontario government is supporting greenhouse growers by investing over $3.6 million in 12 innovative projects to help develop new technologies, recover from the impact of COVID-19 and enhance competitiveness and innovation.

One of these approved projects is ‘Autonomous Greenhouse Management’- a collaboration between the Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers (OGVG) and Blue Radix, an independent Dutch AI-tech specialist for the international greenhouse industry. This project is supported through the Greenhouse Competitiveness and Innovation Initiative, a cost-share program funded by the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and delivered by the Agricultural Adaptation Council.

Autonomous growing with Crop Controller
“Together with OGVG we introduce autonomous growing with Crop Controller to Ontario vegetable growers,” says Ronald Hoek, CEO of Blue Radix. “Crop Controller is a service: data models and algorithms control the greenhouse installations 24/7, supported by off-site Autonomous Greenhouse Managers with in-depth knowledge about crops, energy, and data. With autonomous steering of the greenhouse installations, the crop strategy is put into practice with artificial intelligence. Crop Controller is not developed to replace growers. The grower is still needed to define the crop strategy. Ultimately, they can manage more hectares and worry less about repetitive actions and routine thinking. The algorithms do the work for them in their daily operations.”

“We are very thankful to the Ontario government for the GCII funding of this project. It will help greenhouse businesses improve their productivity with adopting autonomous growing. Greenhouse owners are less dependent on crop experts, will have a higher operational profit while limiting their operational risks and usage of resources,” says Ronald.

Main objectives project
The project looks to meet four main objectives:
1) To research the specific needs of Canadian growers (compared to Dutch growers) related to autonomous greenhouse management and translate these needs into product features.
2) To research and implement the adjustments that must be made to improve the match of Crop Controller with different Canadian (Ontario) climate conditions.
3) To demonstrate the working of the Blue Radix data models and algorithms. This helps growers to better understand the value and adopt this new technology in their company.
4) To share knowledge with market peers and help growers to work with this new technology in their day-to-day operations.

OGVG will select three vegetable greenhouse production locations across Ontario to participate in the project. During the project OGVG & Blue Radix will share information regularly about progress and results through articles, learn ‘n’ lunch sessions, presentations and online demos.

About the GCII program
The Greenhouse Competitiveness and Innovation Initiative is a cost-share program, to help the sector to create, adopt and invest in innovative new technologies to reduce production costs, increase productivity and improve produce quality. Enabling operations to expand their businesses, attract new investment and create good jobs. It is delivered by the Agriculture Adaptation Council, on behalf of the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA).

About OGVG
Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers (OGVG) represents approximately 200 farmers responsible for over 3,200 acres of greenhouse tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers across the province. With farmgate sales of over $1 billion in 2019, support for over 13,000 jobs, a contribution of $1.8 billion to the economy and a consistent track record of growth, the sector is a valuable economic driver for the province.

About Blue Radix
Blue Radix is an independent Dutch AI-tech specialist for the international greenhouse industry. Blue Radix creates solutions with artificial intelligence for daily decisions and actions in greenhouses. Greenhouses offer an efficient way to produce food and flowers in a sustainable manner. But the number of skilled people with expertise of growing crops in greenhouses is declining every year. This has direct impact on yield, costs, continuity and product quality. Blue Radix offers solutions for these challenges: smart algorithms which optimize and steer climate, irrigation and energy continuously and autonomously, supported by off-site Autonomous Greenhouse Managers. Always working with the grower’s unique crop strategy as a starting point. Blue Radix offers growers a digital brain for their greenhouse.

For media inquiries, please contact:

OGVG
Mr. Joseph Sbrocchi, General Manager
T 519-326-2604 or 1-800-265-6926
Email: j.sbrocchi@ontariogreenhouse.com
www.OGVG.com

Blue Radix
Mrs. Marijke van Rongen, Manager Global Marketing & Communications
T +31 6 53 43 38 39
E-mail: marijke.vanrongen@blue-radix.com
www.blue-radix.com

INDIA: VIDEO - University Student Runs Farm In Kuala Lumpur

Ah Pa, a well-known YouTube cook recently visited Sean, a university student living in Kuala Lumpur who runs his own farm. As Sean calls it, his E-farm is located in the middle of the city. 

