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BrightFarms Founder And CEO Reflect On 10 Years of Growing Leafy Greens Indoors And Talk Future Plans
Valued at $6.8bn in the US alone (according to Research&Markets), the market for hydroponically-grown produce is no longer niche
31-Mar-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup
Valued at $6.8bn in the US alone (according to Research&Markets), the market for hydroponically-grown produce is no longer niche and poised for strong growth over the next several years, predicts BrightFarms, a company growing a variety of leafy greens hydroponically in massive indoor greenhouses.
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Creating A Whole New Fresh Food Experience Category | Q & A With Fifth Season CEO Austin Webb
In this Q & A Austin shares more about the company's mission, unique approach, and plans for the future
Fifth Season has been making headlines in recent weeks. In addition to a feature story in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, other outlets have covered the vertical-and-robotic-farming pioneer's expanded distribution partnership with food retailer Giant Eagle Inc, and its designation as "Official Greens" provider for the NHL 2020-2021 season of the Pittsburgh Penguins.
These stories follow many others that have tracked the company'simpressive innovations and accomplishments over the last year. Indoor Ag-Con had a chance to catch up with Fifth Season CEO Austin Webb, who co-founded the Pittsburgh-based company with brother Brac Webb (one of this week's Indoor Ag-Conversations panelists!) and Austin Lawrence. In this Q & A Austin shares more about the company's mission, unique approach, and plans for the future.
READ Q & A WITH AUSTIN WEBB
How COVID-19 Has Impacted Indoor Farming
Yahoo Finance’s Zack Guzman and Akiko Fujita discuss the indoor farming outlook and the plant-based fresh food categories with Viraj Puri, Gotham Greens Co-Founder, and CEO
January 11, 2021
Yahoo Finance’s Zack Guzman and Akiko Fujita discuss indoor farming outlook and the plant-based fresh food categories with Viraj Puri, Gotham Greens Co-Founder, and CEO.
To View The Video, Please Click Here.
ZACK GUZMAN: Welcome back to Yahoo Finance LIVE. Of course, 2020 was an interesting year for a lot of startups out there, particularly when it comes to being able to raise capital, as that quickly dried up when the pandemic first hit. But following that, a lot of companies were able to raise new capital to take on some pretty important goals here.
We're going to focus on two, one tied to the reopening of the economy as we continue to-- I don't want to say suffer through online events here, but one Zoom competitor, as well as our next guest here, focused on indoor farming-- a very interesting startup that is trying to challenge some traditional ways of doing things in farming. That would be Gotham Greens, which recently raised $87 million in new investment capital, and we're joined here by the co-founder and CEO of Gotham Greens. Viraj Puri joins us now.
And Viraj, I mean, we've talked about indoor farming for a few years here in the way that it's gained momentum to take on traditional agriculture in perhaps being a way that's more sustainable over the long term. But how have you seen maybe new capital getting put to work here recently as it catches on?
VIRAJ PURI: Absolutely. Well, I think to start with, this pandemic has really underscored the value proposition of more resilient supply chains. And indoor farming can really provide that because one can really farm anywhere, regardless of climate or availability of arable land, et cetera. So in our country, up to 50% of fresh produce is imported, and the balance majority comes from places like California and Arizona on the West Coast, which requires that fresh produce has to travel great distances to reach consumers throughout the country.
Conversely, indoor farming allows one to really grow anywhere, regardless of the climate, regardless of the soil conditions or land, et cetera. So I think when supply chains were really challenged early on this year with the pandemic, it has really revealed some of the benefits of indoor farming. And then, on top of that, sustainability is more of a topic that more consumers and companies care about.
And then on the third, sort of, point is food safety. We've seen more and more incidences of food safety and food safety recalls associated with that over the past decade or so, and indoor farming provides a compelling solution to reduce some of those risks. So as a result, we've seen a lot more capital rush into the space over the last 24 months.
AKIKO FUJITA: When you talk about the reliance that we saw exposed early on, in terms of where the food comes from, in particular states like California or Florida, how do you see the distribution shifting as a result? Indoor farming, of course, inherently means you can farm in any different region here. How have you seen that shift, the distribution channel shift as a result of that?
VIRAJ PURI: Yeah, similar to other sectors, we're seeing more last mile distribution centers, and we're seeing more just-in-time fulfillment, right? So with indoor farming, one can do that. The traditional supply chain is obviously dealing-- it's quite complex. A lot of middlemen, a lot of different actors along the way, and you're dealing with a highly perishable product when it comes to agricultural commodities-- many fresh agricultural commodities, particularly the ones that we grow and sell in market, including lettuce, leafy greens, herbs, things like that.
So this decentralized supply chain allows us to deliver much quicker to retailers. They don't have to place their purchase orders so far out in advance. And then it also allows us to fill those voids on the store shelves, depending on demand and supply with shoppers. So it really also reduces waste, which is a real ill that faces the food supply chain. Almost 50% of fresh produce in our country is thrown away between farm to fork, and we believe that indoor farming systems can really help create that equilibrium between demand and supply, which helps reduce that waste.
AKIKO FUJITA: Viraj, how have you seen your customer base shift? Is it-- is it restaurants that are getting in, that are expanding your base? Is it grocery stores?
VIRAJ PURI: Primarily grocery stores. I think pre-pandemic, it was really both. We did lose some food service business, restaurant business, at the onset of the pandemic, but that was more than made up for by increase in retail sales. Our revenue doubled in 2020, compared to the previous year, and a lot of that is a result of just the supermarkets wanting suppliers that can be more nimble with the supply chain.
And then increasingly, consumers are spending their dollars behind brands that speak to many of their values around ESG, around food safety, around supporting local economies. So those have been some of the factors that have really led to our doubling of our growth this last year, and we're very optimistic about the years ahead, for both our company and the broader indoor farming industry.
ZACK GUZMAN: Yeah, in the broader space discussion, too-- I mean, I know you guys have greenhouses across five states-- New York, Rhode Island, Maryland, Colorado, Illinois-- but when you think about the push here for more sustainability coming from the incoming administration, how much of that really throws fuels on the fire in terms of growth right now in expectations that there could be more friendly policy around indoor farming? Was that the impetus here to raise new capital, and if so, where do you look to put that to work in the short term?
