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Jack Jack's Coffee House The 'Catalyst' For Urban Farming On Long Island
Jack Jack's Coffee House The 'Catalyst' For Urban Farming On Long Island
Jack Jack’s Coffee House in Babylon played a big role in helping bring the “Urban Farming” concept to Long Island, something that has caught the eye of local and NYC media alike.
Jim Adams of West Babylon was looking for a new way to benefit the community through the local and organic agriculture movement when he met the owners of Jack Jack’s, Mike Sparacino and Vanessa Viola.
As farmers themselves, Sparacino and Viola offered him tips to growing in the local area.
Signage that sits outside of Trimarco’s newly transformed lawn
They also helped him publicize his fledgling Long Island Farms effort and the need for volunteers.
Adams left a flier at Jack Jack’s asking people to “consider turning [their] lawn into a small local farm and at the same time eliminating landscaping expenses.”
“We are a place to share ideas that might be thinking out of the box,” said Sparacino.”So, when he put the poster up here we had a great response.”
Tilling The Lawn
Cassandra Trimarco, a physician assistant, who is a frequent customer at Jack Jack’s, was beyond excited to see the flier, being someone who was interested in growing her own food, but was restricted land-wise.
“I would grow little basil in cans, but that never worked out,” she said laughing.
After reading the ad she called immediately.
“[Jack Jack’s] was the catalyst and connection between [Lawn Island Farms] and myself,” she said.
Trimarco’s property was a perfect fit for a farm makeover.
Jim walking through his farmland at St. Peter’s Farm
And just this month, her little front-yard farm caught the attention of CBS News New York, with a Newsday report quickly following.
“On Long Island, there is now a ‘front yard to table’ effort and it’s turning heads,” CBS reported.
“We have plenty of land [on Long Island], we shouldn’t be flying in pesticide-filled [crops],” Adams told GreaterBabylon on Friday.
Trimarco moved into her Hyman Avenue house on May 1, and Lawn Island Farms immediately began the conversion process.
According to Lawn Island Farms, it took about two weeks of heavy pilling to get the initial seeds down, but now they are in harvest. Trimarco herself has no farming responsibilities, she just enjoys the view while getting $30 worth of crops per week.
“It’s great; I love it,” said Trimarco, “It’s attracting a lot of great things and it’s beautiful”
Jim Adams shows off a copy of The Urban Farmer
Lawn Island Farms takes the freshly grown produce and sells them to local businesses as well as at farmer markets in Bay Shore and Sayville.
The Movement
Jim became interested in urban farming after quitting his pool servicing job after 20 years in search of something more “meaningful.” He had read a book called The Urban Farmer, written by Curtis Stone, which gives guidelines to growing on small plots of land.
Jim and his wife, Rosette Basiima Adams, 34, soon started talking seriously about growing locally. For Rosette, who is from Uganda, she had found it odd to learn Americans didn’t grow their own food.
It wasn’t until she was 25 when she moved to the U.S. that she visited her first grocery store.
“When I first saw a supermarket I was excited and wowed,” she said. “Then I saw the food wasn’t fresh and was genetically modified.”
When Jim met with Sparacino and Viola, the first tip they were given was on a great location to start his farming.
“I recommended [Jim] to grow at St. Peter’s Farm,” said Saparcino.
St. Peter’s Farm is a small agricultural lot hidden behind by the St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Bay Shore.
Both Jim and Rosette visited the church, where they agreed to take over 10,000 square feet of land and create their Lawn Island Farms.
Rosette Basiima Adams checking on her crops outside of Trimarco’s house
“We never even knew that land was back there,” said Jim. “Who knew?”
Now, Lawn Island Farms is trying to use their first urban farm’s success story to inspire others to grow locally.
“There are a lot of people who care about where there food comes from and seek it,” said Jim. “But if more of these small farms keep growing then even people who don’t care will be provided with [fresh food].
“They deserve better… we all deserve better.”
If you’d like to support Lawn Island Farms and learn more about their journey click here.
Rosette (left), Jim (middle), and Cassandra (right) in front of her house.
Fresh radishes grown by Lawn Island Farms.
Lawn Island Farms crops at St. Peter’s Farm.
Fresh lettuce growing outside of Trimarco’s household.
