How Could AI Improve Controlled Environment Agriculture?

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by David Kuack

The use of artificial intelligence in the production of controlled environment crops has the potential to grow crops more quickly and efficiently.

Most people are familiar with the term artificial intelligence or AI. Ken Tran, founder of Koidra LLC, said artificial intelligence is a very loosely defined term.

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In his efforts to apply artificial intelligence to controlled environment agriculture, Ken Tran (right) collaborated with horticulture specialists worldwide, including Dr. Xiuming Hao (left) and Shalin Khosla in Canada. Photos courtesy of Ken Tran

“AI very broadly means anything that a computer can do to perform a task,” said Tran. “Classical AI can be a program that doesn’t have the capability to learn and improve all the time. For example, a program can be written for a computer to play chess. A computer can play chess by itself, but it follows a specific logic imposed by the programmer. This type of AI doesn’t improve over time with data.”

A second type of AI can have accountability to learn and improve over time with additional data.
“This type of AI is very promising because it can continuously improve,” Tran said. “With this type of AI a computer can autonomously learn how to use the data.”

Tran said both types of AI are useful and will enhance each other.

“The second type of is considered the second stage of AI,” he said. “The learnable AI is the next phase of the expert-system type of AI. Both types of AI could have major applications to controlled environment agriculture.”

Greenhouse challenge incorporates AI
Tran was the principal investigator and leader of a team of AI and horticulture experts that won the first International Autonomous Greenhouse Challenge organized by Wageningen University and Research in the Netherlands. Tran was the principal research engineer for the Project Sonoma team. At the time Tran participated in the challenge he was an employee of Microsoft Research where much of his focus was on machine learning.

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Ken Tran (second from left) was the principal investigator and leader of a team of artificial intelligence and horticulture experts that won the first International Autonomous Greenhouse Challenge.

The greenhouse challenge ran from May through December 2018, with five teams growing a cucumber crop in their own greenhouse compartment at the university. The purpose of the challenge was to combine AI with greenhouse data to maximize crop production while minimizing greenhouse inputs.

“The success of the Sonoma team in the competition came from our collaboration with horticulture researchers,” Tran said. “Without their participation and the domain knowledge they provided we wouldn’t have achieved this success.”

The team worked with researchers including Dr. Xiuming Hao at Agriculture and Agrifood Canada, Shalin Khosla at Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Agriculture, and Dr. Chieri Kobota at Ohio State University.

“Before growing cucumbers for the competition, we had not grown cucumbers, but we were still able to win,” Tran said. “During the competition, our team outperformed a team of expert Dutch growers who had previously grown cucumbers. Our team was able to produce more than 55 kilograms of cucumbers per square meter. Also, the net profit on the cucumbers was 17 percent higher than the Dutch growers.”

Potential benefits for CEA
While Tran was employed at Microsoft he worked on reinforcement learning. He explained reinforcement learning, in a simplistic definition, is a data-driven method used in control applications. It learns to find the best actions based on reward or punishment data.

“We wanted to find a good application to motivate our reinforcement learning research,” he said. “In 2017, I was looking for a pure application, meaning an application that would have a great impact and would also be doable for reinforcement learning. I began with indoor vertical farms which are a good application because it is a well-controlled environment with little influence from the outside. It is easy to get started because the test environment can be as simple as a small growth chamber.

“Some types of applications that would fit include using reinforcement learning to solve a control problem. We wanted to solve a problem in the real world, but applying reinforcement learning in the real world is really challenging. That is why I was looking for applications that are well controlled and can have different scales from a small growth chamber to a large grow room.”

Tran saw the potential that vertical farms had to help solve sustainable food production problems worldwide. He spoke with CEA researchers and experts around the world, including the United States, Japan, and China. One of the institutions that Tran contacted was Wageningen University.

“When we were visited the university we learned about how they were going to organize this greenhouse challenge,” Tran said. “We discussed with them exploring collaborative opportunities. With this competition platform we could get our feet wet by actually doing something and not just talking about theory and the possibilities.”

Collecting more data from growers
Tran said much more data is needed from growers in order for computers to autonomously learn how to use the data.

“We are trying to understand how good growers produce a crop,” he said. “This isn’t just one grower, but multiple growers. We study the plant science and try to come up with a sound formula for how to grow a crop. That formula doesn’t evolve itself. It is a fixed formula. It is reacting to changing conditions that indicate under these conditions to try this.

“This is the first step in our research and it was very successful. It already performed better than many other growers would because we were able to aggregate the knowledge from multiple expert growers. We are trying to develop AI that can learn and improve over time with more data. We don’t want to stop at one system.”

Tran said controlling a vertical farm is easier than controlling a greenhouse.

“However, in both scenarios, our current technology can already be used,” he said. “This technology will keep evolving for even further impact. The technology can be used in both applications by using what we already know about plant science, machine learning, and AI in general. It’s not like having to wait for new technology or the research is not ready and we have to wait. We can already leverage the technology today and we have demonstrated that in multiple scenarios.”

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Ken Tran is working on a commercial artificial intelligence program that will be adaptable to a variety of crops grown in vertical farms and greenhouses.

Tran is working on a commercial AI program that will be adaptable to a variety of crops.
“The process is going to be similar for developing a program for any CEA crop,” he said. “The data will include environmental data from inside and outside the greenhouse. This data will be generated automatically from multiple sensors installed inside the greenhouse, including light levels, temperature, relative humidity, nutrient levels, water quality, and carbon dioxide levels.

“For every crop, we would need to talk with the growers to find out how they currently grow to set up a baseline. Crop data would be provided manually by the growers on a daily and/or weekly basis depending on the crop. The program will evolve from the baseline with more data coming in. We want the program to be safe for every crop.”

Principles for adopting AI to horticulture
Tran said in order for growers and the horticulture industry to adopt AI, safety-first principles must be followed. These include:

• The AI system must start growing the same way as what growers want with no risky deviations from what growers would do. This growing would continuously improve.

• Growers could easily switch between manual, recommendation and autopilot modes. The greenhouse operator is always in control and can choose to exit AI control mode at any time. In recommendation mode, the AI system would only send recommendations to the operator for review and the setpoints would still be inputted manually by the operator.

• The system must support easy and continuous monitoring.

For more: Ken Tran, Koidra LLC, (512) 436-3250; ken@koidra.ai.

David Kuack is a freelance technical writer in Fort Worth, Texas; dkuack@gmail.com.

Posted in Interviews

Indoor Vertical Farming: The New Era of Agriculture

As the world’s population grows exponentially, our total supply of fruits and vegetables is falling 22% short of global nutritional needs. Traditional farming methods are having difficulties meeting this demand as it faces increasing problems such as water shortage, land scarcity, and an aging farming population with decreased interest from newer generations. In recent years, controlled environment agriculture has experienced a surge of popularity as it presents a compelling solution to all these problems and more. Indoor vertical farming can increase crop yields, overcome limited land area, and even reduce farming’s impact on the environment by cutting down distance traveled in the supply chain.

Currently, the United States imports 35% of produce and travels an average of 2,000 miles, taking roughly 2 weeks before hitting the grocery store shelves. Since indoor vertical farming is largely local, vegetables grown in these vertical farms are much more appealing and edible for a longer period of time. With an extensive list of benefits, indoor vertical farming has the potential to vastly improve the modern agricultural landscape.

What is Indoor Vertical Farming?

Indoor vertical farming can be defined as the practice of growing produce stacked one above another in a closed and controlled environment. By using growing shelves mounted vertically, it significantly reduces the amount of land space needed to grow plants compared to traditional farming methods. This type of growing is often associated with city and urban farming because of its ability to thrive in limited space. Vertical farms are unique in that some setups don’t require soil for plants to grow. Most are either hydroponic, where vegetables are grown in a nutrient-dense bowl of water, or aeroponic, where the plant roots are systematically sprayed with water and nutrients. In lieu of natural sunlight, artificial grow lights are used.

Vertical Farming Advantages

From sustainable urban growth to maximizing crop yield with reduced labor costs, the advantages of indoor vertical farming are apparent.

Reliable Harvests with Maximum Crop Yield

Recent technological advances in the agriculture space allow vertical farms to control every aspect of growing crops. Variables such as light, humidity, and water can all be precisely measured year-round. Since crops are no longer reliant on weather patterns, temperatures, or daylight, this means produce can be reliably grown 24/7. As food production around the world will need to increase by 70% by 2050 to feed the world’s population, vertical farming’s ability to maximize crop yields will be crucial in the future.

Reduced Labor Costs

Labor has always been a pain point in agriculture -- it’s one of the most expensive aspects of farming and the industry is currently experiencing a labor shortage. A survey conducted by the California Farm Bureau Federation found that 56% of farmers were unable to hire all the employees they needed at some point in the last 5 years. Vertical farming can significantly reduce labor needs, and therefore cost, by using robots to handle harvesting, planting, and logistics.

Optimized Energy Conservation

Vertical farms are built to optimize energy conservation by significantly reducing water and energy usage. Studies show that vertical farms use up to 70% less water than traditional farms, which is key in drought-prone zones. By using cameras and sensors, the data collected can help vertical farmers optimize light, temperature, and humidity levels to find the perfect balance necessary in producing food. Experts in sensor technology regularly tweak the environment inside vertical farms to increase productivity and enhance the food’s taste.

Sustainable, Environmentally Friendly Growth

Indoor vertical farms take up significantly less land space than traditional methods, which makes it appealing in local urban farming centers. The structures can be easily built close to large city populations, cutting down the amount of time and travel it takes for produce to reach the consumer. With a reduced supply distribution chain, food gets to the consumer’s table faster and fresher while also reducing its carbon footprint on the planet.

