The Scalability of Urban Farming
Harvester City: Interview with David Proenza, Founder of Urban Farms Global.
When I first got into Urban Farming, I dreamt of meeting people like David Proenza. David is the founder of Urban Farms Global a company dedicated to developing indoor farms around the world. He is also the president of the “Foundation for the Development of Controlled Environment Agriculture.” A non-profit dedicated to promoting knowledge of Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) based on science and research. David has spent over 35 years in the food industry; he is indeed someone who has embraced the future of food while still understanding the importance of a human-centered approach. Technology has continued to redefine all aspects of our everyday life. I wonder what does the role of technology mean for the future of food? Will traditional farmers be a thing of the past? I had the pleasure of asking David all these questions and more in our interview below.
What sparked your interest in the food space?
“I got into this industry by accident; it wasn’t planned. I’ve been in the food business now for over 33 years. It started when a friend of mine asked for some help with a new company that he started that involved marketing for the food business. The job then began to take a life of its own, and it ended up becoming a full-time thing. At the time I was also working at AT&T.
In 3 decades, I have done pretty much everything in food. I have a packaging company and a processing company and a production company. I always wanted to have a restaurant, but I haven’t gotten there just yet.
Around five years ago my company started to experience a lot of different issues due to climate change.
We started having water problems, labor issues and this need to add more pesticides to our food continually. We weren’t happy about this, and it didn’t feel right. Over time the problem just kept getting worse.
I read an article by Dr.Toyoki Kozai in the newspaper. towoki kozi is one of the founding fathers of urban farming. After reading this article, a few of us jumped onto a plane and visited Chiba University to gather some ideas and knowledge. The first thing we did when we got back was to establish our research center and buy some LED lights. We were like little kids in a candy shop when we saw the first batch of lettuce growing.
Urban Farms Global — Growing Facility
We had spent years in the business growing food the traditional way and were amazed that food could grow just from LED lights alone.
We were very systematic from there on and started going step by step. We grew strawberries, watermelons, cucumbers you name it.
We started testing different nutrition and LED lights and other elements. We then thought how are we going to package this food and distribute it, so we started getting involved in those processes. We then thought about how we could compete with traditional farms and greenhouse farms. We didn’t need to worry about competing with urban farms since there were so few. So then we started developing our business model, and all of this came out of research and development. Now we have a pipeline of 10 different food products that we are trying out. Not all of them will be available for the market, but we are getting them ready for a few years down the road.”
What are your views on climate change and sustainability?
“When I grew up food, and social consciousness wasn’t there. That has been introduced through my kids. They were doing projects at school, and this green movement started. So I realized yes I do need to improve on this and we do need to change. Even my 9-year-old and most people here in Panama are becoming super conscious about recycling and saving the planet.
We need to make sure that young people have a healthy world to live on.
The thing about being in farming is that we live through all kinds of change. We see all the chemical runoff that is going into the lakes. It is so much more than just talking points for us. As farmers, we live through all these changes, and we have to be more conscious. I think people do not give enough credit to farmers. However, I ask the question about what happens if we don’t farm? The answer is that nobody eats. Most farmers try to do the best they can.
Soon we will start packaging our food in a material that is made from cassava. So going forward we will be a lot more sustainable. Our packaging will be biodegradable, and therefore it will be a bit more expensive. We will fit this into the production cost and will not raise the price for consumers.
If we are going to develop a better food system, we need to do it in every aspect.
If you are producing healthy produce why would you want to then put it in plastic that harms the planet?”
You don’t see a lot of traditional farmers getting into urban farming. How did you make the switch successfully?
“At that point in the first year, we did nothing in hydroponics. We needed to train people and send them off to be trained over at The University of Arizona. We needed to send people off to learn about controlled environment agriculture. We sent our people out to all different parts of the world to get trained.
We had to go through a learning curve ourselves despite having had this vast experience in the food business.
Growing food indoors and using this type of technology is very different. There are a couple of other things that differentiate us from other indoor farms. One we don’t go public. The second would focus on our work and not the work of others.