The self-built foil-greenhouse comprises 1000 sq. ft. and is filled with vertical growing towers and an aquaponic system. Currently, the farm has 1000 tilapia that are fed by the plants grown in Sean's greenhouse. "We're growing more than 20 plants here," says Sean, whereas we can grow up to 60 different plants and herbs." 

Click on the video below to hear Sean's story. 

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23 Apr 2021

Nature Fresh Farms Introduces New Program For Their Imperfect Produce

Leamington, ON (April 13, 2021)

A recent loss-conscious program focuses on selling Nature Fresh Farms imperfect produce to reduce food waste.

The Waste Me Nots program was recently created to leverage Nature Fresh Farms Tomatoes, Peppers, and Cucumbers that do not meet the criteria of their Quality Control team. As most greenhouses hope to grow flawless quality produce, some product grows to be naturally bent or smaller in size. Although unique in shape and size, these vegetables still have the same nutritional value and flavor as their perfect counterparts. Nature Fresh Farms wants to put these pieces of produce in the spotlight, creating more of an opportunity to fight waste and give shoppers further access to nutritious foods.

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‘We believe it’s important to ensure that nutritious and delicious produce does not go to waste,” shared Ray Wowryk, Director of Business Development. “By creating this program, we are helping our retailers with a ready-made waste reduction alternative.”

Since volume of this type of product is not predictable, the program cannot be guaranteed to supply specific quantities and will depend on the product grown. However, Nature Fresh Farm feels that the unpredictability is outweighed by the fact that their quality and freshness is worth rescuing and sharing with consumers, making the most of all their product grown.

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“Sustainability is at the center of everything we do at Nature Fresh Farms. Not only does this encompass our packaging and growing processes but also that the food we grow gets utilized completely,” explained the Director of Sales, Matt Quiring. “The Waste Me Nots program helps us to reduce waste while allowing us to better service the price-focused shoppers looking for quality tasting products at a discounted price and let our retail partners bring in some incremental sales to the category.”

Nature Fresh Farms wants to bring more cost-effective options to its consumers and bring the focus back to the taste and freshness of the produce, not solely the look of it. They hope to break the cycle of imperfect food waste by offering discounted misshapen vegetables that there would normally not be a market for and expand the consumer’s knowledge of the type of produce they purchase.

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About Nature Fresh Farms

Continuously expanding, Nature Fresh Farms has become one of the largest independent, vertically integrated greenhouse vegetable farms in North America. As a year-round grower with farms in Leamington, ON, Delta, OH, and Mexico, Nature Fresh Farms prides itself on consistently delivering exceptional flavor and quality to key retailers throughout North America, while continuing to innovate and introduce more viable and sustainable growing and packaging solutions.

SOURCE:

Nature Fresh Farms | info@naturefresh.ca T: 519 326 1111 | www.naturefresh.ca

RUSSIA: iFarm Supports Urban Greenhouse Challenge At TPU

By avborovskaia

March 27, 2021

iFarm, the winner of The Europas Awards 2020 as the Hottest Ag/FoodTech startup, has supported Urban Greenhouse Challenge: Reforest, an international competition held at Tomsk Polytechnic University.

iFarm creates technologies to grow fresh herbs, berries and vegetables throughout the year, including modular automated vertical farms and iFarm Growtune IT-platform. and has offices in Novosibirsk, Moscow, and Amsterdam, along with a  showroom in Finland. The herbs, grown using iFarm technologies, are sold in all federal chain stores of Russia.

iFarm is a winner of the CovHack-2020 Virtual Innovation Challenge in the Best Startup category, a winner of the Nordic Startup Awards in the Best Social Impact Startup category, an Overall Indoor Farming Solution Provider of the Year in AgTech Breakthrough-2020 Awards in the Indoor Farming category and others.

“Urban farming arises at the intersection of multiple technological disciplines: agricultural engineering, engineering, and IT. We consider that similar competitions help teams to dive into such a multidisciplinary environment, master their skills, and further, together with us, change approaches to plant growing. It does not matter if it is about trees or food products, the set of technologies will be approximately the same,” Kirill Zelenski, iFarm Europe Managing Director, says.

“The events like Urban Greenhouse Challenge are an investment in the development of a new industry, staff training and highlighting really crucial problems, that humanity is going to face soon,” Kirill Zelenski emphasizes.