No Pesticides or Herbicides

Since indoor vertical farms are completely sealed off from the outside environment, there are virtually no pests. As a result, there is virtually no need for pesticides or herbicides. Food grown is healthier, safer, and certified organic, making it even more appealing to consumers.

Vertical Farming Companies

PLENTY

It is obvious that vertical farming is a beneficial alternative to traditional farming. The burgeoning industry is supported by leading venture capitalists, most famously seen in Softbank’s $200 million Series B investment in vertical farming startup Plenty. Plenty’s 52,000 square foot vertical farming facility paves the way for more vertical farming companies to bet on this industry.

AEROFARMS

This New Jersey-based startup has developed an aeroponic growing system that can grow without soil or sun, in any location. Aerofarms has proven to use 95% less water, 390 times more land efficient, 30 crops per season, and even the produce flavor is better. Each plant is monitored on more than 130,000 data points that are reviewed and tested using predictive analytics to improve their growing systems. With remote monitoring and controls in place, they have minimized the typical risks associated with traditional agriculture.

BABYLON MICRO-FARMS

Babylon Micro-farms provides an on-demand indoor farming service to make sustainable indoor farming more accessible than ever before. Their farms grow fresh produce 2x faster using 90% less water than conventional agriculture, without the use of pesticides or harmful chemicals. Their business model drastically reduces the upfront costs and expertise associated with indoor agriculture, powered by a patented IoT platform that remotely operates the ecosystem of farms.

SMALLHOLD

Smallhold provides retailers and restaurants with contained-­environment vertical farm units that produce large amounts of mushrooms, herbs, and leafy greens with minimal labor. Their current product offering is with on-site mushroom production and can produce up to 120 lbs/week in the space of a bookcase. The mushrooms are certified organic and are competitive with conventional ways of growing.

Future of Vertical Farming

Vertical farming is a revolutionary and sustainable alternative to traditional agriculture. Although the AgTech technologies are new and still developing, it is a promising solution to many issues that plague the industry. New startups, backed by significant VC funding, are paving the way to deliver new solutions in efficiently delivering fresh and healthy food.

PlugAndPlay | By Linly Ku

Is Vertical Farming The Future of Agriculture?

We’ve seen the rise of numerous innovations designed to improve our world and mitigate issues that come with a rapidly expanding global population. Vertical farms are part of a rising influx of ‘urban agriculture,’ which allows food to be grown closer to large population points. Now more people are recognizing the value of vertical farming, although few people understand what it really is. It’s got a ton of benefits, but we still have to weigh those against other factors to really determine if vertical farming can take over the future of agriculture.

What is vertical farming?

Vertical farms can take many different shapes and sizes, but they operate the same at their cores. First of all, in vertical farm crops, they aren’t grown horizontally (which you may have gleaned from the name), but in a stacked or tower formation. In tower-style vertical farming, plants are grown upward, intertwining into the lattice or supporting structure. In the stacked method, the vertical ‘stacks’ are basically growing trays, supported by shelves on top of one another. Vertical farms are maintained in indoor areas using Controlled Environment Agriculture, or CEA, techniques, and technology. This means that the farmer can control everything from heating to humidity, to light and watering cycles.

Vertical farms don’t use soil to provide sustenance to the plants. Instead, they rely on hydroponics to deliver nutrients to the plants. In hydroponic growing, water is saturated with a nutrient solution and cycled through the growing trays that hold the plants. Some vertical farms use aeroponics to provide nutrients to the plants. Aeroponics is a form of hydroponics, but rather than using a ‘flow’ of water, the water is pushed through pressurized nozzles. This creates small droplets that are delivered directly to the plants’ roots. 

Many vertical farms are being established in homes, warehouses, multi-storied buildings, and specially designed constructions. In a lot of urban areas, vertical farms are being constructed and used as the new ‘rooftop garden’. The idea is to create a more ecological, accessible, and economical approach to mass food production.

What can be grown in a vertical farm?

Some crops, like grains, can be difficult to grow in closed, indoor systems such as a vertical farm. So for instance, wheat is not something that’s likely to thrive in a vertical farm. That being said, there are tons of plants and crops that flourish in vertical farms. The most common are leafy greens like spinach, kale, and lettuce because they grow quickly and produce large harvests without taking up much space.

Other vegetables (‘bulkier’ ones, if you will) can grow well in vertical farms if the environment is set up properly. Tomatoes have long been a favorite in vertical farms, and many vertical farms are also beginning to produce squash, peppers, and more.

Why choose vertical farming over traditional agriculture?

Vertical farming has plenty of advantages over traditional agriculture that makes it an attractive solution for food sourcing. First, and one of the biggest draws for the common populace toward vertical farming is how little space is needed in relation to the amount of crops that can be produced. By producing so much food in so little space, we’re able to free up a lot of land.

A company in Wyoming has even developed a vertical farm that produces the same amount of produce as a traditional farm while using only 1/10 of the space.

If we’re already using that land for farming, why should we convert to vertical farming?

We allow the soil to turn over more easily. Certain crops can be extremely draining on the nutrient contents of soil and have to be rotated with other crops simply to reinvigorate the soil. And depending on how quickly you see the population growing, that land just might come into high demand for housing or energy production. Just for reference, according to the UN, the population will be 9.7 billion by 2050, that’s up by 2.4 billion. And if you’re also paying attention to rising sea levels (you may have heard of certain states that will be losing some valuable coastline), arable land at higher elevations could become prime real estate.

Vertical farms also leverage more ecological techniques for farming.

Since almost all vertical farms use either hydroponics or aeroponics to sustain plants, there’s very little water usage (certainly in comparison to field agriculture). To put it into perspective, vertical farms typically use about 90% less water than soil farms. Some vertical farm innovators have even claimed that their farms use up to 98 or 99% less water.

Thanks to their inside locations, vertical farms have another advantage. They’re more or less protected against the threat of pests and contamination. That means a few things:

First, an entire crop won’t be destroyed as a result of pests and infestation. Second, pesticides and chemicals aren’t necessary since being indoors will eliminate the threat of pests. And third, since harmful chemicals aren’t being used, we’re protecting the surrounding ecosystem. Field agriculture can have a lot of negative impact on the environment around it when pesticides are used, and runoff goes into natural water sources. Vertical farms don’t have the possibility of creating this collateral damage.

Vertical farms also provide the possibility of a more centralized food production system. Right now, most food is transported across great distances to reach the stores where consumers then purchase it. That makes food more expensive, but it also means that we have to rely on fossil fuels. In turn, that means the ‘footprint’ on our food is higher since we’re producing more emissions to deliver it.

They can produce consistently, regardless of the season

Field agriculture is primarily a seasonal endeavor. There are summer crops, autumn crops, and so on, but you can’t grow it all at once. If you’re farming indoors with Controlled Environment Agriculture, as you’d do with a vertical farm, this becomes a non-issue. Farmers using CEA can consistently produce plentiful harvests year-round, without natural events disrupting their farm. Not only that, the harvests are predictable and reliable. This makes it easier to plan food production and deliver on the demand.

What does it take to make a vertical farm?

Vertical farms are different than other at-home farming and gardening systems. The way that vertical farms are being used today is mostly as large, commercial-scale food production sites. You can always implement vertical growing techniques at home, but to get a large scale facility built it takes a bit more to get it going. Some companies specialize in creating vertical farm systems, while others self-establish theirs. In either case, it can be a large (but worthy) endeavor. Plants aside, here are the main components of a vertical farm:

Space

Finding a large space to support a vertical farm is the first step in establishing one. Whether created out of a government initiative or by an entrepreneur, finding a space can be a process. While there are plenty of empty buildings around, they have to find one that can be converted with minimal cost. That means checking for structural damage, damp, proper insulation, proximity to reliable power, etc.

The equipment

Depending on the level of automation, the equipment will vary a bit. However, a vertical farm still needs plenty of supports to hold the plants, which will take up the bulk of the space alongside the plants. Then there need to be ventilation systems in place to prevent rot, fungus, and disease. In almost every instance there’s also going to be a heavy amount of artificial ‘grow’ lighting needed.

Then, hydroponic or aeroponic systems need to be set up to provide sufficient nutrients to the plants. The ways of setting the watering systems up can be very different. Some vertical gardens even use rotating racks (upon which the plants are held) that alternate plants through aeroponic cycles. Other vertical gardens use a more traditional hydroponic method, leaving the plants in place and putting them through ‘flood and drain’ cycles. 

The labor

This is by far the most neglected consideration of a vertical farm. Now, vertical farms are sustainable, efficient systems and a lot of automation contributes to their success. But no matter how advanced the automation and machine monitoring is, we can’t leave them unattended.

Vertical farms still need a set of human eyes (or several sets, ideally) keeping a lookout for plant health and potential machine errors. Workers often have to dress in protective clothing to prevent contamination to the plants, keeping that benefit of indoor agriculture. In some vertical farms the workers are responsible for more manual tasks (such as examining roots or testing samples), but all require at least some human help in their maintenance.

In fact, human labor is one of the largest components of a vertical farm. In comparison to soil agriculture, the amount of labor required still ranks as minimal. That being said, human labor is currently one of the top expenses in maintaining a vertical farm. Lighting is still number one, but the cost of human labor comes in as a close (and critically important) second.