There is this quote that I love by Chris Higgens — “When a farmer buys a new tractor he doesn’t go out and post it on social media.”
This can be good or bad because we are not as well known as other indoor farms. However, it is also the attitude we have when we look at indoor farming. Some people think its all about technology. We on the other hand focus on being a food company that uses technology to produce food. You have to grow food, you have to know how to grow food, and you have to have that first-hand experience. If you set a culture in the company, you need to decide what that culture will look like if we are focused on producing high-quality food that is where the focus is.
The other thing is that we are continually training our people because there is always something new to learn.
Four years ago we worked out an agreement between The University of Panama and The University of Chiba and The Technology University of Panama. We negotiated to send three students and one professor from each of the two Panamanian university to train at Chiba University for 30 days or more. Then Chiba sends a group of 8 –10 of their students to Panama. The Japanese students spend some time at our R&D and get to visit several other farms in Panama. While the Panamanian students that return from Chiba continue their development with us at our R&D.
Urban Farms Global — Growing Facility
We need to start training more people in this field because the number of people who are knowledgable in this industry is very few.
We are now negotiating with other universities in The United States and Europe to do the same with us. These initiatives help us to grow a larger pool of people to come and work as we expand the industry. It may be a lot of costs, but it is well worth it.”
What role do you think technology should play in the future of food?
“I believe it should always be a bit human-centric. Many people today think that the algorithms and devices will be the solution to tell you how much nutrients a plant needs. I cannot entirely agree with this; a person needs to be able to understand plants as living things. The plants can tell you more than any algorithm. It is essential to know how to grow food. I believe that human reaction is so important when it comes to growing food. Even if a sensor tells you this is wrong, you have to understand how to correct it.
Although we apply a lot of technology, we will always need a farmer.
It is going back to this statement of companies worrying about indoor farms taking over. A few years ago this was going around peoples minds. This idea is impossible the demands for food are so significant. Indoor farms will not be able to grow apples, mangos, avocados and more. It is just not economically feasible.
One day I was doing a talk, and someone said to me “you are going to be putting farmers out of business.” I said “no way” this is a compliment to traditional farming just like how greenhouses compliment traditional farming. It is not going to take over. Our population is going to grow to over 10 billion in the next few years, and there is no more land to grow food. Wouldnt it be better if we have another system like indoor farming that would be a lot more healthier to help? I think people are begining to wiser up and realize that some farms are going out of business. However, when I hear of new indoor farms, I wish them complete and utter success. Because when an indoor farm goes out of business, it gives all of us a black eye.”
Urban Farms Global — Growing Facility
What would you say to those who doubt the profitability of indoor farming?
“We believe indoor farming is profitable if you do it right. A lot of the doubt has to come from problems with management and the fact that you have to look long term at these business models. Everything for us is about our consumers and intending to create consumer loyalty. It is no different from any other business.
You see a lot of indoor farming companies generating millions of dollars in funds. I know what it cost to start an urban/indoor farm. I know what the cost is and what they are not. I then have to ask “Where exactly are these companies putting these funds?”
What are the three things you advise an urban farming business to watch out for?
“You need to keep your cost low.
You have to keep your yields high.
It would be best if you remembered this is not a dollar business; it’s a penny business.”
What is your favorite food at the moment?
“I am eating a lot of salad, but then again I am eating my product, so that helps.”
Call to Action?
“The world is enormous, and the food industry is massive. I encourage young people to look into the food industry seriously.
Someone very wise once said “you may need a doctor once a year and an attorney once a year, but you need a farmer three times a day”
I encourage all young people to get in and learn.”
If you or someone you know would be interested in connecting, collaborating or supporting David and his mission, please share this article or reach out using the information below:
david@urban.farm
If you enjoyed this piece, you might also like…”The Truth About Packaging When It Comes to Sustainability.”
For more information on Harvester City click here.
WRITTEN BY Alex Welch