Besides the lecture part, the iFarm representatives will take part in mentoring the teams over the period of the competition. The company is interested in involving as many students from different countries as possible in this new industry.

“Non-specialists are usually the ones who change technological approaches to various fields of life. For instance, it was Henry Ford who made a revolution in people transportation but not the companies, which had been constructing carts and carriages for centuries. iFarm is a striking case in point. It is an IT-company that creates automated vertical farming technologies applying knowledge and approaches that have almost never been used in agriculture before. Therefore, what we expect from students is different, even the most incredible but well-elaborated ideas, which we will help them implement,” the expert says.

“We wish the participants not to be afraid to ask questions and try to understand things that they are not good at yet. Only such an audacious approach leads to the emergence of new and breakthrough solutions,”

• TAGS Russia Tomsk Polytechnic University Urban Farming Urban Greenhouse Challenge

Evaluating Real Estate For Indoor Agriculture

March 17, 2021

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Traditionally, buyers of agricultural real estate have focused on rural land where primary considerations for their farm include things such as soil quality, annual rainfall amounts, and adequate drainage. Increasingly, however, agriculture start-ups are moving indoors. Compared to field-based agriculture, indoor farming allows for more crop cycles, less water usage, and the farms can be located closer to the consumer. The considerations for an indoor, or controlled environment agriculture (CEA) operation are considerably different than for outdoor farms. 

Assessing Potential Real Estate for CEA

Several factors need to be evaluated before purchasing or leasing a piece of real estate for CEA. Will you build new construction or rehabilitate a vacant building? Are you building a large-scale greenhouse or a small, urban vertical farm? 

Environment

Weather and terrain are important for natural light greenhouse projects. The primary limiting factor to crop production in a greenhouse is low light intensity during the winter so consult with an Ag-extension service or other resource to get that information for a proposed location. Adequate acreage is a must for not only the greenhouses themselves but, also shipping and receiving space, a retention pond (if needed), and potentially even worker housing.

Spacing

For a vertical or urban farm in an enclosed building, important factors to consider include adequate square footage to allow for proper spacing between growing systems and enough room to move the towers (if mobile) for cleaning or maintenance. Additionally, a building should have a sufficient water supply and potentially drainage, a robust HVAC system and humidity controls, and a ceiling which is high enough for the growing towers. Although indoor farms using high efficiency LED lighting, these systems, combined with pumps, humidifiers, and HVACs can use significant amounts of electricity, a developer should carefully and conservatively estimate those costs prior to negotiating those terms with a landlord or electric company. Finally, the farm should be in close enough proximity to allow for routine delivery to local customers, be they restaurants, groceries, farmers markets, or Community Supported Agriculture distributors.

Labor

In both types of farms, labor availability and cost is a critically important consideration. The cost of wages for urban farms, even for unskilled workers, will likely be higher than that of rural areas. And in the case of any real estate development, ensure prior coordination with relevant agencies has been done on permits, licenses, and zoning regulations prior to signing any leases or closing on a land contract. Prior to starting a search for a CEA project, it’s wise to seek expert help from outside consultants who can save an indoor farm developer time, money, and aggravation.

Tags real estate, indoor agriculture, cea

A New FEZ "Karakalpak-Agro" Established In Uzbekistan

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) - The Cabinet of Ministers adopted a resolution”On measures to organize the activities of the free economic zone “Karakalpak-Agro”.

In accordance with the decree of the President “On measures for the comprehensive socio-economic development of the Republic of Karakalpakstan in 2020–2023” on an area of 875.4 hectares in Amu Darya, Buzatausky, Kegeili, Konlikul, Kushgirot, Muynak, Nukus , Takhiatash, Turtkul, Khodjeyli, Shumanai and Ellikala districts, the SEZ "Karakalpak-agro" was created.

The functions of managing the activities of the FEZ "Karakalpak-Agro" are assigned to the State Unitary Enterprise "Directorate of the free economic zone" Nukus ".