Planned and Established Vertical Farms

Not everybody’s there yet, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t already successful vertical farms being created around the world. Just to add a little perspective, we should talk about a few really innovative ones worldwide. First, let’s talk about the next big up-and-comer, Dubai:

Dubai

Dubai is a country wherein a gross majority of its foodstuffs have to be imported (currently about 75%). In an effort to mitigate this costly but necessary process, a new vertical farm is in the works. The facility will be called Crop One, and feature 130,000 square feet (yes, that’s correct) of vertical farm space. The size is more than double any previously seen, and plans are in the works to develop solar energy programs to power it eventually.

Sunqiao, Shanghai

Sunqiao is an urban, agricultural district being planned in Shanghai, China. This project incorporates vertical gardens on a massive scale, showcasing agriculture that looks like a forested skyscraper. Plants will be grown in tall towers, floating greenhouses and gardens, green walls, and basically any other type of vertical or hydroponic growing you can imagine. These systems are becoming a popular solution to the growing demand of food production in China’s densely populated urban areas.

DakAkker, Rotterdam

This vertical farm is a rooftop system that began in 2012. The unique thing about this vertical farm is that not only does it support the urban area’s plant biodiversity, it also considers the issue of diminishing bee populations. It uses technology in an innovative solution called a ‘smart roof.’ Basically, the smart roof holds a greater water capacity than most vertical rooftop gardens, and employs a sensor to ensure plants receive an adequate water supply. Because bees are not only facing a survival crisis, but are also critical to pollination, there are six beehives also located on the roof.

What’s holding back the development of vertical farms?

The uptake on vertical farming is growing, although there are critics of the systems. Depending on the level of automation especially, vertical farms can have a fair cost with their set up. That being said, they don’t have to be expensive endeavors. A small, start-up vertical farm (we’re talking around 100 square feet or so) can cost a few thousand dollars to begin and run for a year. Even still, for the hobbyist gardener that can seem like a lot. 

While vertical farms do a good job of using only a small percentage of the water used in field agriculture, they have a lot more energy costs. Being indoor, these farms need supplemental heat, lighting (almost guaranteed to be the highest expense of a vertical farm), and plenty of regulation. Electric costs can be cut, but only if the farmer invests in solar technology to help power the vertical farm.

It’s also important to recognize that while we love innovation, as humans we’re pretty much creatures of habit. That means that outside of agriculture, infrastructure, and public works professions, a lot of people don’t see the need to construct new vertical farms. That’s especially true when we realize that no matter the source, they’re still getting their produce at the supermarket. Plus, a lot of people just plain don’t ‘get’ the point of vertical farms. As with anything else, unfamiliarity often breeds hesitancy.

What’s in the future of vertical farming?

Like anything else that uses technology, the future is likely to bring a lot of innovation and improvement. We can expect to see even greater efficiency, larger-scale farms, more technological additions, and (hopefully) a more widespread understanding of the value of vertical farms.

There are already systems in place that allow a high level of monitoring and control of these farms, even remotely. From apps to advanced computer programs that detail everything from humidity levels to expected crop production, the technology exists. What we can certainly expect is to see greater accuracy, and a greater influx of its use.

Vertical farms and hydroponic growing systems are much more common in some urban areas (such as cities in Asia) than in others (such as the United States). We can expect to see more vertical farms being established as time goes on. Some regions will adopt these farms more quickly, but worldwide they will gradually become more commonplace.

While vertical farms are already quite efficient compared to soil farming, the future of vertical farming is heavily invested inefficiency. As we innovate more with technology, efficiency naturally follows. For example, even our LED lighting (while already pretty efficient) is more advanced and efficient than only a few years ago. Our current LED lights are up to 40% more efficient than those produced in 2014. That’s a notable improvement for a few years’ time.

The next big increase in efficiency is likely to be in the overall energy consumption. Although still in the works, many companies are developing energy systems for vertical farms that either rely on solar energy or use solar energy to supplement power to the farms. 

So, can vertical farming takeover for traditional agriculture?

Well, that answer is kind of a mixed bag. In some ways, it already has. People are starting to recognize that the future of food production is changing. The future of food production is a great many things. And yes, vertical farming is one of them.

Here’s the thing:

We have a global situation where we’re faced with an inevitable ultimatum: evolve and flourish, or become obsolete. As we humans are pretty driven for survival, evolving and flourishing seems to be an attractive option. When we’re talking about the future of our agriculture, it’s far better to get ahead early rather than start too late. That means adopting new farming methods, like vertical farming, is going to be critical to our global well-being.

The Hydroponics Planet | By Oscar Stephens | March 7, 2019

Eating Away At Earth: How Agriculture And Consumption of Animals Shapes The Planet

Agricultural villages surround the Euphrates River in the Abu Kamal district of Syria.

This area is part of the “Fertile Crescent” — a large region spanning parts of present-day Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, and Egypt — where settled farming first emerged more than 10,000 years ago.

In addition to plants like figs, peas, lentils, and chickpeas, this region also domesticated animals including cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, cats, and geese.

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Apr 19, 2020

Source imagery: Maxar

Our latest story on plant and animal agriculture

Elon Musk’s Brother Wants to Pioneer The Future of Agriculture

Vertical agriculture internal farming method where crops are grown in layers, often without soil. This practice is becoming more popular and important as urban populations grow enormously and the available plots decrease.

While vertical farming is not a new concept, These eco-friendly farms are expanding rapidly.

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Little brother Elon Musk, Kimbal Musk, Named the 2017 Global Economic Entrepreneur of the Year, the “Global Social Entrepreneur,” Square Roots started an in-house urban agriculture company based in Brooklyn. The mission of Square Roots is to bring fresh local produce to nearby cities. making the world young generation involved in urban agriculture.

“When I was a kid, the only way I could sit down and connect with the family was cooking a meal,” Musk, founder and chief executive of Square Roots, told CNN Business in an email.

“Getting involved on the internet, especially in the late 90s, was very exciting and I wouldn’t change anything about those experiences, but my passion has always been food,” Musk said. “The time Elon and I were selling Zip2, our first internet company, we knew I wanted to get food and become a trained chef.” He moved to New York and enrolled at the International Cooking Center.

Musk said the company plans to open Square Super Promotional “Super Farm” (25 climate-controlled containers, cold storage, biosecurity infrastructure, and everything else to scale a vertical farm) in at least three months.

Since its inception, Square Roots has grown more than 120 crops, including greens, vegetables, and strawberries.

The company is not the first of its kind. Startups like Silicon Valley’s Plenty, founded in 2013 and sponsored by Jeff Bezos, the space is also beginning to dominate.

“Environmentalists, urban farmers, architects, agronomists, and public health experts have joined forces with this revolution to save the scarce future of ultra-urbanized food,” Kheir Al-Kodmany, professor of sustainable urban design at the University of Illinois at Chicago said in a report.

It involves a variety of techniques, such as hydroponics, which uses solutions containing mineral nutrients in a water solvent; aquaponics, which uses aquatic creatures (such as fish and snails) and plants in water; and aeroponics, which grow plants in the air.

In terms of job creation, rapid climate change will keep millions of traditional farmers out of business, but vertical farmers will not be affected, according to the microbiologist Dickson Despommier, emeritus professor of public health and environmental health at Columbia University.

Although vertical farming originated in the early 1900s, Despommier has recently become popular. More than 20 years ago, she began teaching in the Columbia class called Medical Ecology.

Despommier spent a decade with his students growing indoor cultivation. “Ten years ago, there was no vertical farm,” said LED grow lights, which have dramatically improved the efficiency of agriculture over the past five years, making indoor growing cheaper and more reliable.

“People want local food because they have lost confidence in the industrial food system, providing thousands of miles of high-calorie, low-nutrient foods for whom with little transparency and how,” said Peggs Square Roots director. .

At the same time, the world’s population is growing rapidly and urbanizing. Peggs said it threatens climate change-related food supplies as it forces the industry to find new ways to grow food quickly.

Peggs is optimistic about raising money for vertical farming. “A lot of smart money and capital comes into the space,” he said. “The quality of food that can be produced in these indoor systems is at least the same as the best food you can buy.”

Despommier said cities will eventually be able to grow “everything they eat” from farms within city limits. “If an outside farm fails, the farmer will have to wait until next year to start again,” he said. “Domestic farms also fail, but indoor farmers can start again within a week.”

Is Vertical Farming The Future of Agriculture?

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ANNA DOMANSKA, 

MARCH 14, 2020

To address these issues of resource scarcity and loss, many scientists and innovators have been hard at work to come up with a solution. A viable option that has come up is controlled environment agriculture, or weather or climate-proof farming, or vertical farming. This is increasingly being utilized in urban centers, arid zones, and some populous Asian countries.

This kind of farming is done in vertical rack systems as opposed to conventional farming. Oda has successfully experimented with this technology in arid zones and urban centers in Beijing.

His company has successfully used an abandoned shipment container to grow vegetables in the dry climate of Dubai.

Vertical farming is finding more acceptance commercially with innovations in efficiency and affordability, says Oda.

So how does this vertical farming work?

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A lot of artificial elements are introduced to take the place of sunlight, water, etc. LEDs are used to provide energy in place of sunlight. Nutrients are pumped directly into the root zones of the vegetables, which are recyclable, for plant growth. Hydroponics and aeroponics systems are used for efficiency. Soil substitutes like polyurethane sponges, biodegradable peat moss, and even inorganic materials like perlite and clay pellets are used.

Racking systems can be16 to 14 stories high. A sophisticated automation and monitoring system is used to increase productivity, efficiency, and consistency of the food.