VIRAJ PURI: I think there was a variety of factors that led to raising this capital, but primarily, it's less about the incoming administration and really more about capturing this opportunity in the marketplace to capture share from incumbents that are facing a lot of headwinds, whether it's climate issues, water issues out west, labor issues due to, sort of, you know, the reliance on migrant farmworkers to harvest and package and process product, along with food safety.
So we had actually put an expansion-- a pretty aggressive expansion plan into place prior to the pandemic, but post-pandemic, we're accelerating that change and using this capital to expand our network of greenhouse facilities across the country. As you pointed out, we currently operate-- we have manufacturing facilities in five states, and we service about 40 states. And our vision in the next few years is to really cover much of the country to truly become a national supply chain solution and consumer brand for consumers around the country.
ZACK GUZMAN: Yeah, it was interesting when you first saw indoor farming kind of taking hold here in the country and always interesting to see how fresh this stuff is in the store when I come across Gotham Greens. But Viraj Puri, I appreciate you coming on here. Co-founder and CEO at Gotham Greens. Thanks again.
INTERVIEW AND PODCAST: A Bigger Slice of The Pie – The Growth of Urban Agritech
Having been closely embedded in the urban agritech sector for many years, Mark’s perspective carries with it a wealth of global exposure and experience. He is, furthermore, committed to delivering a greater profile for the UK in this market
EDITION 4 Mark Horler
Chair of UKUAT
Having been closely embedded in the urban agritech sector for many years, Mark’s perspective carries with it a wealth of global exposure and experience. He is, furthermore, committed to delivering a greater profile for the UK in this market. He talks to us about the part the UK has to play in the expansion of agritech across both a local and global context, considering the opportunities being brought to bear for this emerging agricultural approach. We discuss the merits of competition versus collaboration and the ways in which the two approaches can be respectively utilised to increase extent to which urban agritech can thrive as part of the wider agricultural ecosystem.
Interview
Q) Can you share some background to the founding vision for UKUAT?
I previously worked with an international organisation in the vertical farming space and it led me to conclude that we needed organisations which reflect overarching principles but are more ‘on the ground’ in terms of how they operate.
UKUAT started three and half years ago with five people on the phone informally keeping each other updated about what we were doing, sharing events and talking about how we could collaborate.
It grew organically and became an informal organization with regular meetings. This year we became a formalised non-profit organisation pursuing our goals more seriously. UKUAT is based around familiar principles of: engaging with policy; with education; research and expertise; and collaboration across the urban agritech community. We have approximately 60 members: half are organisational members, which comprises commercial organisations like IGS, universities and research groups, and the other half are individuals such as academics, policy developers and those really interested in this space.
Q) You have been involved in the urban agritech sector for several years. How has sector interest grown, as well as broader consumer interest?
There is growing interest in the sector, in fact it is growing pretty quickly now. It was slower in the UK initially but there are a bunch of drivers moving it forward now: Brexit, climate change and food resilience more generally, so it has begun to accelerate rapidly.
From a consumer perspective, the topic which seems to be driving everything is localism and even hyper-localism. People are interested in this and like the ideas of transparency and sustainability. Knowing where your food comes from is driving interest in agritech solutions, the key ones being vertical farming (based more on volume) and rooftop greenhouse approach (based more on how and where produce is being delivered).
Q) What are the challenges facing the urban agritech sector? And what are the opportunities?
Everything depends on context, geographical placement and above all else what you are doing it for – be that commercial, educational, or social value. This drives how your whole business or organization will operate. There are numerous challenges such as high CAPEX and OPEX as well as policy questions around planning and subsidies and how those interact with your company or project. However, the industry is aware of these challenges and is really starting to address them. As a result, we believe there will be an explosion of opportunity to really expand this industry out quickly.
“We believe there will be an explosion of opportunity to really expand this industry out pretty quickly.”
Q) Which will further the development of the CEA and urban agritech industries in your opinion – greater collaboration or greater competition?
It is a bit of both. I prefer to refer to it like a ‘pie’. When greater competition is introduced, there is a struggle to gain a greater proportion of the pie. The role of the UKUAT, and indeed greater collaboration, is to make that pie bigger overall.
Cooperation happens in a pre-competitive space in areas such as research, education and policy, allowing everybody to move forward together. This is necessary, otherwise you end up with people reinventing the wheel and addressing same challenges over and over again. Collaboration allows people to move forward together in many areas, but still compete on price, product, branding, IP – whatever it may be – but they just do that with a raised baseline from which to operate.
“Collaboration allows people to move forward together in many areas, but still compete … with a raised base line with which to operate.”
Q) Should there be more discussion and co-working between urban and town planners and agritech innovators?
Yes, this is a critical area and one we are working hard on. We want to end up with a typology of use classes which will work for urban and town planners. They want to know easily what requirements and resources will be needed, what solutions might look like and then where to put them. Their job is ultimately to make a reasonable or reasoned decision about whether to approve or propose fitting something in, and there’s work we’re doing to support this.
That sort of typology could be applicable in a variety of scenarios including a rooftop farm, a new build or a retrofit, façade or whatever it might be; what power requirements it might have for example. Having an awareness of all these elements would then allow planners to make informed decisions about how a scheme would work. This would then end up (ideally) with a smarter system where a company will go and talk to a town planner or these types of solutions would be considered earlier if a city council has a site on which it wants to build. Developers would then be able to consider these too and include urban agritech more comfortably.
Q) What is the role of the retailer in the wider adoption of urban agritech approaches? What is the role of the retailer in the wider adoption of urban agritech approaches?
With the retailer, it is a question of scale. There are two ways of doing urban agriculture. There is small scale, hyper-local growing microgreens for a local restaurant or shop, and then at the other end of the scale, you have really big vertical farms in the sort of peri-urban space which you would site next to a distribution center so it can go straight into the logistical distribution for a large retailer. Either way, the goal of any produce grower is to deliver their product to a consumer.
Q) In the UK how do we compare to other countries in our approach to adopting and developing urban agri approaches? Are there other countries or regions we can be learning from?
There are two ends of a scale here. At one end you might see Singapore or China where the drive is coming from central government which dedicates time and money to move it forward. However, the weakness of that is approach that it tends to be a bit heavy on mandating exactly what happens and can become a bit inflexible.