The main tasks and directions of the SEZ "Karakalpak-Agro":

- attracting direct foreign and domestic investments for organizing modern greenhouses on a cluster basis, including hydroponic ones, as well as organizing the production of structures, equipment and other components for the construction of modern energy-efficient greenhouses;

- increasing the production of agricultural products, expanding its deep processing and increasing exports, effectively using the production potential of the region;

- encouraging the organization of the complete process of agricultural production from seeds to delivery to the market;

- introduction of effective mechanisms for providing greenhouses with seeds and seedlings of high-yielding crops demanded by the market, by creating conditions for organizing nurseries, as well as seed production;

- formation of a modern infrastructure for the provision of logistics services, assistance to agricultural producers in organizing the export of their products;

- widespread introduction of modern resource-saving technologies, the use of alternative sources of thermal energy in the organization of greenhouses;

- creation of research and production centers to assess the compliance of products with international standards.

The Council of Ministers of Karakalpakstan, together with the Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and commercial banks, was instructed to develop a targeted program of facilities for the production of structures for greenhouses on the territory of Karakalpak-Agro within two months, with the allocation of vacant non-agricultural land.

New York’s Gotham Greens Plans Solano County Indoor Produce Farm

GARY QUACKENBUSH

FOR THE NORTH BAY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Example of the greenhouse operated by Gotham Greens which announced plans to open in Solano County (Photo courtesy of Gotham Greens)

Gotham Greens Holdings LLC, a firm with indoor agriculture operations across the U.S., Tuesday, announced plans to build a facility next to the University of California, Davis.

The first phase of this 10-acre Solano County facility is expected to open later this year. It will be located on 33.6 acres of agricultural land purchased from the university adjacent to Interstate 80.

The company stated its plans will provide it with the ability to deliver fresh leafy greens, herbs, plant-based dressings, dips and cooking sauces to more retailers, foodservice operators and consumers on the West Coast.

“… We are partnering with one of the highest-ranked agricultural research centers in the world to advance the entire agriculture system,” said Viraj Puri, co-founder and CEO of Gotham Greens. “California is responsible for growing one-third of the country’s vegetables and two-thirds of the nation’s fruit, yet in recent years, issues surrounding drought, food safety and worker welfare have demonstrated the need for continued innovation.”

The greenhouse will generate 60 full-time jobs and provide UC students with the opportunity to learn first-hand how to sustainably grow produce year-round in a safe, clean, climate-controlled environment. The company stated its facilities use 95% less water and 97% less land than conventional farming. Nationwide, Gotham Greens has 500,000 square feet of greenhouse space at five locations staffed by 400 employees.

The UC Division of Agriculture and National Resources and the UC Davis College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences has entered into a partnership with Gotham Greens to advance research and innovation in the areas of indoor agriculture, greenhouse technology, and urban agriculture to help advance the science, workforce technology, and profitability of indoor agriculture globally.

“We are building a Controlled Environment Agriculture Consortium to support and advance the indoor farming industry, grow more fresh produce on less land and create new jobs for Californians,” said Gabriel Youtsey, the division’s chief innovation officer. “Gotham Greens is an anchoring partner of this research and industry collaboration that we hope will spur innovation, create a new indoor farming workforce and support industry growth.”

Helene Dillard, dean of the college, said, “This partnership will offer our students the chance to learn best practices from leading experts in indoor farming.”

Gotham Greens recently raised $87 million in new equity and debt capital bringing the company’s total financing to $130 million to fuel the next phase of growth.

Founded in 2009 in Brooklyn, New York, Gotham Greens (gothamgreens.com) owns and operates greenhouses in New York, Illinois, Rhode Island, Maryland and Colorado. Its produce is available in more than 40 states and 2,000 retail stores, including Albertsons Companies (Safeway, Jewel-Osco, and Shaw’s), Whole Foods Market, Target, King Soopers, Harris Teeter, and Sprouts.

The company’s products can also be purchased through e-commerce sites including AmazonFresh, FreshDirect and Peapod.
Lead Photo: Gotham Greens

Hydroponics Greenhouse Provides Hands-On Learning At Hudson High School

Yeji Kim

Special to the Hudson Hub-Times

A Jan. 15 tour led by HHS AP Environmental Science teacher Matthew Kearns offered members of The Kiwanis Club of Hudson insight into the hydroponic greenhouse. The club donated a $20,000 grant to help fund the project. Submitted Photo

Project-based learning is a learning model where students work together to engage in real-world questions and problems, and the Hudson High School hydroponics greenhouse centres around this approach to education.