The benefits of indoor vertical farming are many. There is year-round production, which is of consistent quality, and one can be assured of a certain quantifiable output. It is great in terms of resource efficiency. Water, fertilizers and land use goes down by almost 99 percent in this type of farming. Moreover, as the system is weatherproof, the need for fertilizers is nil.

The produce can be made totally chemical-free. It gives 350 times more food per square meter than conventional farming. It will shorten the supply chain and maintain the nutritional content as the growth centers will be near urban and city centers. Also, such type of farming can be seamlessly integrated into the urban landscape with the utilization of underused civic structures, office corners, etc.

Considering the advantages, you may wonder why there is no widespread adoption of the method. The reason being it is a very energy-intensive program. Also, the variety of vegetables produced like this is limited. The cost of production is still very high for it to be widely adopted. For a better energy solution, higher efficient LED lights are being developed. Another option is to use laser lights for plant growth. Fiber optics cables to channelize sunlight to the facility in daylight hours is also another option.

Vertical farming may be the solution to an imminent water and food crisis that the world is facing. The biggest advantage is it will give equitable access to nutritional food to the most underprivileged, too once it becomes a common practice and is widely accepted. Still, a lot needs to be done before it becomes a shared reality.

Stuart Oda has floated his own vertical farming company called Alesca Life.

TAGS: AGRICULTURE, INDOOR VERTICAL FARMING, VERTICAL FARMING

INDIA: These Urban Farming Startups Are Going The Extra Mile To Bring Organic Food To Your Table

With new technologies like hydroponics and vertical farming, these startups are helping people grow produce in small urban spaces.

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By Suman Singh

11th Mar 2020

The Green Revolution in the 50s and 60s may have allowed our farmers to better their yields, but it also brought with it the evils of using pesticides and chemical fertilizers.

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Urban farming

Over the years, they have been incorporated into conventional farming methods, bringing with them a host of problems. They are not only found to be toxic to humans by increasing the risk of getting cancers, but they also cause pollution, degradation of soil and water, and poison domestic animals.

Now, many farmers and urban-dwellers have switched to organic farming or urban farming. According to the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM),

“Organic agriculture is a production system that sustains the health of soils, ecosystems, and people. It relies on ecological processes, biodiversity, and cycles adapted to local conditions, rather than the use of inputs with adverse effects.”

Just a few years back, farming in cities would have been thought to be impossible. But new technologies like hydroponics and vertical farming have made growing produce in small urban spaces possible.

Here are six urban farming startups which are going the extra mile to bring sustainable farming practices in India:

UGF Farms

Started by Linesh Narayan Pillai in 2017, Urban Green Fate (UGF) Farms converts unused spaces into live food gardens. Live food gardens are built in a way that they do no structural damage to buildings. The Mumbai-based startup sends residents microgreens (vegetable greens after they’ve produced first leaves) in pots, to grow them in organic coco peat as opposed to heavy soil. All a user needs to do is cut the greens from the live plant as and when they need them.

Further, UGF also helps to address issues of starvation, malnutrition, food contamination, and food insecurity by collaborating with schools as well as corporates that work for underprivileged communities as part of their CSR initiatives.

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UGF Farms

Since its inception, the startup has planted over 10,000 kg of microgreens. It has also educated 4,000 people over 150 workshops across multiple locations in Delhi and Mumbai about the importance of growing food in their homes and going organic.

Back2basics

Back2basics is the brainchild of S Madhusudhan. Started in 2015, it is an organic farm spread across close to 200 acres around Bengaluru, producing high-quality organic fruits and vegetables.

Run by a father-daughter duo, Back2basics supplies produce to grocery chains, retailers, organic stores, and gated communities in Bengaluru. Its produce is also exported to organic food supply chains and retailers in other parts of the world.

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Back2basics

The startup deals in more than 90 varieties of seasonal produce in four categories – fruits, vegetables, greens, and exotics. It has reserved almost three to four acres for customers who wish to visit the farm and try their hand out in agriculture.

It produces products that are 100 percent organic. The producer has full control over the colour and texture of the greens, making them healthier and tastier.

Pindfresh

After returning from New York where he worked as a banker, Somveer Singh Anand, much like UGF Farms' Linesh, found it impossible to source organic food in India.

To address this concern, Somveer developed indoor hydroponic technology suitable for Indian climatic conditions and started Pindfresh in 2016 in Chandigarh. The startup sets up indoor and outdoor hydroponic plants for people who want to farm using the technology across India.

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Pindfresh

The lighting, humidity, and temperature are controlled all the time for these microgreens to grow. And to that effect, Pindfresh manufactures quality controlled pipes, lights, and all the necessary equipment required to set up a hydroponic plant.

Growing Greens

Former Infosys employees Hamsa V and Nithin Sagi partnered to start a hydroponic farm, Growing Greens. The Bengaluru-based B2B startup grows and sells microgreens, salad leaves, sprouts, edible flowers, and herbs to high-end restaurants in the city.

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Growing Greens

These microgreens, which are about one to three inches tall, are mostly used to decorate and garnish food. They have concentrated nutrient levels that can be almost 40 times higher than the normal-sized produce.

The duo did thorough research by talking to various chefs to understand their requirements before venturing into the business.

Started in 2012 on a small terrace, the startup is currently farming on four acres of land, which it plans to expand to 10 acres.

Herbivore Farms

Not many 24-year-olds would choose to ditch well-paying jobs and take up farming. But after paying a visit to Auroville in Puducherry in 2017, Mumbai-based Joshua Lewis and Sakina Rajkotwala were inspired by musician and organic farmer Krishna Mckenzie who started Solitude Farm with the aim of “honouring Mother Nature through local food.”

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Herbivore Farms

The duo got down to business with Herbivore Farms, Mumbai’s first hyperlocal, hydroponic farm. Today, the farm is spread across 1,000 sq ft and grows 2,500 plants. It sells fresh, organic vegetables to customers across Mumbai from its temperature-controlled indoor setting.

The vegetables are grown in a clean, sterile environment, with zero pesticides. As compared to conventional farming methods, the setup consumes up to 80 percent less water to grow the produce due to “recirculating irrigation system.”

Harvested vegetables are delivered to the customers’ homes within hours, maintaining their freshness, nutrition, and flavour.

(Edited by Kanishk Singh)

Agri Tech Conf 2020 | September 22-23, 2020 | Dubai, UAE

On behalf of the Organizing Committee, we invite all participants from around the world to attend the International Conference on Agriculture Technology in Dubai, UAE with the theme of “Discovering Natural Resources through Agriculture” scheduled on September 22-23, 2020.

“It also gives a main integrative stage to researchers, professionals and instructors to introduce and talk about the latest development, patterns, and challenges just as common-sense difficulties experienced and arrangements received in the fields of agriculture. 

ME Conferences aims is to offer an opportunity to share skills, expertise along with unparalleled networking opportunities between a large number of agriculture professionals like Directors, Heads, Deans, Professors, Scientists, Researchers, agronomists, agrarians,  Founders, Associations, Organizations, technologists, Laboratory members and Young researchers working in the field of agriculture technology.

International Conference on Agriculture Technology

For further queries and assistance do not hesitate to contact us.

 Amelia Sage

Program Manager

Agri Tech Conf 2020

Tel: (+44) 772-358-4425

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International Conference on Agriculture Technology

Texas A&M AgriLife Expands Urban Agriculture Research

A living, vertical salad bar in the employee break room is more than just a novelty at the Texas A&M AgriLife Center at Dallas. It is a small, and delicious, sign of the comprehensive urban agriculture research ramping up at the center in 2020.

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Genhua Niu, Ph.D. Texas A&M AgriLife Research professor of controlled environment agriculture, with an indoor vertical garden system at the Texas A&M AgriLife Center at Dallas (Texas A&M AgriLife photo by Patricia Moran)

The purple-glowing installation arrived at Dallas with Genhua Niu, Ph.D., and Texas A&M AgriLife Research professor of controlled environment agriculture. Her research team represents one component of an overarching push by Texas A&M AgriLife to realize sustainable production of nutritious food within cities — the next frontier in commercial agriculture.

Niu’s research is in urban horticulture specifically. This can conjure images of community and backyard gardens, or rooftop and balcony plant installations, but her focus is producing quality food in controlled environments. Her studies are especially relevant in Dallas — of which certain communities are urban food deserts — and they carry promising implications for agriculture industries across rural Texas, too.   

“AgriLife’s substantial investments in urban agriculture innovation reflect our commitment to better human nutrition and health at every interval along the food supply chain,” said Patrick Stover, Ph.D., vice chancellor and dean of Texas A&M’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and director of AgriLife Research. “In addressing these obstacles, we can bring to bear the considerable research and extension resources of the Texas A&M University System.”

Bringing urban horticulture to Dallas
Niu comes to Dallas from the AgriLife Center at El Paso, where her work since 2004 hinged on research conducted in varying greenhouse settings. Now, controlled environments at the renovated urban center at Dallas allow her to direct innovation toward vertical farming systems housed fully indoors.

Niu earned her doctorate in horticultural engineering at Chiba University in Japan as controlled environment agriculture there gained momentum in the 1980s. The research area has seen rapid growth in recent years on the heels of climate change concern and increasing limitations of global open-field production. 

Greenhouses, the focus of much of Niu’s research to date, also pose obstacles to agricultural economics and environmental sustainability.

Niu said plants utilize about 43% of sunlight to grow; the surplus becomes heat. And glass and clear plastics — typical greenhouse covers — can make temperature control difficult during harsher outdoor conditions. Consequently, these systems require energy-intensive heating and cooling in winter and summer. 