On the other end of the scale, you have the US free-market approach which is flexible and has a profusion of people looking into the feasibility of this kind of approach. However, the risk here is that if these innovative growing schemes struggle to receive wider support and are only operational in the free market, it becomes very challenging to compete with other, more established, forms of food production.
I think the challenge in the UK is to figure out a ‘best of both worlds’ approach. If we are going to put public money into this sort of technology, we need to ensure that it allows for flexibility and innovation which the free market is the ideal background for. However, we simultaneously need to support it adequately so innovative forms of agritech can get a foothold before we can start looking at how we use this as part of a wider food system to achieve certain societal goals.
It is trying to find the sweet spot.
“We need to support it adequately… and start looking at how we use this as part of a wider food system to achieve certain societal goals.”
Q) You are also part of the FarmTech Society, which is based in Belgium. How is it working with organisations and governments to move forward greater agricultural and food production methods and approaches?
The FarmTech Society (FTS) is based in Brussels nominally but we have people in Europe and US (www.farmtechsociety.org). It works on three core principles of education, standardisation and policy. It takes a strategic view and looks at the really big questions for agritech. For example, on the standardisation point it has developed a partnership with Global GAP to look at sustainability standards across the industry. In education, it is working on a project with Erasmus Plus to develop an accreditation scheme.
These wider overarching principles are developed at an international level and organisations such as UKUAT look to implement or adapt them at local level. At FTS, we want to create a network of networks. The organisation’s aim is to mirror place-based context in each individual region and feed that up into a wider process through which we can generate discussion and drive policy or industry change to feedback down to the regional level.
“With the FarmTech Society we want to create a network of networks.”
Q) What role does education have to play in furthering the wider adoption of urban agritech?
You could hardly think of a more important thing. We want to be involved at a primary and secondary level and want to be part of STEM adoption. We want to share the wonder of this technology and show kids how food is and can be produced. Green Bronx Machine in New York, a school garden programme which uses urban agriculture to connect pupils with where their food comes from, is an example of where this has been done really well. Beyond schools there are two specific areas of educational development: vocational training or the higher education route. Both are hugely important and as an industry set to expand over time, we will need a workforce of people with demonstrable and certified skills that allow them to operate those technologies. Within higher education the core skills going forward will need to focus on technical, management and strategic level, research or developing new technologies.
It is also vitally important to educate consumers, policymakers, and those in the wider world. This is a very important communications exercise as you ultimately want people to know that these emerging technologies are safe and they can trust them. Beyond that, we want consumers to see the benefits that a better food experience can bring.
For more info go to: https://www.ukuat.org/
GUEST BIO
Mark Horler
Chair of UKUAT
Mark has been involved in the Vertical Farming industry for around eight years. He is the Founder & Chairman of UK Urban AgriTech (UKUAT), bringing together the leading companies, universities and individuals in the UK urban agritech industry. He is also Communications Manager at The FarmTech Society, the Co-Founder of The Soya Project, and does freelance consulting work across the industry.
In his work he has dealt extensively with industry standardisation, sustainability certification, vertical farming education and vertical farming policy. His expertise is in building networks and associations that maximise value for their members, and for the industry as a whole.
Mark’s primary interest is in taking a systemic overview of how vertical farming can be integrated with other systems, to deliver on its promises of regenerative food production and resilient societies.
What's In Store For The Horticulture Industries After COVID-19?
Mariska Dreschler (GreenTech) and Annie van de Riet (AVAG, Association of the Dutch greenhouse construction and technology industry), discuss how the coronavirus pandemic is affecting the greenhouse sector, and what is the outlook for the industry.
The current status of the several horticulture industries and EU projects
How long will we feel the consequences in the greenhouse industries
What measures should be taken now and in the future
Where do the opportunities lie for the horticulture industries
How are the chains affected and how will they need to change
For more information:
GreenTech
www.greentech.nl
By Horti Daily | May 5, 2020
Video: Interview - Sharing Advice About Being A Microgreens Grower
Microgreens Video Interview
The Microgreens Show
An interview with a young inspiring reporter, Nick Greens shares some expert advice about being a microgreens grower.
THE NICK GREENS GROW TEAM CAN HELP YOU
ANSWER THESE TOUGH QUESTIONS:
Do you have an efficient and dependable grow room and system?
Are your crops food safe?
Do you have a sustainable farm and a proven business model?
Can you determine crop yield, cost $/lb, and labor costs on a daily basis?
Is your crop mix optimized for production and profitability?
CO2 GRO Inc (CVE:GROW) Proprietary Foliar Spray System Boosts Yields By 25 Percent
By MIDASLETTER LIVE | APRIL 24, 2019
CO2 GRO INC
CO2 GRO Inc (CVE:GROW) (OTCMKTS:BLONF) (FRA:4O21) is developing advanced carbon dioxide technologies to accelerate plant growth. COO Aaron Archibald explains that carbon dioxide is beneficial for growth, resulting in larger and quicker-growing plants. The company’s proprietary process dissolves carbon dioxide into water, which is then applied to the foliage of plants using CO2 GRO’s foliar spray system.
Typically, growers use gas deployment systems that result in significant carbon dioxide loss as a result of venting; CO2 GRO’s foliar sprays ensure each plant receives the necessary carbon dioxide. Unlike gas deployment systems, the company’s foliar spray technology can be applied to outdoor grows and greenhouses.
Archibald reveals that using CO2 GRO’s foliar sprays regularly results in yields 25 to 30 percent higher than yields produced by using gas deployment systems. Archibald anticipates that the company’s technology will be adopted by cannabis LPs in Canada, as Health Canada is in the process of reviewing applicable regulations. CO2 GRO currently has licensing agreements in both Canada and the US, and has seen broad interest from the American hemp space since the passage of the Farm Bill.
Transcript:
Narrator: CO2 GRO is a Toronto based, precision agriculture technology company. GRO offers CO2 foliar spray systems to both indoor and outdoor growers for increasing their crop yields, safely and naturally.
The company has over 66 million shares outstanding, with management ownership at 26 percent. CO2 GRO Inc is listed on the TSX-Venture under the symbol GROW.