The hydroponics greenhouse started roughly two years ago, and Phillip Herman, Superintendent of the Hudson City School District, and Christina Wooley, HCSD Curriculum Coordinator, are credited with most of the original idea.

Herman first learned about hydroponics gardening and greenhouses from a community member and thought there may be a way to better utilize the HHS greenhouse space to create learning opportunities for students. He began by discussing the idea with teachers, visiting an operating hydroponics greenhouse and exploring areas of the curriculum that could be enhanced.

The first year consisted largely of planning, strategizing and raising money, and this past year was when equipment started to come in and crops began to grow.

A hydroponics greenhouse differs from a traditional greenhouse in that no soil is required. Instead, the plants draw up nutrient-rich water. Less water is used since the water is recycled, and because of the absence of soil, hydroponics greenhouses take up less space — the plants can be stacked vertically. The HHS hydroponics greenhouse also includes a monitoring computer system that measures what is currently in the water and what will be needed.

A $20,000 grant was given by The Kiwanis Club of Hudson to support the project, and this money was used to purchase greenhouse equipment.

CropKing, an Ohio-based hydroponics equipment company, was the supplier for the equipment, seeds and fertilizer, and the firm also aided in setting up the equipment and trained those involved with the greenhouse.

Two other grants, an ADAR grant and a grant from the Hudson Parent-Teacher Organization supplemented the Kiwanis grant money. The greenhouse itself is located off of HHS biology classes and has been there before the hydroponics greenhouse was started.

Students are faced with real-world questions, such as how to sustain crops in regions without sufficient access to water, ways to use the land effectively and properly, impacts on the environment and how to grow sustainably and locally.

Science teacher Matthew Kearns said students have been seeing the benefit of this project, which includes those in the AP Environmental Science class he teaches, special education students who work with Intervention Specialist Kristin Stonestreet and biology classes taught by Ron Wright. Students visit at least once a week to monitor the crops.

Currently, the greenhouse is growing its first round of crops, which includes lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers.

Stonestreet and Kearns are considering adding cilantro, basil and peppers as well. The diversification would enhance the project-based learning aspect, as students will need to work together to figure out how much additional lighting and heat every crop needs.

The long term goal is to get involved with the community; through connecting with the business department and forming a club, students plan to sell produce from the greenhouse at the Hudson Farmers Market in the summertime and sell to HCSD faculty and staff when school is in session, engaging aspects of science, business and team-work. Several potential products for sale in the future include a salsa kit, tomato sauce and fresh herbs.

Herman notes how this greenhouse works to enhance classroom activity and curriculum.

“Over recent years, we have continued to learn more about and explore opportunities for project-based learning. Project-based learning enables students to learn course content and develop other essential success skills by beginning with a challenging problem or question and conducting a sustained inquiry to explore solutions to the problem and answers to their questions. Together, Christina Wooley, Mr Kearns and Mrs Stonestreet dug in and worked collaboratively to do the hard work to bring an idea to implementation.”

Signify Adds Automatic Intensity Adjustment Plus Year-Long Recipe Modulations To Horticultural Controls

Mark Halper

The Signify toplights at Belgium’s De Glastuin lettuce greenhouse automatically dim or brighten as daylight levels changes. (Photo credit: All images courtesy of Signify.)

Signify has enhanced the control system for its greenhouse LED lighting so that toplights can react immediately to changes in daylight conditions and adjust brightness accordingly. The company has also added year-long control settings intended to allow vertical farmers — but not greenhouses — to program seasonal variations in LED spectral content over a 365-day period.

Both upgrades are intended to reduce manual labor and improve overall cost efficiencies, Signify said.

Until now, greenhouse farmers could dim or brighten their Signify toplights by instructing the lights to do so via the control system, called GrowWise. Signify has now modified GrowWise software so that it can take readings from daylight sensors that are part of separate systems. GrowWise then instantly and automatically adjusts artificial light intensity emitted by the toplights, called Philips GreenPower LED.

“The lighting can be used much more efficiently since it gives us the flexibility to reduce light levels at any moment we need to,” said Wouter de Bruyn, the owner of Belgian lettuce grower De Glastuin, an early user of the new automatic feature.

Whereas Signify is known in office settings to build sensors into its smart luminaires, the GrowWise controls make use of sensors that are part of climate control systems and greenhouse management systems from companies such as Priva, Hoogendern Growth Management, and Ridder, all based in Holland.