St. Paul-Based Urban Organics Aims To Provide Local Greens All Year Long
St. Paul-Based Urban Organics Aims To Provide Local Greens All Year Long
June 24, 2017 12:37 PM By Rachel Slavik
Filed Under: Dave Haider, Rachel Slavik, St. Paul, Urban Organics
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Minnesota winters aren’t exactly ideal growing conditions for fresh local produce. One St. Paul company is working to bring local, organic greens to store shelves all year long.
Urban Organics is among the first to begin mass producing several varieties of lettuce within city limits prompting an agricultural evolution, of sorts.
Outdoor farming is moving inside because of people like Dave Haider.
“It’s absolutely perfect growing conditions 365 days a year,” Haider said.
Dave is the co-owner of Urban Organics, which produces locally-grown, organic leafy greens.
“I think people are starting to have a deeper focus on where their food comes from,” Haider said.
That interest has led to incredible growth since the company’s launch four years ago. Haider started with a smaller operation in the Hamm’s brewery but recently expanded to a new 90,000 square facility in the old Schmidt Brewery.
“I don’t think we anticipated such a high demand so quickly,” Haider said.
Urban Organics has found success using aquaponics and hydroponics, a process where fish and water are combined to help plants grow.
Each leafy green sprouts in nutrient filled water funneled from onsite tanks containing salmon and char.
“We capture the waste, remove the solid waste and ammonia in the water. It’s converted to nitrates through a biological filter and it’s that nitrate rich water that provides all the nutrients, all the nitrogen for the plants,” Haider said.
Dave said the end result is a growing system that uses less than five percent of water compared to conventional agriculture and ultimately allows fresh greens to reach store shelves within a day and a half.
“Very low impact on the environment,” Haider said.
The products are in most co-ops around the Twin Cities and three Lunds/Byerly’s stores. For more on where and what lettuce varieties are available, go here.
A Google-Backed Warehouse Farm Just Raised $20 Million to Build in Cities Across The US
A Google-Backed Warehouse Farm Just Raised $20 Million to Build in Cities Across The US
Bowery
Indoor agriculture startup Bowery says it's creating the farm of the future.
Unlike traditional outdoor farms, Bowery grows greens under LEDs (which mimic natural sunlight) inside a giant warehouse in New Jersey. Instead of soil, crops sprout in nutrient-rich water beds on trays stacked from the floor to the ceiling. Throughout the growing process, sensors in the trays track the growing process.
The company just raised $20 million in Series A funding, co-led by General Catalyst and GGV Capital ith participatio from GV (formerly Google Ventures). With the new funding, it will build more farms (first in the tri-state area and later in other cities across the US), move beyond greens to other crops, and hire more people.
When Bowery launched earlier in 2017, co-founder Irving Fain told Business Insider the farm has the capacity to grow 100 times more greens per square foot than the average industrial farm. The startup's operational costs stay low because it automates traditional farm labor and uses a proprietary piece of software, called FarmOS, to optimize its growing process.
Bowery is currently testing over 80 different varieties of greens, including baby kale, mustard greens, and arugula.
Bowery
Out of those 80, Bowery is selling six types for about the cost of most organic greens. Available at select Whole Foods and Foragers stores in the tri-state area, a five-ounce package of greens costs $3.99.
Bowery is one of many urban farming startups that have emerged in recent years. Also in New Jersey, AeroFarms started commercial production inside a 69,000-square-foot warehouse in 2016. Brooklyn's Square Roots, which made its first harvest in early 2017, is growing its produce inside ten 320-square-foot shipping containers.
Unlike Bowery, which says it will now experiment with other crops besides greens, these companies solely produce leafy greens. Compared to other vegetables and fruits, greens usually make more financial sense for vertical farms — They can sell greens at a higher price per pound that most other types of produce.
Bowery Farm is now ramping up for large-scale production (Fain would not disclose the farm's size or growing capacity), and is already working on its next farm in the tri-state area. In the future, Fain hopes to expand internationally.
Focusing On Food Loss And Food Waste: 2017 Food Tank Summit NYC: September 13
Focusing On Food Loss And Food Waste: 2017 Food Tank Summit NYC: September 13
DATE AND TIME
Wed, September 13, 2017
9:30 AM – 6:00 PM EDT Add to Calendar
LOCATION
The Greene Space
44 Charlton Street New
New York, NY 10014
* FOOD TANK IS COMMITTED TO BUILDING AN ENGAGED AND DIVERSE AUDIENCE. YOU MUST HAVE AN ACCESS CODE TO PURCHASE TICKETS FOR THIS EVENT. TO APPLY, PLEASE FILL OUT THIS FORM. HURRY, THIS EVENT WILL SELL OUT!*
Food Tank, ReFED, and The Rockefeller Foundation are excited to announce the inaugural NYC Food Tank Summit! This one-day event will feature more than three dozen different speakers from the food and agriculture field. Researchers, farmers, chefs, policy makers, government officials, and students will come together for discussions on diverse topics. The theme for the Summit is Focusing on Food Loss and Food Waste.