James West: I’m joined now by Aaron Archibald, Chief Operating Officer of CO2 Grow, trading on the TSX Venture under the symbol GROW. That’s a good symbol.
Aaron Archibald: It is, thanks!
James West: Aaron, so your business is essentially creating foliar CO2 sprays, and so just to refresh the memory of our audience, or to enlighten them for those who might not know, what is the benefit of CO2 as a foliar spray?
Aaron Archibald: Well, any grower knows that adding CO2 to plants is beneficial, and they’ll grow faster and grow bigger; it’s difficult to get CO2 to plants, though. So what we do is, we dissolve CO2 into water and apply it to the foliage of the plant. That makes it 100 percent bioavailable, and it’s driven into the plant by osmotic pressure.
James West: Okay. So interestingly, most greenhouses that beneficiate with CO2 use gas deployment systems.
Aaron Archibald: Absolutely.
James West: And that’s got to be a little bit more wasteful, because obviously the air is being changed in the environment?
Aaron Archibald: Yeah. Most of it gets vented; it’s very difficult to create a homogenic environment and get all the CO2 to every plant. It’s like HVAC systems are extremely difficult in building; most people have a forced air furnace in their home know that they have a room in the winter that’s always colder than the other ones.
James West: Sure.
Aaron Archibald: So by putting it directly into the water and putting that directly onto the plant, every plant gets CO2, and it’s just the most bioavailable means of doing it.
James West: Cool. Then, you guys, when you were last here, we were talking about this issue where Health Canada had not approved foliar-sprayed CO2 for use in commercial gardens by licensed producers in Canada. Has that changed?
Aaron Archibald: Of cannabis. They haven’t changed their regulations necessarily; they have let us know that we’re approved by GFIA, and that we don’t contravene anything. We’re not a pesticide, we’re not a herbicide. I look at it and say we’re just a novel means of applying water and CO2 at the same time. Any LP is allowed to water their plant, and allowed to use CO2.
James West: Okay, so there’s no barrier to any of the LPs using the product.
Aaron Archibald: I think it’s a matter of how you interpret the legislation, and where and when they can use it in their facilities.
James West: Okay, let me ask you this another way.
Aaron Archibald: All right.
James West: How soon till LPs are using your product over gas-delivered CO2?
Aaron Archibald: I’d say very soon. I think that Health Canada is having a long, hard look at some of their regulations, and I think they did it very quickly and did it with a broad brush. You know, you can water or foliar spray cuttings, or clones, right now; it’s just more mature plants you can’t. I think when they recognize that there’s no added pesticides, anything harmful, there wouldn’t be a problem with spraying water on a plant.
James West: Sure. So I’m curious: how do you get CO2 dissolved in water?
Aaron Archibald: We use a proprietal technology that does it very efficiently. I mean, there’s a number of different ways to put dissolved gases into liquids; we just happen to have experience doing it efficiently. We don’t need to chill it, we don’t need to compress it. You know, some of that’s proprietal, so I won’t tell everyone exactly how we do it, but we can do it extremely efficiently, at high, high levels.
James West: Wow. Okay, so then, how often does a greenhouse or a, say, cannabis plant, need to be treated with foliar CO2 in order to optimize the growth cycle?
Aaron Archibald: The more times you can apply it, the better. So what we have worked on with people is applying extremely small volumes of water more times per day, because you get more CO2 delivered to the plant that way.
James West: Okay. So is this something that you could actually create an automated misting system within a environment that would be a beneficial way to approach it?
Aaron Archibald: Absolutely. Some of our customers do that now.
James West: Oh, okay, great.
Aaron Archibald: So you – most overhead booms, you can control the volume of water, the speed of the boom, and the number of times per day that it runs, so it’s easily automatable.
James West: And your process, as you say, is proprietary, but is it patented?
Aaron Archibald: Patent pending.
James West: Patent pending. Great. So at this point, who is using your product?
Aaron Archibald: Well, a number of different growers in the States and Canada.
James West: Okay.
Aaron Archibald: Generally we do sign a non-disclosure agreement; lots of people don’t necessarily want their name put out there, but we –
James West: They don’t want their competitors to know that they’re using this secret weapon.
Aaron Archibald: Exactly, but we currently have commercial operations in Canada and the US.
James West: Uh-huh. Okay, and how much does it cost? I mean, let’s pick a unit of square footage; let’s say, per thousand square feet, is it easy to say, well, this is how much the cost is going to be per month, per thousand square feet?
Aaron Archibald: It is pretty easy. You know, we do a scoping survey with them; we have an engineering group that works with them and looks at whether or not their infrastructure is set up to use the technology, what might need to be tweaked, and then we come to a commercial arrangement. And we usually charge by the square foot per month. We can do it quarterly as well, but it’s a per square foot, or per square metre in Europe, charge.
James West: So unlike software as a service, this is like CO2 as a service, model? [laughter]
Aaron Archibald: Yes it is, yeah. We – it’s a site license/lease model that we’re doing.
James West: Very interesting. And at some point, will you have a retail option available for those growing at home?
Aaron Archibald: I could see that in the future. It would be a matter of engineering it down to a small enough size and a price point where a home grower could use it. Right now, I think it’s not very feasible, but I could see it in the near future.
James West: Really? Okay.
Aaron Archibald: Just from a cost standpoint –
James West: This is me with my hand up. I would like to grow. Heading to my NDI, this is my garden in my own home right now that is growing hydroponically, and I would love the opportunity to treat two plants with foliar spray and two plants without and see how the difference is in a measured basis.
Aaron Archibald: Well, as we talked about before we got on air, I’ll get you some equipment used for a trial. So you just have to share the data with me.
James West: Great! Yeah, of course, I’d be happy to. Okay, Aaron, then how does the revenue model, the business model, of the company work, then? You’re saying you have a per square foot plus a licensing; how does that sort of, what per user, how much – what’s your – I guess I’m babbling now. What is the projected growth of the revenue in the company?
Aaron Archibald: That’s hard to say. The market is so big. You know, the plant for food market is $9 trillion per year; you know, the focus is cannabis right now in Canada, it’s very popular, but we can help all plants grow. So whether it’s peppers or lettuce, it’s almost hard to measure what our revenues are going to be like in two years, simply because we have so much opportunity in front of us.