Planet Farms’ Luca Travaglini backs up Signify’s point that prescribing a year of spectral content improves efficiency and helps keep down manual labor costs in controlled environment agriculture (CEA) operations such as vertical farms.

“The climate computer is equipped with a daylight sensor that sends actual light measurements to the GrowWise Control System so we can adapt our light levels automatically to ensure an even light level throughout the day and season,” de Bruyn said at De Glastuin, based in Kontich.

“Dynamic lighting in a greenhouse is the next step in improving the cost efficiency and quality for the cultivation process,” said Udo van Slooten, business leader, horticulture LED solutions at Signify. “It allows growers to effortlessly maintain a consistent level of light throughout the day to produce the best possible crops. The system compensates for cloudy weather and creates a more controlled growing environment for your crop.”

In another upgrade to GrowWise, vertical farmers who want to prescribe modulations in spectral content are no longer limited to 24 hours of looped recipe cycles. Rather, they can order up a year’s worth of shifts for controlled environment agriculture (CEA) operations.

The year-long programming feature is aimed at vertical farmers rather than at greenhouses because the lights that Signify provides for vertical farms support controllable spectral changes, whereas the greenhouse toplights do not. Signify refers to its GreenPower LED vertical farm lights as “production modules” rather than as “toplights.” Toplights and production modules can both be programmed for intensity over a year, but the intention of the year-long feature is oriented toward spectral content.

Compared to greenhouses, vertical farms tend to make much less, if any, use of natural light. In vertical farms, the lights are mounted much closer to the crop in stacked shelves.

One of the first users of the year-round feature is Italy’s greens and lettuce grower Planet Farms.

“Now we can easily create custom light recipes and set them to run year-round to provide the right light recipe with the right light intensity at the right time throughout the crop’s growth cycle,” said Planet Farms co-founder Luca Travaglini. “By automating our full light strategy during the growth cycle, for the whole year, we can run our operations very efficiently and keep our manual labor costs low. That makes it easier for us to maintain consistent quality as we scale up our production.”

The horticultural market is a key growth sector for Signify, especially as it maps out a strategy to maintain profits in the pandemic economy, in which last week it reported a yearly rise amid rigorous cost controls that now include a small number of layoffs. CEO Eric Rondolat is targeting a big chunk of what he has quantified as a $2 billion general horticultural lighting market by 2023.

MARK HALPER is a contributing editor for LEDs Magazine, and an energy, technology, and business journalist (markhalper@aol.com).

London Food Bank Is Going Greener With Greenhouse

Nick Paparella CTV News London Reporter

@NPaparellaCTV Contact

Inside the London Food Bank's greenhouse in London, Ont. on Friday, Jan. 29, 2021. (Nick Paparella / CTV News)

LONDON, ONT. -- The outdoors may be covered in a blanket of white in January, but at the London Food Bank these days everything seems to be coming up green.

After a year of planning and with donations from the community, the new greenhouse is bearing fruit - or in this case vegetables.

“This is what Londoners a few years ago wanted more than anything else, to donate funds towards fresh fruits, fresh produce and that's what they have done,” says Glen Pearson from the London Food Bank. “So we've just taken it to a different level so we can grow our own as well.”

The man with the green thumb here is horticulturalist Luis Reyes.

“A couple of weeks ago we received the heaters and since then you can see the growth in only a couple of weeks,” says Reyes.

Like many from the food bank, Reyes is passionate about helping those in need.

“I am a grower and that's what I like to do and now to do it directly to people makes me proud,” he says.

The greenhouse is expected to grow about 15,000 plants a year which amounts to about four tons of food.

“You're not going to get anything fresher than this in a supermarket,“ says Reyes. “So probably you're going to harvest today here and the people or clients are going to receive it tomorrow or the same day.”

In the winter months, they are growing cold-weather plants like lettuce, spinach and even kale, but once summer arrives they will switch to tomatoes, cucumbers and fruit-bearing plants.

Adds Pearson, “It just expands the nutrition we're able to give to other people.”

VIDEO: Kentucky Greenhouse Company AppHarvest Goes Public On Nasdaq As It Prepares To Grow

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BY LIZ MOOMEY

FEBRUARY 03, 2021

AppHarvest opens a 60-acre greenhouse in Morehead that will provide 300+ jobs and grow organic tomatoes.