This Food Tank Summit is being held in partnership with ReFED and with support from The Rockefeller Foundation. ReFED is a multi-stakeholder nonprofit, powered by an influential network of the nation’s leading business, nonprofit, foundation, and government leaders committed to reducing U.S. food waste. The Rockefeller Foundation is supporting this Food Tank Summit as part of its $130 million YieldWise initiative, launched in January 2016 to address the global crisis of food loss and waste. The Foundation is working with private, public and nonprofit actors to foster a “greener revolution” in the food system, and connecting good ideas with the actors who can implement them at scale. Together, we can halve global food loss and waste and realize major benefits for people, companies, cities, and the planet.
This is the third event in our 2017 Food Tank Summit Series, which will bring together some of the world’s most impactful food system leaders. Every Food Tank Summit to-date has sold out, and more than 175,000 viewers from around the globe have tuned in for the livestream. This is a can’t miss event for 2017!
Confirmed Speakers Include:
- Emily Bachman, Compost Program Manager, Zero Waste Programs, GrowNYC
- Elizabeth Balkan, Director of Policy and Senior Advisor, Office of the Commissioner at NYC Department of Sanitation (DSNY)
- John Boyd, Jr., Founder and President, National Black Farmers Association
- Joan Briggs, Executive Director, Fink Family Foundation
- Gigi Lee Chang, Managing Director, FoodFutureCo
- Chris Cochran, Executive Director, ReFED
- Tom Colicchio, Chef and Owner, Craft restaurants & ‘wichcraft
- Ron Gonen, Co-Founder and CEO, Closed Loop Partners
- Tony Hillery, Executive Director, Harlem Grown
- Helen Hollyman, Editor-In-Chief, MUNCHIES
- Lynette Johnson, Executive Director, Society of St. Andrews
- Prasanta Kalita, Director, ADM Institute for the Prevention of Postharvest Loss, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Justin Kamine, Partner, KDC Ag - Kamine Development Corporation
- Sam Kass, Chef, Entrepreneur, and Founder, TROVE
- Devon Klatell, Associate Director, The Rockefeller Foundation
- Jude Medeiros, Regional Vice President of Schools, Sodexo
- Clare Miflin, Architect, Kiss + Cathcart
- Monica Munn, Senior Program Associate, The Rockefeller Foundation
- Kimbal Musk, Chef & Co-Founder, The Kitchen
- Danielle Nierenberg, President, Food Tank
- Tinia Pina, Founder & CEO, Re-Nuble
- Brian Roe, Professor, College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences, The Ohio State University
- Stephanie Strom, Food Business Writer, The New York Times
- Brian Wansink, Professor and Director, Cornell University Food and Brand Lab
- Jocelyn Zuckerman, Contributing Editor, Modern Farmer
- Konstantin Zvereff, Founder and CEO, BlueCart
Ticket Information and Details:
The Summit. Includes the entire Food Tank Summit (breakfast and lunch provided) on September 13th. 35+ incredible speakers held at The Greene Space. $299 (scholarships available).
Food Tank is committed to building an engaged and diverse audience. Tickets for this event are available by application only. To apply, please fill out this form. We provide full and partial ticket scholarships for students, farmers, individuals with financial need, and other underrepresented groups. You can apply for scholarships on the ticket application. Hurry, this event will sell out!
Thank you to our Summit partners, sponsors, and media partners: Barilla Center for Food and Nutrition, Blue Apron, ReFED, The Rockefeller Foundation, and Sealed Air.
Interested in becoming a sponsor? Please email Bernard Pollack at bernard@foodtank.com for more details
Interestested in volunteering? Please send your resume and availablity to Vanesa Botero-Lowry at vanesa@foodtank.com.