“There are still problems to economic feasibility, like very high upfront investment and operational expenditures,” Niu said.

But opportunity for controlled environment agriculture, or CEA development, is ripe across Texas.

Niu peers into vertical grow rack. (Texas A&M AgriLife photo by Patricia Moran)

On the horizon: Seedlings
For example, she said, many open-field crop producers — who comprise the majority of Texas farmers — acquire transplant seedlings from out-of-state sellers who grow them in controlled environments. Valuable Texas examples include tomato and pepper transplants produced in winter. Dollars for out-of-state seedlings might be kept in Texas down the line by bolstering the state’s own urban production capacity, and by delivering emerging knowledge to farmers and urban upstarts via the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service.

On the practical side of implementation, Niu said, “In my opinion, it would be easier to do in Texas because we have high temperatures, which means lower heating costs in winter than northern states.”

Better technology: Controlled environment agriculture
She also seeks opportunities for improving controlled environmental agriculture technology.

“How can we design lighting systems in a way that the plants use most efficiently?” she asked. “How do we use less energy and produce more lumens? Can we reduce labor costs through automation? Do we need to heat the whole greenhouse or just the nutrient solution? How do we control temperature efficiently while improving quality and productivity?”

These are the questions her team works to answer in Dallas. At the same time, the second edition of Niu’s co-edited and co-authored textbook, Plant Factory: An Indoor Vertical Farming System for Efficient Quality Food Production, is available following its publication in late 2019.

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LED light fixtures in a vertical grow rack at Dallas (Texas A&M AgriLife photo by Patricia Moran)

The 33-chapter text is a collaboration with Niu’s Chiba University mentor Toyoki Kozai, Michiko Takagaki and other contributors to the CEA field. It covers the latest information on each area of controlled environment horticulture: plant-light responses, advances in LED technology, environmental effects on plants as well as production for pharmaceuticals and transplant production among a range of other CEA topics.

Niu’s research in Dallas over the next year aims to expand emerging knowledge in these areas. Her laboratories now house controlled environment studies of leafy greens, and she will pursue future research on specialty greens, pharmaceutical-grade plant production and a range of other controlled environment agriculture systems.

“It is a field of innumerable possibilities,” Niu said.

Find urban horticulture program information, a curriculum vitae and listing of Niu’s publications at dallas.tamu.edu/urbanhort. 

Source: AgriLife Today (Gabe Saldana)

Publication date: Wed 19 Feb 2020

UK’s Urban Agritech Sector Welcomes Announcement of Official Representative Collective

UKUAT Formalized As A Membership

Organization For Urban Agriculture

06 February 2020

The UK’s evolving agritech sector today welcomes the formation of a new membership group – the UK Urban AgriTech Collective (UKUAT).

UKUAT brings together the UK’s key players in modern agricultural technologies. It is a cross-industry group devoted to promoting the application of high-tech food production in urban areas to improve both local and wider food security by relieving dependence on resource-intensive supply chains. It will also be exploring the social, operational and metabolic synergies urban agritech can exploit through its integrations with the built environment which are conducive to more dynamic local economies and richer placemaking.

UKUAT’s 25-strong membership includes commercial urban farmers, multinational technology companies, renewable energy companies, architects, built environment professionals, academics, research-based organizations and more. It hopes to grow this number to 75 over the next two years and operates with a common representative voice to share information, educate and advocate for further adoption of urban agriculture in the UK. It will influence policy and help shape the debate around how high-tech food production in urban and peri-urban areas addresses increasing demands for a more transparent, sustainable and resilient UK food system.

Founder and Director Mark Horler commented: "We founded UKUAT to amplify the collective voice and activities of the agritech industry in the UK. As it continues to grow rapidly, and with that rate of expansion accelerating, the UK is positioned to be an international leader, both in the development of agricultural technology and its implications for more sustainable and resilient food systems"

Oscar Rodriguez, Director of design consultancy Architecture & food and UKUAT member said: “The UKUAT community is coming together at a very interesting time. Concerns over UK food security have emerged following Brexit and UKUAT believes leveraging agricultural technology and expanding our indigenous food production capacity while engaging urbanites to be more conscientious about their eating patterns are crucial ends of a worthy proposition.”

UKUAT was founded in 2017 by Mark Horler and formalized in January 2020. It continues to grow its presence in the UK and is collaborating with numerous international organizations to advance agritech solutions in urban and peri-urban environments across the world.

 -          ENDS -

Sent on behalf of UKUAT. For more information please contact: Mark Horler, UKUAT - email:  info@ukuat.org

Podcast - Future of Agriculture - Jim Pantaleo

Welcome to the Future of Agriculture Podcast with Tim Hammerich.

This show explores the people, companies, and ideas shaping the future of agribusiness. If you are curious about innovations in AgTech, rural entrepreneurship, agricultural sustainability, and food security, this is the show for you!

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Website

For more details on the guests featured on this show, visit the blog at www.FutureOfAg.com. Or, to learn more about career opportunities in agriculture, visit www.AgGrad.com

As Close To A Crystal Ball On Brexit As You’re Going To Get

Next month the UK will formally begin withdrawing from the European Union. How will that affect your market and your supply chain? What are the implications and are you prepared?

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Agricultural Trade After Brexit
Caroline Heil
Associate M&A Corporate
Ernst & Young

Agriculture has a prominent role in the European Union (EU) and agricultural trade is one of the most important parts of the Community’s Common Market. The development of a customs union and free movement of agricultural products was - from its beginning in the 1950s - always framed by the idea of a Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to be established among the Member States. With the United Kingdom (UK) as a strong player on the ag market leaving the EU, an influential voice in CAP will be gone. But the relationship between the UK and EU after the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020 that was agreed upon in the Withdrawal Agreement, is still unclear and subject to negotiations.

In the session Agricultural Trade after Brexit, we will focus on the influence Brexit will most likely have on agricultural trade and the ag market in Europe and what trade between EU and UK might be like as of 1st January 2021. We will build and face different scenarios likely to happen and outline potential threats, but also opportunities that may come with Brexit.

Visit our website for more details

Subscribe to receive updates about

Women in Agribusiness Summit Europe.

Thank you to our sponsors

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Minette Batters To Deliver The Keynote Address

Minette Batters is the first female president in the 112-year history of the National Farmers' Union. She has been called the most powerful farmer in the UK. Join us as she shares her insights into one of today's most pressing agricultural issues.

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"How Farming Can Help Mitigate Climate Change"
Minette Batters
President
National Farmers' Union

Farming and food are much maligned as a problem of the modern age, but it’s rarely recognized for its adaptability and phenomenal successes. For too long, farming has been on the wrong end of the climate debate, rarely recognized for its role in the carbon cycle and even more rarely recognized for the enormous potential of agriculture to deliver a range of solutions for mitigating anthropogenic carbon emissions.

The NFU has a vision for UK agriculture to have a Net Zero contribution to climate change by 2040. The NFU is optimistic about the future role of farming in producing climate-friendly food, protecting the environment and fulfilling our moral imperative to produce safe, sustainable and affordable food at home and for our customers overseas. Ms. Batters will present the NFU vision, industry action and the critical need for the government to get agricultural policy and trade policy aligned.

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How Vertical Farming is Part of a "Multi-Agriculturalism" Food System

The climate crisis is happening (as for some time already), and agriculture is a key protagonist. As elegantly explained by Nazim Gruda, professor at the Department of Horticultural Science of Bonn University: “Agriculture/horticulture and climate change have a dual interaction. On the one hand, the environment is affected by activities associated with agricultural food production, which contributes to climate change; on the other, the impacts arising from such activities backfire by changing the environmental conditions, thus affecting agriculture and horticulture.”

by Michele Butturini

Vertical farming is often presented as a revolutionary agricultural system of manifold qualities. It sometimes happens to hear stories of vertical farming vaguely reminiscent of the mythical land of Cockaigne – where no effort was needed to get food since it was falling from the sky. 

Will vertical farming break the curse, releasing agriculture from its unsustainable environmental burden?
To be sustainable, vertical farming has to prove itself capable of minimizing the emission of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4), per kg of food produced. However, a sustainable food system is more than just low emissions of greenhouse gases.

As reported by Tessa Naus, the HLPE definition of a sustainable food system is: “a food system that delivers food security and nutrition for all in such a way that the economic, social and environmental bases to generate food security and nutrition for future generations are not compromised”. Therefore, the challenge is far more complex than merely reducing greenhouse gases.

In an interview from the book “Urban Greenhouses and the future of food”, Leo Marcelis, head of Horticulture and Product Physiology Chair Group at Wageningen University, suggests that vertical farming can address some of the urgent challenges posed by the climate crisis, “there’s the problem of growing enough fresh, high quality, sustainable food and making it available to the rapidly growing urban populations in our rapidly expanding cities. To answer this, we need ever-higher production rates, and our production has to be highly controlled. […] They (n.d.r. vertical farms) don’t need much space and are indoors, they are not dependent on solar lighting, they’re independent of outdoor conditions, and can produce 365 days a year.”

Meeting the growing demand for fresh produce from the city is an essential challenge for the sustainable food system we are looking for. As observed by Nona Yehia, CEO at Vertical Harvest “by 2050, 80% of the world’s population will live in cities”. According to Leo Marcelis, vertical farms “can be placed in or near-by urban areas anywhere in the world. [..] you can pick the produce when needed and thereby improve shelf-life: at this moment many vegetables are simply thrown away because they have too short shelf-life”.