AppHarvest has estimated it will generate net revenue of $21 million in 2021.

The company is expected to produce 45 million pounds of tomatoes annually. AppHarvest employs 300 Eastern Kentuckians.

David Wicks, Nasdaq’s vice president of new listings, said he was “incredibly proud to be your partner and look forward to supporting your innovation as a NASDAQ listing company” in a video message Monday.

Founder and CEO Jonathan Webb eats an AppHarvest tomato in a video message displayed in Times Square on Monday.

Two weeks ago, AppHarvest shipped its first bundle of tomatoes from its flagship location in Morehead.

“All this noise that is happening around us — listing on the Nasdaq and being shown in Times Square, selling our tomatoes to the largest grocers in the U.S. — all that is resonating back on the ground inside of our facility where our employees are feeling the positive impact of the work we’re all doing together,” Webb said.

The beefsteak tomatoes are selling out at grocers around the country.

“We can’t grow fast enough,” he said. “Our tomatoes are hitting store shelves and flying off the store shelves. It’s not just Kentucky, it’s everywhere from Indiana, all the way down to Florida.”

Webb said the company’s job now is to build faster and grow more vegetables to get on store shelves.

The company continues to look throughout Eastern Kentucky for building sites, Webb said, but there are challenges.

“We just have to find a place to build,” he said. “We have the capital. We want to build there, but building on these reclaimed coal mine sites are incredibly challenging and very expensive to try to make work. We would love to be there.”

The first greenhouse was originally planned for Pikeville, but AppHarvest said the site, a reclaimed strip mine, was not feasible for construction. After about two years of delays, AppHarvest announced its decision to relocate to a 350-acre parcel about two miles off I-64 near the Sharkey community of Rowan County.

Webb said they continue to invest in Pike County with a container farm at Shelby Valley High School. AppHarvest has two other farms at schools in Rowan and Breathitt counties.

The company aims to have 12 facilities growing and supplying fruits and vegetables by 2025. AppHarvest already announced a Berea facility to grow leafy greens and a Richmond facility to grow vine crops.

“One massive impact of 12 facilities is we’re going to have hundreds of millions of pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables pouring out of our region,” Webb said. “Not only the economic benefits of that, but the health benefits are tremendous. We’re in a situation where not many companies can say they feel incredibly proud of the product they produce and we do that.”

The first AppHarvest tomatoes will be in grocery stores by Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021.

Photos: COURTESY OF APPHARVEST

LIZ MOOMEY - 704-890-7548

Liz Moomey is a Reporter for America Corps member covering Eastern Kentucky for the Lexington Herald-Leader. She is based in Pikeville.

* New Deadlines * Center of Excellence Announces: Indoor Farming "Best in Class" Awards!

Center of Excellence Announces

Indoor Farming

"Best in Class" Awards!

Who Can Enter

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Indoor Vertical Farms

Plant Factories

Greenhouses

Grow System Solution Manufacturers

Lighting Companies

How to Enter

Go to:  https://indooragcenter.org/awards/

New Deadlines for Submissions: 

Manufacturers: Feb 1, 2021

Growers: Feb 15, 2021

There Is No Fee To Enter

Companies that score the highest

in each category

will be nominated for an

 “Indoor Ag Center Best in Class Award” (TM).

Learn More

Our vision is to accelerate the growth of the indoor farming industry. We believe we can do that by recognizing excellence. Consequently, we have embarked upon an ambitious program to collect bench-marking data on indoor farm operations and equipment used to run vertical farms and greenhouses. Each year we will review the data and publicly recognize key stakeholders for their excellence in several categories.

PODCAST: Greenhouse Structures

Joe Swartz & Nick Greens | 12/4/2020

This podcast will cover these questions and more:

What is the budget for your greenhouse project?

Does the land have sufficient exposure to natural light?

What kind of crop will you be growing?

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Please Click Here To Listen To The Podcast

Support The Show

https://www.patreon.com/nickgreens

Leamington, Ontario Greenhouse Opportunity

A brand new 1.3 million sq. ft. state-of-the-art greenhouse is available in Leamington, Ontario. Leamington, well-known as North America’s greenhouse capital, is well connected to major regional population centres in Southern Ontario, Quebec, and northeastern United States. The surrounding area is one of the best locations for greenhouse growing in Canada and notably possesses more built greenhouse acreage than all of the United States’ industry combined.