Food Tank's Refund Policy: We understand that schedules change. The deadline to cancel your registration and receive a full refund is August 13, 2017. Any requests made after August 13, 2017 can not be processed
Vertical Farming Using LED lights – Interview With Céline Nicole, Philips Lighting Research
Vertical Farming Using LED lights – Interview With Céline Nicole, Philips Lighting Research
Posted on 20/06/2017 by Diana Macovei
Vertical Farming using LED lights – Interview with Céline Nicole, Philips Lighting Research
Céline Nicole, from Philips Lighting Research will present her vision on the developments of Vertical Farming using LED lights on the 28th of June, at the Vertical Farming Conference in Venlo, The Netherlands.
Plant scientist and researcher Céline Nicole worked at Philips Horticulture LEDs solutions for 8 years and at the Philips Lighting Research for 16 years.
Since the year 2000, vertical farms have been introduced to grow vegetables and soft fruits. As LED lights became increasingly efficient they have become the light source of choice for commercial scale vertical farming.
How has vertical farming become so efficient?
“With the growing population, living in cities more and more, we need a solution to feed the world. Vertical farming represents a contribution to meeting that challenge. With this technology, growing conditions can be controlled including the climate, the water, nutrition and the light. Philips Lighting uses different light combinations which we call light recipes. These are a combination of different LED colours (spectrum), intensity and lighting hours per day. In vertical farming, water is re-used making this system very sustainable for water usage (more than 90% on water savings). No pesticides or other chemicals are used because there are no external influences getting inside the farm and everything used inside the farm is sterile. Accurate control of the climate allows crop growth in the best conditions. And because there are no seasons inside the farm, the yield per year is the highest of what can be achieved compared to other ways of growing crops.,” according to Nicole.
In addition, vertical farms can be built close to or in cities, allowing the shortest time from farm to fork. That increases useful shelf-life of the fresh produce and improves logistics, and therefore also contributes to reduced food waste.
You create an indoor climate, but is that good for the vegetables, as nature has its reasons for varying conditions.
Nature and climate varies much on the surface of the globe. For plant growth, tropical regions are rather mild in temperature and humidity, while continental or temperate climates have colder and warmer months with variations in humidity. Vegetables are originating from all over the world and have therefore evolved for different climate and light conditions. In a vertical farm it is possible to create a climate close to the optimal growing conditions for each variety.
For example, spinach likes it cold, especially at the start of growth and we can adjust the climate in order to optimize its growth and quality. In contrast, Basil likes it warm because it is a tropical plant, but it is grown in Europe as an annual crop. This is changing with vertical farming as we can now grow Basil at any time of the year, regardless of the season, and of a very high quality.
“Optimizing growing conditions for plants doesn’t always necessarily mean that it is good for the plant, sometimes it is done to achieve benefits for the consumer. For example, growing red oak lettuce in a climate and with light settings that is good for plant biomass production will not always create a good red colour like it would when grown outside in the summer. This is in fact a ‘stress response’ due to the UV component in sunlight. With the knowledge that we are gathering at Grow Wise centre and with our customers, we are developing and fine-tuning growth recipes for different crops. With vertical farming we can create climates and light conditions that mimic the natural environmental changes, in order to trigger the plant to produce those photo protective pigments (anthocyanin) and make them identical to when grown outside,” says Nicole.
Can you elaborate on Nitrates and health?
For decades there has been a controversy about assessing the possible negative health effects of nitrates ingested from vegetables. Over the past 5-10 years, more and more articles have appeared claiming the opposite, that nitrate consumption is healthy. It was shown to have an antimicrobial activity and also to enable the body to produce nitric oxide which is believed to have an important physiological role in vascoregulation and therefore beneficial for cardiovascular patients. The vascoregulation has been proved and is used by high level sportive people who need to perform in a short time frame. Still, the association of high nitrate levels has a negative impact on consumer minds. The Dutch food authorities’ recommendation has recently changed the advice on spinach and high nitrate vegetables. The limitation of daily uptake in grams has vanished in the Netherlands and some other countries. This is probably due to recent research showing that people eating on average more vegetables per day are more likely to be healthy. However, since there is no scientific consensus, it is wise to know how to limit the amount of nitrate when growing leafy vegetables, especially for those vegetables containing a lot (like spinach or rucola).