James West: Sure. What’s to stop me from just spraying club soda on my plants?
Aaron Archibald: You could. Technically, you’d be in violation of the process patent, but also the cost to buy club soda and spray it on your plants would be –
James West: Pretty high.
Aaron Archibald: High. Extremely high.
James West: Interesting.
Aaron Archibald: Extremely inefficient.
James West: And is the carbon content of club soda equal or similar to that, and the bioavailability, does it even apply?
Aaron Archibald: Well, not really. I mean, they chill soft drinks and put it under extreme pressure; that’s why you see bubble nucleation, so you know, if you shake it and open it, it explodes. So that’ll tend to drive the CO2 out of it, and that’s part of the experience of drinking a carbonated drink, is you like the sense of the bubbles in it.
James West: The fizz.
Aaron Archibald: What we do is different in that you won’t actually see bubbles, and bubbles won’t nucleate out; it’s done on a molecular level, and it stays in solution so that it can be utilized. If it comes out of solution, it’s just not bioavailable anymore.
James West: Sure. What kind of increase in yield, in percentage terms, can one expect from applying foliar CO2 relative to not applying any CO2?
Aaron Archibald: I’d say on average we’ve seen between 25 and 30 percent increase versus standard gassing, so 800 to 1,200 ppm in a room.
James West: Then, now with Health Canada reconsidering some of its regulations over foliar applied, let’s call it a nutrient for lack of a better descriptor – is that something that they now have to specifically give you the ability, or an LP the ability, to say, okay, you can use that now without risk of it resulting in a negative test result from your product? Is there any risk of that?
Aaron Archibald: There isn’t. See, plants take in CO2, and they keep the C, which is the carbon, which is a building block for plants, and they respire out O2, much the same way we breathe in air with O2 and respire out CO2. So there’ll be no residual CO2 left in a plant because it becomes carbon, becomes the plant. So there really is no way to test for CO2 in a plant.
James West: Right. I guess as carbon-based life forms, we have no problem dealing with carbon in our cannabis.
Aaron Archibald: Exactly right. And that’s why CO2 makes plants grow bigger and faster and yield more.
James West: Right. So I guess, then, the inflection point for your company is going to be when widespread adoption of foliar-sprayed CO2 at the commercial level takes root – the pun intended – in the cannabis industry broadly?
Aaron Archibald: Yes. Yeah, and you know, like many Canadian technologies, sometimes you go abroad before you get adoption at home. It’s an unfortunate thing, but you see it a lot. We have a phenomenal amount of interest internationally; you know, US hemp growers can’t keep up with the number of phone calls we’re getting right now. Since it’s been legalized federally in the States, they’re really, really interested, especially outdoor growers. It’s the only means to apply CO2 to a plant outdoors, is by putting it in water first and applying it to the plant.
James West: Right. Either that, or putting a coal-fired hydroelectric plant next door!
Aaron Archibald: It’d be pretty inefficient to blow it on, because the wind would just take it away. So by putting it in water, we can supply outdoor growers with CO2, hoop houses, shade houses, things that historically – like, structures that have historically not been able to use CO2 in them.
James West: Right. What about competitors? Do you have – who do you have in the competitive realm?
Aaron Archibald: Touch wood as I say it: Right now, there are no competitors! You know, it’s a novel technology. No one had ever thought to do it before, so we’re first to market with it, and you know, that’s why we’ve gone through the process of getting the IP, but I think more importantly it’s going to be first to market, having some trade secrets and penetrating the market, and becoming the company that’s known as the CO2 foliar spray technology.
James West: Interesting as ever, Aaron. We’re going to continue to follow the story, and I can’t wait to try it out on my own plants. Thanks for joining me today.
Aaron Archibald: Okay! All right, thanks very much.
Vertical And Urban Farming With Henry Gordon-Smith, Founder & Managing Director of Agritecture
Founder & Managing Director of Agritecture
February 20, 2019
In this interview we talk all about urban and vertical farming: What it is, what the challenges are, and why you should use these farming technologies to grow food in your city. If you’re curious about urban and vertical farming, then don't miss this article!
Henry could you please introduce yourself and you company?
Hi Marek! I’d be happy to, thanks for talking with me today. My name is Henry Gordon Smith, and I am the founder and managing director at Agritecture.
Agritecture is a global urban agriculture consulting firm. So what this means is we assist entrepreneurs and organizations around the world who are looking to start farms of their own or get into the vertical farming space. A lot of entrepreneurs don’t know what they should grow, they don’t know whether they should do a greenhouse or vertical farm. They don’t know what policies or what technologies they should be aware of to be successful. We help them answer those questions through data and our interdisciplinary approach.
A little bit of background about me. I started actually as a blogger, so about 9 years ago I got really interested in urban agriculture and I was dissatisfied with the amount of information available online. The information available wasn’t clear, it wasn’t honest, it wasn’t connected to the way that cities develop and so I created agritecture.com as a blog all about the future of agriculture in cities. Over the years that blog has grown up into a global consulting business which has been very exciting.
Henry how would you define Urban and Vertical farming?
That’s a great question because depending on how you look at them the two things are quite different, but also very similar in a number of important ways.
Urban farming means growing food in the city, and there are many different ways that you can do that. It’s also important to note that urban and local aren’t the same: you can have local farms that are in peri-urban and nearby rural areas, but when we talk about urban farming we’re really talking about growing food right in the city. You can have urban farming on rooftops, you can have it in vacant public spaces, and you can have it in and around private buildings as well. Most people think only about soil-based farming when they think about urban agriculture, but within that definition there should also be greenhouses, hydroponic farms, aquaponic farms and vertical farms.
Vertical farming is one specific type of urban farming, and the specific definition has been evolving I would say. The first definition that was put out there was really by doctor Dickson Despommier, author of The Vertical Farm, who was a mentor of mine as well, and his definition was basically indoor farms are like stacked greenhouses that are two stories high or more. I think that definition is OK but I think it excludes the reality of vertical farming that sometimes happens in basements and sometimes is only one level high, and frequently happens without natural light of any kind. So there's many different kinds of vertical farming today and the definition has really evolved since doctor Dickson Despommier publish his book about 10 years ago. So you know I think it's important to recognize that there are some varieties within vertical farming, and it’s not all the same thing anymore.