The glass greenhouse facility, which was completed in 2020 for the purposes of cannabis cultivation, possesses a 24’ clear ceiling height and growing systems which could support both cannabis or general agriculture purposes. The turnkey facility contains a fully automated Priva control system along with full climate control and nutrient delivery systems.

BMO Capital Markets has been engaged to solicit interest in, and opportunities for, a sale of, or investment in, the existing cannabis business and/or the sale of all, or substantially all of the assets owned by the business, including the greenhouse property, with the objective of maximizing value.

The current licensed operations contain 135,000 square feet of licensed nursery infrastructure and cultivation areas with a maximum capacity of ~36,000 plants per room. Low-cost production infrastructure is in place with significant potential operating leverage as the facility scales. The facility was developed using a transformative approach to production, integrating a high degree of automation, lean manufacturing processes, and commercial agricultural best practices.

On September 15, 2020, PharmHouse Inc. (“PharmHouse”) was granted protection pursuant to an order (as amended and restated, the “Initial Order”) issued under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (the “Court”). Pursuant to the Initial Order, Ernst & Young Inc. was appointed as a monitor of PharmHouse (in such capacity, the “Monitor”). Pursuant to an order dated October 29, 2020 (the “SISP Approval Order”) the Court approved the sale and investment solicitation process (the “SISP”) and the engagement of BMO Capital Markets as advisor to PharmHouse in respect of the SISP (the “SISP Advisor”).

The SISP is intended to solicit interest in, and opportunities for, a sale of, or investment in, all or part of the assets and/or the business of PharmHouse (the “Opportunity”). The Opportunity may include one or more of a sale of all, substantially all or one or more components of PharmHouse’s property and business as a going concern or otherwise or a potential restructuring, recapitalization or other forms of reorganization of the business and affairs of PharmHouse as a going concern.

The SISP is a two-phased process with the Phase 1 bid deadline set for November 30, 2020.

Those interested in participating in the SISP should contact the SISP Advisor to receive additional information at:

BMO Capital Markets
100 King Street West, 4th Floor
Toronto, ON M5X 1H3

Attention: Bradley Harris and Andrew Lai

Email: bradley.harris@bmo.com andrews.lai@bmo.com 

Copies of the SISP Approval Order and the SISP may be obtained from the website of the Monitor at www.ey.com/ca/pharmhouse.

Publication date: Thu 26 Nov 2020

Earth911 Podcast: Eden Green CEO Eddy Badrina Talks About Vertical Greenhouse Farming

Earth911 | Nov 9, 2020

Earth911 talks with Eden Green CEO Eddy Badrina about the company’s vertical greenhouses that will help the world grow locally and end food insecurity. While Americans expect to buy fresh product year-round, flying foods from Central America and the Southern Hemisphere carries a heavy environmental cost. Urban farming can fill in critical gaps in local food supplies, providing year-round, locally grown fresh produce.

Eden Green licenses the growing system to urban farmers who can set up in old buildings and warehouses to grow fresh greens, berries, and peppers year-round. The system uses natural light augmented by lighting on cloudy days, along with recycled water to substantially reduce the carbon footprint compared to traditional farming. Badrina discusses the pressing need for food production and security to serve a growing population.

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EDEN GREEN CEO EDDY BADRINA

Eden Green Technologies built a research and development greenhouse farm in Cleburne, Texas, and is preparing to launch its first commercial farming operation. The farm system includes 18-foot vertical hydroponic growing racks, lighting, and climate management equipment. With this system, a 1.5-acre urban farm can grow around 900,000 pounds of salad greens or 50 other types of produce annually, harvesting fresh produce daily for local consumption. The Eden Green systems delivers produce that is “better than organic,” Badrina said, that grows year-round, in any climate.

Badrina explains that urban farms will open new employment opportunities and encourage growers to give back to their communities. The Eden Green team will work with investors and local communities to work out the financing, build the farm, train the staff, and launch the business before handing it over to the local operator.

Listen to the podcast at Earth911.com.

To learn more about Eden Green and vertical greenhouses, visit edengreen.com.

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