Indeed, even if just a fraction of this food loss along the supply chain is due to its distribution, ultra-short supply chains could significantly reduce the global fruits and vegetable loss, currently at 42% of kcal wasted. Furthermore, there is evidence that indoor-grown leafy vegetables can have a longer shelf life thanks to a higher antioxidant level.

However, even if ultra-short supply chains have very little food-miles, they aren’t always necessarily the most sustainable choice. As reported by Nazim Gruda: “Tomatoes imported from Spain can have two to four times lower global warming potential than those produced locally under intense heating in Austria and in the UK”. Being part of a sustainable food system also implies making efficient use of water and land, and that’s what vertical farming does better than both greenhouse and conventional agriculture.

Thanks to the optimized growing condition and the recirculation of the nutrient solution, not just water, but also fertilizers have the highest use efficiency currently possible for an agricultural system. More in general, the overall use of agrochemicals could be minimized since pesticides and herbicides are theoretically unnecessary.

Lead Photo: Figure 2. (Photo Credit: PlantLab, source “Is vertical farming really sustainable?”)

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29 Jan 2020

US: Atlanta - 4th International Conference And Expo On Agriculture And Horticulture

 4th International Conference And Expo On Agriculture And Horticulture“Accelerate Scientific Discoveries and Major Milestones in the Current Situation and Innovations Relating to Agriculture Sciences”

August 10 – 11, 2020, Atlanta, USA 

The Scientific Federation and Eureka Science are pleased to invite you to attend the “4th International Conference and Expo On Agriculture and Horticulture” scheduled from August 10 to 11, 2020 in Atlanta, USA. The key objective of Agriculture-Horticulture-2020 is to provide an opportunity for scientists, practitioners, engineers, industrial participants, academicians and students, representing research and professional backgrounds, to share their findings with the global experts.

The conference aims to disseminate the ideas and skills on Organic Farming, Sustainable Agriculture and other modern technologies in the field.
Conference Tracks:

This Agriculture-Horticulture-2020 will host lectures and presentations on the following sessions:

·        Agriculture Engineering

·        Agriculture Biotechnology

·        Agriculture Environment

·        Agriculture & Food Security

·        Plant Sciences

·        Soil Sciences & Water Management

·        Crop Protection & Entomology

·        Fertilizer & Pesticide

·        Food Science

·        Horticulture & Greenhouse

·        Livestock/Animal Farming

·        Agricultural Production Systems & Agribusiness

·        Fisheries & Aquaculture

·        Beekeeping

·        Organic Agriculture

For more information:

Please visit the Agriculture-Horticulture-2020  website

and book your place at the event.

Alternatively, you can email us (beena@eureka-science.com)

your details and register for the event.

Looking forward to seeing you at

 Agriculture Horticulture 2020 in Atlanta, USA

Can New Agriculture Technology Grow Food That is Better Than Organic?

January 28, 2020

Written by: Randy Huft

New technologies are changing the landscape of food in America. Now, there is the ability to grow food that may be better than organic. How is this possible?

It helps to understand that there are some huge misconceptions about organic food.For starters, despite popular belief, organic farms can use pesticides. The difference is that they only use naturally-derived pesticides, rather than the synthetic pesticides used on conventional farms. Natural pesticides are believed to be less toxic, however, some have been found to have significant health risks

Some studies have indicated that the use of pesticides—even at low doses— can increase the risk of certain cancers, such as leukemia, lymphoma, brain tumors, breast cancer and prostate cancer.

Children and fetuses are most vulnerable to pesticide exposure because their immune systems, bodies, and brains are still developing. Exposure at an early age may cause developmental delays, behavioral disorders, autism, immune system harm, and motor dysfunction.

Pregnant women are more vulnerable due to the added stress pesticides put on their already taxed organs. Plus, pesticides can be passed from mother to child in the womb, as well as through breast milk.

The widespread use of pesticides has also led to the emergence of “superweeds” and “superbugs,” which can only be killed with extremely toxic poisons like 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (a major ingredient in Agent Orange).

Rinsing reduces but does not eliminate pesticides. It is important to wash your fruits and vegetables, but in most cases, this will not eliminate all traces of pesticides. Even organic foods can use certain pesticides, and outdoor-grown organic food can pick up pesticide residue from nearby farms.

According to the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit organization that analyzes the results of government pesticide testing in the U.S., the following fruits and vegetables have the highest pesticide levels:

• Apples

• Sweet Bell Peppers

• Cucumbers

• Celery

• Potatoes

• Grapes

• Cherry Tomatoes

• Kale/Collard Greens

• Summer Squash

• Nectarines (imported)

• Peaches

• Spinach

• Strawberries

• Hot Peppers

There is also confusion about organic food labels:

Organic foods are described on product labels in a variety of ways, but they mean different things:

• 100 percent organic. This description is used on certified organic fruits, vegetables, eggs, meat or other single-ingredient foods. It may also be used on multi-ingredient foods if all of the ingredients are certified organic, excluding salt and water. These may have a USDA seal.

• Organic. If a multi-ingredient food is labeled organic, at least 95 percent of the ingredients are certified organic, excluding salt and water. The nonorganic items must be from a USDA list of approved additional ingredients. These also may have a USDA seal.

• Made with organic. If a multi-ingredient product has at least 70 percent certified organic ingredients, it may have a "made with organic" ingredients label. For example, a breakfast cereal might be labeled "made with organic oats." The ingredient list must identify what ingredients are organic. These products may not carry a USDA seal.

• Organic ingredients. If less than 70 percent of a multi-ingredient product is certified organic, it may not be labeled as organic or carry a USDA seal. The ingredient list can indicate which ingredients are organic.

Is there something better than organic?

 Yes. Recent developments in agtech provides the ability to grow food without any pesticides or harmful ingredients. Controlled Environment Micro-Farms allow growers to cultivate fruits, herbs, and vegetables in a sealed environment that virtually eliminates the need for pesticides and harmful chemicals.

These tightly managed ecosystems use much less water and fertilizer than on conventional farms and allow growers to cultivate throughout the year, regardless of the season or weather.

A 40-foot Controlled Environment Farm can yield about 3,500-4,000 heads of lettuce every ten days. The greens are priced competitively with traditional produce, yet the process uses 97 percent less water than a conventional farm and no pesticides or herbicides since bugs and weeds are much less likely to get in. In fact, some say that produce grown in a Controlled Environment Farm is actually “better than organic,” noting that organic growers can still use certain pesticides.

Closer to Consumption

The Controlled Environment Farm (CEF) provides higher quality food that’s grown closer to where it will be consumed, which means food arrives ripe and ready to eat, with less cost and environmental impact. CEFs are also resource-friendly and use less water, energy, space, labor, and capital than other methods of farming.

Shipping containers are ideally suited to be repurposed into Controlled Environment Farms. There are millions of shipping containers in the world, but only a fraction of them are in service and used actively.  Many of the remaining containers are wasting away in ports and storage yards across the world.

Repurposing these gentle giants into robust farms is not only good for producing clean, healthy food, but it is also good for the environment.

Real-World Uses

When Michael Bissanti opened Four Burgers in Cambridge, Massachusetts, he knew he wanted to create a restaurant with a strong sense of sustainability. Initially, that meant procuring only ingredients deemed natural, as well as sourcing from organic and local farms. But Bissanti quickly realized that the “natural” label wasn’t a panacea for a sustainable food system — and so he went looking for a way to bring sustainable, local ingredients even closer to his kitchen.

Today, those ingredients could hardly be closer — Bissanti only needs to walk out the back door of his restaurant to pick all the fresh lettuce, arugula, mustard greens, and herbs he needs. Even in the cold Boston winters, Bissanti is merely feet away from fresh produce, in spite of the fact that his restaurant is located right in the middle of an urban thoroughfare between Harvard and MIT.

That’s because Bissanti is one of the hundreds of farmers across the country growing produce in Controlled Environment Farms built into repurposed shipping containers.

Companies that manufacture these farms, such as GP Solutions and Freight Farms, say that even traditional greenhouses and rooftop gardens require the expertise of an engineer, a plumber, an electrician, and a horticulturist.  And, rooftop greenhouses are also expensive, costing between $1 million to $2 million to get started. A “GrowPod” from GP Solutions or a Freight Farms unit, by comparison, costs only around $48,000-$100,000.

One of the key differences in these Controlled Environment Farms is that everything is included. Everything from water to the LED lights in the units are digitally controlled, and each unit is also connected to the internet so that it can be monitored and managed from anywhere in the world.

“Everything is fully contained within the GrowPod so that it arrives as a turnkey product, ready to grow,” said George Natzic, President of GP Solutions.

These containers allow growers to generate local food production in any location. And manufacturers point out that unlike other indoor growing operations, the shipping container farms are scalable. You can locate the system in a parking lot or the corner of a warehouse and expand incrementally.

Meeting the needs of a changing world

With 54 percent of the world’s population residing in urban areas—expected to increase to about 66 percent by 2050, Controlled Environment Farms allow growers to reduce their agricultural footprint on the environment and address food security of the urban population.

Kimbal Musk (brother of Elon) says that these high-tech shipping container farms are creating “a real food revolution.”

What do you get by growing hyper-local to the end consumer? The answer is that the food you are eating right now at the restaurant was grown right outside and picked minutes ago. This is in stark contrast to traditional agriculture that often supplies produce that was picked when still hard, could sit in a warehouse for weeks, and has chemicals applied that allow ripening just prior to distribution to stores and restaurants.

In summary, there is a great need for controlled-environment agriculture as it allows produce to be grown locally and delivered to the final consumer very shortly post-harvest.