I think vertical farming is really about 3D farming. It's about designing with a 3 dimensional space in mind and trying to maximize the layers as much as possible. So vertical farm is typically stacked layers of cultivation and typically this is done hydroponically—although sometimes it can be done with soil—and is typically done indoors with no natural light although sometimes you can have them within some greenhouse models.
What is the relationship between these two farming methods?
I think that vertical farming is typically done in and near cities. When you think of vertical farming one of the main benefits is that you can produce high volumes of local food or food closer to the customer. But vertical farming doesn't have to be urban. You can think about a large scale vertical farm near a food distribution center somewhere far away. You can think about a vertical farm that's growing for scientific purposes and some research center far away from the city. You can think about vertical farms that are on the edges of cities away from the center. But I think most commonly you're trying to reduce the distance between the farm and the customer and so vertical farms tend to be in or very close to urban areas. So I see vertical farming as a subset of urban agriculture.
Why to use vertical and urban farming instead of traditional farming?
There are a couple different reasons and it really depends on where you are. The first thing is that every city is different and the drivers that are going to make urban or vertical farming successful are different in each city.
For example, if I look in New York City the driver for going indoors and growing in a vertical farm (which is very expensive and requires a lot of equipment) is the cold winter. In the winter time you can't get local food and all of our fresh produce comes from places like California, Arizona, Florida and Mexico. Now we have an economic reason to disrupt that situation and grow local food.
If you look at a place like Dubai, the reasons for doing indoor farming are very different than NYC. For example, the heat in Dubai is so significant that most of the greenhouses need to shut down in the summertime. They also import about 90% of their total food supply from abroad. So there are different drivers for vertical farming there than in NYC but the important point is that vertical farming makes sense in both contexts, they just might have slightly different systems that are tailored to the specific local needs and context.
Looking around the globe, there are also a lot of issues with people cutting down forests to build farmland, and also farmland being paved over to make room for growing cities. Urban agriculture and these new methods of growing local produce can be a way to save that land and make sure that you have enough trees to absorb carbon and make sure the ecosystem is performing properly. It's not a solution that’s meant to totally replace traditional agriculture but it should be a significant part of the entire system and I think a lot of people are surprised to learn that actually 15 to 20% of our global food supply comes from urban agriculture according to the FAO.
Henry, could you please talk about the main market issues that these farming methods solve?
Sure, the main system that urban agriculture actually disrupts is distribution. I think a lot of people think about the production and sure there's benefits from clean and pesticide free food, but distribution is the main disruption. Distribution in its most general sense is the major source of the carbon impact coming from traditional agriculture that urban agriculture helps to reduce. The reason you have distribution is actually why sometimes you have to have a lot of chemicals used for packaging. Food waste is a big part of that system as well. The economic opportunity around urban agriculture and vertical farming really comes from providing the product faster and fresher and cleaner and I think distribution is the main disruption point with urban agriculture.
World Vegetable Map 2018, Source: Rabobank, 2019
Vertical and Urban farming is rising right now based on market research, is that true?
Yeah I think it's a hot trend. I think the media is talking about it, and we're seeing some cities get involved in it from a governmental perspective as well. A lot more funding is going to the space so there's lots to talk about I think there's a bit of hype. I think that people are also too excited about it in some ways. I mean look, I'm very excited about it I talked about all the time and my blog writes about it every single day, but at the same time I think the hype isn't that helpful when you see articles like “Vertical farming will save the world” or “Vertical farming will feed the future”. I always try to explain: vertical farming it's a part of the solution, it is not the solution alone.
I think it's really important to understand that you can't grow everything at the vertical farm today. There are very difficult models that you have to operate very carefully and I think also you need to raise a lot of money. It's not an easy business and I think looking at the big picture hydroponic greenhouses are actually a bigger part of the future farming. I think hydroponic greenhouses provide more variety and they are more economically viable today, but it really depends on where you are located. Vertical farming is getting a lot of attention right now but I hope that attention turns into action and science-based knowledge.
What key challenges are these technologies now facing?
I don't think there's anything wrong with the technology. I think the technology works. If you would have asked me a couple of years ago there would have been a lot of challenges with the lighting, a lot of challenges with heating and ventilation, a lot of challenges with automation but now we're seeing that all those technologies of advancing quite rapidly and they are improving every year really.
We are on really good track to have economically viable vertical farming, but the problems that still exist that haven't been solved are the operational problems such as: managing waste, managing food safety, managing labor, hiring the right staff. All these things are still the challenge.
I think there are 2 major problems right now for vertical farming: one is sales and marketing, and the other is operations. I don't think it's the technology. When we see farms fail it's mostly because they struggled with one of those two core challenges.
What do you think will be the next big thing in this field?
I think whatever the next big thing is will have to solve a specific problem. The major problem for urban and vertical farms right now is labor. Labor costs are rising. The labor can be up to 35-40% of your operations costs. That's usually the biggest single chunk of your cost as a vertical farmer. Those costs need to be reduced and I think automation technology is probably the most exciting.
I don't mean necessarily high tech robots that perform every farm task, I’m really talking about specific farm tasks that right now take up a lot of labor time: packaging tasks, washing tasks or harvesting tasks. If we can build farms where the staff are paid more and they only focus on monitoring and maintenance and dealing with problems that arise, this would be the ideal. This would mean you get the talent to create the jobs, those jobs are paid better they are focused on complex challenges not on repetitive activities.
I think automation technology and robotics have a lot of promise for vertical farming. We're making progress there. I think other technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) or computer vision have a lot of potential as well.
Could you please describe today’s typical urban farmer?
The typical vertical farming entrepreneur today is a man, age 35 to 60, who has made money off some kind of business beforehand and is looking to invest it in this new emerging field. They usually feel a strong need to change the world and they know that agriculture is one of these major problems. They see this technology as really exciting because it's going to allow them to do more than they could do on their own. It's going to allow them to solve the problem in a really interesting way. But it’s really important to note that although this is the norm, there are people of all backgrounds who decide to become vertical farming entrepreneurs, and I sincerely hope that the diversity in our industry will only increase as the industry continues to grow.
How do you recognize produce that comes from a vertical farm?
The short answer: The day and the place would be the right way to do it. Otherwise you can't really tell, other than the fact that there’s no soil or dirt on any of the produce, but this is tough because most produce is washed clean regardless. Usually the marketing on the package will give you some indication: it will tell you that “we are vertical farm, we are local, we are fresh, we are pesticides free.”
Do you thinks it's better to say it's from Vertical farm?
No, I don’t think that is what the consumers need to see. I think the consumers wants to see local or they want to see clean.
Henry, why did you choose these farming methods? What drives you?
I was studying political science in Canada and Vancouver wanted to be the greenest city by 2020, and I was looking at these policies and I noticed that food wasn't really part of it. They had plans to managing food waste but they didn’t have a plan for growing enough food. I thought that this was very disappointing, why isn’t food security part of the green planning process? And the truth is that if you look globally it’s really not. Cities don’t consider agriculture as part of their plan which I think is really problematic, and I also was disappointed because I saw hydroponic websites talking about hydroponics technologies but it was disconnected from how the business models work in the city. How the technology would work with the people, with the customers.
I wanted to create a space to explore and share these ideas publicly, which led to the creation of the original agritecture.com blog. And as I started getting more interest in the topic I learned more about the gaps in the market and when I see gaps in the market I see an opportunity to create change. The major gap that existed as that there was no technology agnostic advice that’s available online that's consistent and quality and honest and transparent and so I wanted to solve that problem and fill that gap. That’s when I launched Agritecture Consulting as a technology agnostic consulting service to help entrepreneurs and companies grow local food successfully and sustainably.
My last question: what was the most challenging thing for you and Agritecture?
For me the most challenging thing has been my openness. I think I really want to answer everyone’s questions and I want to solve everyone's problems and I think as a new entrepreneur I didn’t learn quickly enough that you have to focus in and filter out some of the noise and distraction.
My advice to new entrepreneurs would be finding that one thing that you're really good at and focus on that, because there's always new opportunities, there are always going to be new ideas and new ways of doing things and new business potential, but if you don't focus on the core thing you're great at, you’re not going to have a consistent story and you're not going to have a profitable business.
So I think at the beginning the challenge was that I wanted to solve everyone problems, for every single audience, and answer everybody's questions. But the fact is that when you have a team like I do now (we've got 8 full-time employees) you have to be responsible as a leader and you have to be very focused, and that was a real challenge for me.
What is the thing that you would say you’re best at?
I'm good at understanding people’s core needs. I grew up around the world. I grew up in Hong Kong, Tokyo, Germany, Czech Republic, Russia and Canada and so I've lived in all those countries. I’ve been living in New York now for 6 years—the longest I've lived anywhere! I am always moving around and all of that variety allowed me to be very adaptable and very good at understanding people. I can read people very easily and I can understand their needs and motivations and I know how to adapt to meet them and communicate with them in a way that makes the most sense to them. As a consultant, this is a very important skill to make the most of your own time, as well as that of your client’s.
Henry, thanks for calling today. You are doing a great job and I wish you best of luck. Marek Hrstka
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CEO Eric Amyot on Smart Cities Through The Lens of a Farmer
As Modular Farms gears up for a new year of innovation, we caught up with CEO Eric Amyot to gain perspective on Smart Cities, the advancing urban farming industry and what Modular Farms has in store for 2018. Find out what Eric has to say in this in-depth interview on the future of farming and living.
Eric Amyot, CEO of Modular Farms Co
What was your first introduction to the idea of a Smart City?
In all honesty, the idea of a Smart City was introduced to me as a child watching the cartoon show The Jetsons. Although the program seemed like science fiction when I was young, it was my first opportunity to explore and imagine life in the future. Fast-forward a couple years and I’m realistically thinking about how advancements in robotics, autonomous transport and artificial intelligence might shape a family's lifestyle and individuals' work habits. Imagine only having to work three days a week and having an AI enhanced robot as a maid!? Cool, right?
Who is a thinker or leader that inspires you?
There are a few agricultural and technological leaders who give me inspiration. First I’d like to shout-out Ron Finley for knowing how to get his hands dirty, putting in work and getting shit done in urban agriculture. Second, Stephan Ritz is inspiring for just being so damn passionate and genuine. Finally, Elon Musk (sorry, had to) for reminding me there's simply too much stuff to get done in a single lifetime to focus on just one thing.
What are the key advantages of vertical farming? How do these advantages align with the goals of Smart Cities and the future of agriculture?
The key advantage I'd like to point out, though there are many, is the ability to make growing and sharing food accessible in any scale, at any location. The potential genius of the Smart City really is its inclusivity. All citizens of a Smart City must have access to essentials like transit, waste reclamation, lifestyle services and, of course, healthy and safe food year-round. If that is accomplished, the possibilities are overwhelmingly positive, particularly for those who are typically or historically at risk of marginalization.
Vertical Farming will play a significant role in the success of Smart Cities, however it is alarming to often hear many planners misunderstanding or altogether discrediting the food production model. The current thought process of feeding people in densely populated city centres still invokes the ideas of raised soil beds, courtyard gardens and rooftop greenhouses. It is unrealistic to expect to feed large populations, (worldwide and all year long) without the adoption of controlled-environment vertical farming. Having said that, there will always be a need for hands-in-the-dirt gardening. In the case of Smart Cities, I believe traditional gardening will play more of a spiritually nourishing role for cities of the future than actually feeding a population.
What are some of the logistical challenges of integrating Vertical Farming solutions, and how can Smart Cities overcome those challenges?
There are a few primary hurdles vertical farming must overcome before it can be expected to be integrated into Smart Cities.
Education:
A large portion of society still lacks an accurate and positive perception of what vertical farming is. Space-age technologies are popularly regarded as a cumbersome mashing of nostalgia and futurism; both are perceived as time consuming and ineffective. Unfortunately, many of today's solutions are just that, well, at least for most individuals and families. While the vertical farming industry is getting closer in defining itself as an appealing option for some people, it must do a better job at honestly communicating the real benefits and challenges it presents before becoming a universal, trusted and commoditized solution.