Consumers have a desire for locally-grown clean produce during all periods of the year which they can buy at a competitive price. Controlled Environment Farms are a solution that are sustainable, easy to implement, affordable to acquire, simple to operate, and produce high-quality food that can be considered better than organic.

How 16 Initiatives Are Changing Urban Agriculture Through Tech And Innovation

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Andrea Oyuela

Thursday, January 2, 2020

The United Nations estimates (PDF) that nearly 10 billion people will live in cities by 2050. According to a recent publication by the Barilla Center for Food & Nutrition, urban eaters consume most of the food produced globally and maintain more resource-intensive diets including increased animal-source and processed foods — rich in salt, sugar and fats. At the same time, many urban populations — particularly in low-income areas and informal communities — endure acute hunger and malnutrition as well as limited access to affordable, healthy food.

But there are countless ways that cities can feed themselves and create better linkages between rural and urban food systems. In Mexico City, the organization CultiCiudad built the Huerto Tlatelolco, an edible forest with 45 tree varieties, a seed bank and plots for biointensive gardening. In the United States, City Growers uses New York City’s urban farms as a learning laboratory for children to reconnect with nature. And in the Kalobeyei Settlement in northern Kenya, urban agriculture represents a tool for empowerment by improving food security, nutrition, and self-sufficiency among refugees.

"Agriculture and forestry in the city… answer to a variety of urban development goals beyond the provision of green infrastructure and food, such as social inclusion, adaptation to climate change, poverty alleviation, urban water management and opportunities for the productive reuse of urban waste," says Henk de Zeeuw, senior adviser at the RUAF Foundation.

And thankfully, hundreds of entrepreneurs and organizations are using this opportunity to improve urban agriculture and satisfy the demands of an increasingly urban population. From high-tech indoor farms in France and Singapore to mobile apps connecting urban growers and eaters in India and the United States, Food Tank highlights 16 initiatives using tech, entrepreneurship and social innovation to change urban agriculture.

There are countless ways that cities can feed themselves and create better linkages between rural and urban food systems.

1. AeroFarms, Newark (United States)

AeroFarms builds and operates vertical indoor farms to enable local production at scale and increase the availability of safe and nutritious food. The company uses aeroponics to grow leafy greens without sun or soil in a fully controlled environment. The technology enables year-round production while, they say, using 95 percent less water than field farming, resulting in yields 400 times higher per square foot annually. Since its foundation in 2004, AeroFarms aims to disrupt conventional food supply chains by building farms along major distribution routes and in urban areas. The company also won multiple awards, including the 2018 Global SDG Award, for its environmentally responsible practices and leadership in agriculture.

2. Agricool, Paris (France)

Agricool is a start-up that grows strawberries in containers spread throughout urban areas. The company retrofits old, unused containers to accommodate both an LED-lights and aeroponics system making it possible to grow strawberries year-round. The Cooltainers are powered by clean energy and use 90 percent less water than conventional farming. Agricool also works on building a network of urban farmers through the Cooltivators training program, aiming to open up job opportunities for city residents to work in the agricultural sector. The start-up works on expanding operations to other cities, an effort made possible by the replicability of the container’s design.

3. BIGH Farms, Brussels (Belgium)

BIGH (Building Integrated Greenhouses) Farms, a start-up based in Brussels, works on building a network of urban farms in Europe to promote the role urban agriculture can play in the circular economy. BIGH’s designs integrate aquaponics with existing buildings to reduce a site’s environmental impact. The first pilot — above the historic Abattoir in Brussel’s city center — includes a fish farm, a greenhouse and over 2,000 square meters of outdoor vegetable gardens. It started in 2018 producing microgreens, herbs, tomatoes and striped bass. BIGH Farms also partners with local businesses and growers to make sure the farm’s production is complementary to the existing food community.

4. Bites, Phoenix (United States)

Bites is a mobile platform working to help connect urban farmers, chefs and eaters in Phoenix through farm-to-table dining experiences. Eaters and chefs sign up and meet through the app to organize an in-home dining event. Chefs gather the ingredients from urban growers registered on the platform in an effort to promote local, small businesses. Bites was launched in 2017 by Roza Derfowsmakan, founder of Warehouse Apps, to improve accessibility to farm-to-table experiences and support urban farmers. By using technology to build culinary communities, Bites aims to change consumer choices from shipped-in, trucked-in produce to locally sourced food — involving people in the solution itself.

5. BitGrange, Multiple Locations (North America)

BitGrange is an urban farming tool and learning platform working to help educate children on food and agriculture. The BitGrange device, a hydroponics and internet of things-based system, produces edible plants with little water and energy. BitGrange’s software evaluates environmental variables in real-time and notifies growers through a smartphone app to take necessary actions, such as adding more water or plant food. Founded in 2015 according to its philosophy, Plant-Connect-Sync-Play, BitGrange aims to inspire youth to engage in farming by gamifying agriculture. The nano-farm’s design is available for download at BitGrange’s website for potential growers to 3D print the device in their own location.

Chefs gather the ingredients from urban growers registered on the platform in an effort to promote local, small businesses.

6. Bowery Farming, New York Metro Area (United States)

Bowery Farming, an indoor farming start-up, uses software and robotics to grow produce inside warehouses in and around cities. By controlling every aspect of the growing process, the start-up is able to produce leafy greens and herbs using a minimal amount of water and energy per square foot. The technology also makes it possible to grow customized products for chefs and restaurants, such as softer kale and more peppery arugula. Since its establishment in 2017, Bowery Farming is expanding operations beyond its New Jersey warehouse to build vertical farms in other cities and, ultimately, bring efficient food production closer to consumers.

7. Farmizen, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Surat (India)

Farmizen is a mobile-based platform renting farmland to city residents to grow locally grown, organic produce. The app allocates its users a 600 square foot mini-farm in a community nearby. Users can visit the farm anytime to grow and harvest chemical-free produce. Farmworkers look after the plots when the users return to the city, making a fixed and stable income — up to three times more than that of conventional farming. The app is live in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Surat with 1,500 subscribers and 40 acres of land under cultivation. Farmizen was founded in 2017 by entrepreneur Gitanjali Rajamani, driven by the need to create stable livelihoods for farmers and reconnect city-dwellers to agriculture and nature.

8. Fresh Direct, Abuja (Nigeria)

Fresh Direct is an impact-driven start-up using vertical farming and hydroponics to promote locally grown produce and the involvement of youth in agriculture. When young entrepreneur Angel Adelaja started engaging in eco-friendly farming, she faced multiple challenges with conventional farming practices, including access to land, water and technology. As a response, Adelaja founded Fresh Direct in 2014 to make urban agriculture more accessible to everyone, especially youth. Fresh Direct installs stackable container farms in the city, growing organic produce closer to the market. In the future, Adelaja aims to eradicate the notion among young professionals that agriculture is a line of work for the older generations.

9. Gotham Greens, multiple locations (United States)

Gotham Greens builds and operates data-driven, climate-controlled greenhouses in cities across the United States. The greenhouses, powered by wind and solar energy, use hydroponics to grow salad greens and herbs year-round using fewer resources than conventional farming. In addition to its goal of sustainable food production, Gotham Greens also partners with local organizations, schools, community gardens and businesses to support urban renewal and community development projects. Gotham Greens is also the company behind the country’s first commercial rooftop greenhouse, a partnership with Whole Foods Market to operate the greenhouse above its flagship store in Brooklyn, New York.

10. GrowUp Urban Farms, London (United Kingdom)

GrowUp Urban Farms works on developing commercial scale, Controlled Environment Production (CEP) solutions to grow fresh food in communities across London. The CEP farms use aquaponics to farm fish and grow leafy greens in a soil-less system, turning previously unused brownfield sites into productive areas. The GrowUp Box — a community farm developed together with sister organization GrowUp Community Farms — produces over 400kg of salads and 150kg of fish each year. Over the long run, the company aims to replicate the aquaponics system to build urban farms in other cities, opening employment opportunities for youth and using agriculture as a means to make communities more self-sustaining.

11. InFarm, multiple locations (Europe)

InFarm, a Berlin-based start-up, develops modular indoor farming systems to bring agriculture into cities. Designed to combat the long distances food travels, the InFarms produce leafy greens and herbs using 95 percent less water than traditional farms and no pesticides. The technology, the company claims, can reduce food transportation up to 90 percent. In 2013, the company pioneered the modular system in restaurants, schools, hospitals and shopping centers. Operations have expanded to distribute portable farms in neighborhoods and supermarkets across Germany, Denmark, France and Switzerland. The expansion, AgFunder reports, can be attributed to InFarm’s decentralized, data-driven model.

The farm’s closed-loop system works with used coffee grounds — collected from local businesses — to turn residual flows into food.

12. Liv Up, São Paulo (Brazil)

Liv Up works to deliver healthy meals and snack kits prepared with locally grown food to residents of the Greater São Paulo region. The start-up sources organic ingredients from family farmers in peri-urban areas, in an effort to shorten value chains and better connect small producers to the urban market. A team of chefs and nutritionists prepares the meals, which are later deep frozen to maintain the food’s integrity and extend its shelf life. Liv Up was founded in 2016 by a trio of young entrepreneurs driven by the lack of access to healthy foods in São Paulo. The start-up operates in seven municipalities of the metropolitan area, rotating its menu every two weeks.