Acceptance:
While the industry is pushing towards intensive capital to fund large factory farming ventures, acceptance by society will only occur when the individual consumer learns to trust and accept vertical farming as a means to nutritional sustainability, transparency and safety.
Energy:
The vertical farming industry is producing an increasingly prolific amount of food. Unfortunately, as we race to produce more and more lettuce and kale, we continue to place the importance of solving the industry’s high-energy issues as a secondary priority. The net-zero farm isn't very far in the future, in my opinion, but it isn't the focus it needs to be. Simply put, vertical farms consume too much energy to be implemented as a mandatory fixture and amenity in our cities. Another form of energy often overlooked are calories. The labor involved in owning and maintaining a vertical farm, particularly one producing enough food to truly feed a family, is far too labor-intensive and time-consuming to operate. Society barely has time to make kids' lunches, walk the dog, go to work, get to cheerleading practice, and do the laundry, let alone operate a vertical farm. Until vertical farms consume less energy (from the grid and from the people who operate them) they will have issues with broad adoption in Smart Cities. The only strategy for early adoption of vertical farming as a commoditized solution is to make it a mandatory amenity for new developments. Otherwise, as we see now, people will most often opt out.
As you delve further into the R&D side of vertical farming, what makes Modular Farms’ agritech different from other vertical farming systems (now or in future)? How does this fit in with designing the city of the future?
Modular Farms farming system has two distinct competitive advantages – it’s modular and scalable. Providing different models of container farms and farming implements our Growers’ results in a refined and defined solution, not only for crop diversity but also ROI. Just like everything else in life, no single product provides a solution to every challenge. At Modular Farms, we certainly don't believe in pounding square pegs into round holes. This approach speaks well to the challenges of working with Smart Cities of the future. We're container farmers at our core, but our past experience, current design and future Modular approach will allow us flexibility in scale, accessibility and aesthetic. Future Smart City farms will have to be built on the principles we are currently following. Secondly, Modular Farms strongly considers aesthetics and ergonomics. Let's be realistic and honest, working for any period of time inside a shipping container isn't exactly a dream scenario, despite how cool and exciting it can be. While we are still growing food in boxes, it’s important to try making those boxes as bright, cheery and enjoyable as possible. Having spent years farming inside an 8' foot wide container, I can't tell you how much the extra 2' in a Modular Farm means, to both the Growers and the plants. Being inside a Modular Farm is like being in a pre-fab structure, lab or office. It is what it is, a box, but it's so much better in so many ways. Finally, Modular Farms is consistently and actively looking toward the future and for areas of differentiation. Fact: people in Smart Cities won't be fed by lettuce and kale alone. Yes, some container farms are capable of growing fancy herbs and strawberries, but it's still not enough. I won't divulge all of our secrets at this time, but the future of Modular Farms includes precisely what we're doing now and something much different.
We understand that Modular Farms is diving into AI and robotics. What short term/long term goals can we share and how do they integrate into this subject matter?
I've always believed vertical farm companies, at least for the foreseeable future, should be focusing on making better labor assistive tools and technologies before jumping to fully-enabled farming robots. Yes, it would be cool having a farm where simply dropping a seed produces a head of lettuce only a few weeks later, but for now we should be focusing on farms with low costs that grow the foods we need. Modular Farms is taking a close look at robotics and AI in 2018, learning how we can make the process of vertical farming easier for Growers without replacing them.
Name a current city that’s doing Vertical Farming really well. Tell us who’s doing a great job in your eyes (if any).
I'm actually really excited about Alphabet's Sidewalk Labs consultation over the next year with the City of Toronto and its $50 million commitment for the installation and testing of the company’s smart city technology. There’s still a long way to go, it’s noted if the Quayside project is completed the costs would be in the billions, fortunately Alphabet is capable, and Toronto’s tech-focused eagerness gives me hope it might actually happen. Toronto is running behind in established vertical farming infrastructure compared to cities like New Jersey, Boston and even Truro, NS. However, Toronto’s position as the world’s tech centre in AI, Fintech, and other advancing strengths would have me place my bet on Toronto coming away as a leader in the vertical farming race for success. I hope companies like Just Vertical, Waterfarmers, Ripple and of course Modular Farms, among every other vertical farming startup calling Toronto home, continue to shape the future of vertical farming in the city.
Credit: Sidewalk Labs
Can you describe the ideal result for a Smart City for Toronto? What would vertical farming on a grand scale look like here?
Vertical farming will only truly serve a large metropolitan centre like Toronto if solutions like large-scale vertical farming, micro farming (like Modular Farms) and viable residential solutions are considered. The challenge of feeding as many people as possible is only met by matching large-scale production with local distribution or even in-home growing; regardless whether national grocery chains adopt vertical farming. A Smart City in Toronto, if well executed, provides new opportunities for food, energy, health care and transportation inclusivity – helping blur class divisions. Large-scale vertical farming in Toronto means eliminating a dependency on fresh food imports. Incorporating restorative agriculture practices in the city and surrounding areas ensures that preservation and improvement of conventional soil-based farming. Frankly, the fastest approach affecting the largest populations requires an obligation or mandatory measure, ensuring citizens become self-sufficient, confident growers and buyers of locally sourced, distributed and affordable food.
With Sidewalk Labs announcing its creation of a Smart City at Toronto’s waterfront, do you have any final words to share with stakeholders who may read this published piece in future?
We're at a wonderful and pivotal time in the world of vertical farming. Despite all the fantastic technologies assisting the rise of vertical farming as a viable solution, we've got a little way to go before we can provide a solution that is suitable for everyone. As billions of dollars are invested in the grandiose dreams of giant vertical farms feeding global populations, we mustn't forget, food is a fundamental right intended for all citizens and is not a privilege to those solely with the means to afford and access it. The impressive amount of capital pouring into a handful of the now-largest vertical farming companies in the world spurs innovation and produces vast quantities of only some foods. It is important to keep focus, if not an increased amount of focus, on the reason why we are doing this to begin with – to build food secure cities, institutions, schools, homes and families. I maintain my excitement for what is coming across the industry, and I am in awe by the scale of our ambitions. I will however, rest happy when we've taught everyone the value of local, healthy and safe food by giving them tools for growing the essentials themselves.
Published by: Jesse Brito in Farm Resources, News