13. Pasona Urban Ranch, Tokyo (Japan)

Pasona Urban Ranch, an initiative of the Pasona Group, is a mix of office space and animal farm in the heart of Tokyo’s busy Ōtemachi district. The initiative aims to raise interest in agriculture and dairy farming among city residents by bringing them in close contact with farm animals. The ranch houses eight animal species, including cattle, goats and an alpaca, which are cared for by specialized staff. Visitors and employees of the building can attend seminars on dietary education and dairy farming. Previously, the Pasona Group gained worldwide acknowledgment for Pasona O2 — an underground office farm built by Kono Designs in 2010 growing 100 regional crops in downtown Tokyo.

14. RotterZwam, Rotterdam (The Netherlands)

RotterZwam, an urban mushroom farm, raises awareness on the potential of the circular economy for addressing environmental issues. The farm’s closed-loop system works with used coffee grounds — collected from local businesses — to turn residual flows into food. The mushroom nursery, built out of old containers, uses solar paneling to power the farm’s operations and the e-vehicles used for product delivery. The farm’s team offers tours to educate citizens on circular systems and trains entrepreneurs wishing to start a mushroom farm. RotterZwam’s second location in the Schiehaven area opened in mid-2019 thanks to a crowdfunding campaign to bring back the farm after a devastating fire in 2017.

15. Sustenir Agriculture (Singapore)

Sustenir Agriculture is a vertical farm working to promote high quality, locally grown and safe food with the lowest possible footprint. The farm — in the heart of Singapore — uses the latest technology in hydroponics and smart indoor farming to produce leafy greens, tomatoes, strawberries and fresh herbs. Starting as a basement project in 2012, Sustenir produces 1 ton of kale and 3.2 tons of lettuce per month in an area of 54 square meters.

16. Urban Bees, London (United Kingdom)

Urban Bees is a social enterprise working with communities and businesses in London to help bees thrive in the city. Through education and training, the initiative raises awareness on how to create bee-friendly communities and on how to become responsible beekeepers. The first training apiary was established together with the Co-op Plan Bee in Battersea, South London. The enterprise also advises urban gardening initiatives, including Lush’s rooftop garden, to ensure that green areas install the right forage and create healthy bee habitats. Co-founder Alison Benjamin says that city residents often suffer from nature-deficit disorder and urban beekeeping is one path to reconnect with nature in the city.

This story first appeared on:  Food Tank

Lead Photo: Shutterstock Jose L VilchezView of an urban garden in the Panyu District in Guangzhou, China

Tags:  Food & Agriculture urban agriculture Technology Innovation

CALIFORNIA: Proposed Ordinance Would Promote And Protect Agriculture

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admin | on January 01, 2020

A proposed county ordinance that would implement California’s AB 551 is seen as benefiting local agriculture by recognizing its benefits, according to the San Diego County Farm Bureau.

The County of San Diego recently made the Urban Agriculture Incentive Zones (UAIZ) Draft Ordinance available for public review. That period will end January 31, 2020.

The draft ordinance can be found at:  www.sandiegocounty.gov/content/dam/sdc/pds/advance/UAIZ/UAIZ%20Draft%20Ordinance.pdf

In 2018, the Board of Supervisors directed staff to establish an Urban Agriculture Incentive Zone ordinance within the unincorporated areas of the County. It implements California Assembly Bill No. 551 (AB 551), the Urban Agriculture Incentive Zones Act (UAIZ,) authorizes counties and/or cities to establish Urban Agriculture Incentive Zones whereby the county or city and a landowner can enter into a contract for small-scale production of agricultural crops in exchange for a potential property tax benefit.

UAIZ is intended to promote small-scale urban agriculture by providing a financial incentive for property owners of unimproved, underutilized, and vacant properties in census-designated urban areas to use their properties for agricultural uses.

Hannah Gbeh, executive director of the San Diego County Farm Bureau, told The Roadrunner,  “I am encouraged to see the County implementing AB 551, which intends to promote and protect agricultural uses while recognizing the public benefit of agriculture. The County’s proposed Urban Agricultural Incentive Zones Ordinance aims to promote small-scale urban agriculture by providing a financial incentive for eligible property owners. For agriculture in San Diego County, where 69% of our farms are 1 to 9 acres in size, this ordinance has the potential to significantly benefit agriculture.”

Gbeh added, “The Draft Ordinance is available for public review until January 31st and I would encourage anyone interested in urban agriculture to review and provide comments to the County. The San Diego County Farm Bureau stands ready to assist all local growers in starting or expanding agriculture operations within our County lines. We encourage all growers to be active and engaged in activities affecting the regulatory environment of agriculture and are available to assist any members experiencing issues.”

Under this ordinance, a property owner voluntarily enters into a contract with the county for a minimum of five years. While under contract, the property owner pays property taxes based on the assessed agricultural value of the property, which can offer substantial savings. 

To be eligible for the program, the property must be located within an urbanized census area; be between 0.1 and 3.0 acres in size; vacant, unimproved, or have only non-residential structures; and be fully dedicated to agriculture.

Lands that are not eligible include (1) property that is currently subject to, or has been subject to within the previous three years, a Williamson Act Contract (current Government Code section 51200 et seq.); or (2) property in the unincorporated County, within the sphere of influence of a city, unless the legislative body of the city consents to inclusion of the property within the County UAIZ Establishment Area.

For more information contact: Project Contact: Timothy Vertino at timothy.vertino@sdcounty.ca.gov or call 858-495-5468

From 10 To 20 To 40 Acres

Twin Creeks Greenhouse Continues To Expand

Mike Cornelissen, owner, and operator of Twin Creeks Greenhouse has been very busy. Mike and his wife Danielle just welcomed their first baby boy and have started construction on their third expansion at Twin Creeks Greenhouse.

Growing up in Watford Ontario, Canada with deep family roots in the agricultural sector, George Cornelissen, Mike's father, has built a thriving and well-respected business. Cornelissen Farms is diversified in field crops, chicken barns, and even grain elevators, but with an eye to the future, George and Mike wanted to expand into the greenhouse sector too.

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Mike grew up around his uncle’s greenhouse and learned about the industry from a young age. While in college, Mike took interest in building his own greenhouse and decided to work for his uncle as part of his degree. In the fall of 2015, the Cornelissen family purchased a large plot of land next to a landfill and began working with Havecon to develop their new greenhouse project.

In the spring of 2016, Mike was able to secure a bio-gas agreement with his landfill neighbor and together with Havecon, started construction on their first 10-acre greenhouse block.

In 2018 after a successful first year, they decided it was time to expand again with another 10-acre greenhouse block. Then in 2019, they decided it was time to again grow the business. Havecon and its partners were again invited to start on Twin Creeks largest expansion to date. This time building a 20-acre block, bringing the total greenhouse growing area to 40 acres.

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With this additional acreage Twin Creeks Greenhouse will become one of the largest pepper growers in Ontario, Canada, and with plenty of land left, the sky is the limit!

When we asked Mike about why he has chosen Havecon from the beginning and all expansions after, he answers: “From the start the feeling we had with Havecon was good. The same goes for Voorwinden, by the way. In practice the high quality of their workmanship confirmed this feeling. Next to that the speediness of their work throughout the whole process is a big plus. And finally, I would mention the overall support. People at Havecon are always willing to help and think along with you. Therefore, we are looking forward to working with Havecon again for our latest and largest project.”

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For more information:
Twin Creeks and Cornelissen Farms
www.cornelissenfarms.com

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Havecon Kassenbouw B.V.
Lorentzstraat 8
2665 JH Bleiswijk
Postbus 25
2665 ZG Bleiswijk
Tel. +31(0)10 266 32 70
info@havecon.com
www.havecon.com

CAN (ON): Ontario Supports Healthy Fundraiser That Connects Students With Farmers

On 22nd November, Ernie Hardeman, Ontario Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and Stephen Lecce, Ontario Minister of Education, congratulated schools participating in the Fresh from the Farm fundraising program for their efforts in promoting Ontario produce while helping to increase funds for extracurricular activities. The annual program provides a unique and healthy fundraising opportunity that benefits local schools, supports our farmers and promotes healthy eating to Ontario families.

"Fresh from the Farm provides an innovative opportunity for Ontario students to learn about the healthy, nutritious food our hardworking farmers grow while also supporting their local schools' extracurricular programming," said Hardeman. "We also appreciate the coordination effort of the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers' Association and each school that participates in this great program."

Schools keep 40 percent of the funds raised which are used to support initiatives like schoolyard improvement projects and fun, educational class trips, as well as other supplementary or after-school programs.

Fresh from the Farm is a collaborative initiative between the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers' Association and the Ontario government. This year, 471 schools took part and have generated over $862,355 for extracurricular activities by selling 713,612 pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables.

"I join Minister Hardeman in encouraging healthy eating and lifestyles for our students while promoting the interests of Ontario farmers," said Minister Lecce. "I thank the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers' Association for teaching children with pride about the good things grown in Ontario."

"The Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association is pleased to be working with the government to deliver the seventh year of the Fresh from the Farm school fundraising program. Once again, the program has been a success with over 710,000 pounds of Ontario-grown apples and root vegetables sold and nearly $350,000 raised for schools. The OFVGA looks forward to continuing this partnership with government in 2020 to support school fundraising, access to local food and Ontario farmers." Bill George Jr., Chair of the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers' Association.

Since 2013, almost 2,200 schools have participated in Fresh from the Farm. Collectively, the schools have distributed over 4.3 million pounds of fresh, local fruit and vegetables to Ontario families, generating a total of almost $5 million in local food sales across the province.

Source ontario.ca

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Publication date: Mon 25 Nov 2019