“With vertical farming we can provide both, low or high nitrate vegetables. Some of our customers desire to have a very low nitrate level in leafy vegetables, and we can help them by providing this. We can also provide a ‘runners’ lettuce with an ultra-high nitrate content if anyone asks. For sure, with vertical farming we are preventing pollution of the environment from overusing nitrogen fertilizers as the irrigation circuit is closed and water is recycled.” Concludes Nicole
For more information and registration to the Vertical Farming Conference, we invite you to visit https://www.verticalfarmingconference.com/
The interview was made by Jakajima, the organiser of the conference. For more interviews with speakers at Jakajima conferences, we invite you to visit Jakajima’s website
Sensing Opportunity in Drought, Two Horticulture Classmates Launch Eco Conscious Aquaponics Farm
Sensing Opportunity in Drought, Two Horticulture Classmates Launch Eco Conscious Aquaponics Farm
June 21, 2017 | Pamela Ellgen
The Eco Conscious Aquaponics team in their greenhouse in Goleta, CA. Owners Julian Cantando and Clayton Garland (pictured center left and center right) decided to launch the farm at the height of the California drought. Photo credit: Pamela Ellgen.
In 2016, at the height of the California drought, Julian Cantando and Clayton Garland envisioned a more sustainable farming model than traditional soil-based agriculture, which has always thrived in California.
“Last year was the seventh year of the drought, the lake was down, and the threat of not having water was real, at least for other farmers who aren’t on a well. It was kind of a bleak situation,” Cantando says.
He and Garland were classmates in the Horticulture Program at Santa Barbara City College and often discussed going into business together.
“We had always been talking after class about doing something in the realm of sustainable agriculture, but we didn’t really know what we wanted to do,” he says. “The opportunity presented itself and we jumped on it.”
After graduation, the pair rented a greenhouse at The Orchid Ranch perched on cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean, purchased pre-owned equipment for an aquaponics operation, and opened Eco Conscious Aquaponics. They grow lettuces, microgreens, and vegetables, including watercress, sorrel, celery, fennel, and bok choy. They also have some soil-based plants in the greenhouse, including opuntia (known as prickly pear cactus in the culinary world), cape goose berry, and miracle berry.
“We get a lot of feedback that our produce has a better flavor profile because it gets all the water that it needs and all of the nutrition that it needs,” Cantando says. “Our system is 100% irrigation, which means the plant roots are sitting in water. They never get stressed out, so it’s a really tender, beautiful plant.”
Eco Conscious Aquaponics plants its seeds in coconut fiber, a sustainable byproduct of the coconut industry. The inert medium retains water and has high porosity, like a sponge, while also holding air even when fully saturated. Coconut fiber also has an ideal pH and is inhospitable to fungal growth.
Unlike other aquaponic operations that grow and harvest fish for food, Eco Conscious Aquaponics uses long-lived fish such as catfish, koi, and goldfish, which will not be harvested and exist only to supply nutrients to the plants.
It is an entirely organic operation and pest management is handled with marigold plants to deter insects and yellow sticky tape to snare flies.
The Eco-Conscious Aquaponics founders are young; Cantando is 23 and Garland is 30 and the farm is entirely self-funded. Both founders hold off-farm jobs to pay the bills.
Nevertheless, the farm is completely self-sufficient and generates around $5,000 in monthly revenue, with up to $3000 in monthly expenses. They reinvest 20 percent of profits back into the business.
As with any startup, getting the word out about their product was an early hurdle. They went door to door connecting with local restaurants in Santa Barbara and offering samples to chefs. They also began selling to farmer’s markets in Santa Barbara and Santa Ynez. Staying diligent and consistent was the key to getting clients. Delivering freshly harvested, delicious, consistent produce has been the key to keeping clients.
“It’s as fresh as it gets,” Cantando says. And, they have had terrific responses from local chefs. “That’s why we are still here.”
He acknowledges that operating in Santa Barbara where people are environmentally conscious and can afford to care about what’s on their plate is crucial to their success.
In the future, Eco Conscious Aquaponics hopes to expand their operation to additional locations, diversify what they grow, and possibly pursue soil-based agriculture. “I don’t [see] anything wrong with growing in soil as long as the water is available and it’s a sustainable practice,” Cantando says.
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General information on aquaponics: Aquaponics uses up to 90 percent less water than soil-based operations, making it especially viable in drought-prone areas. It is a system of aquaculture in which farmed fish supply nutrients for hydroponic plants, which act as a biofilter for the water. Just as important, plants receive adequate hydration for superior flavor. Additionally, it is a closed-loop system with no fertilizer runoff.
Urban Farming Won't Save Us From Climate Change
Photographer: Zoran Milich/Moment Mobile ED
Urban Farming Won't Save Us From Climate Change
Community gardens serve many purposes. Slowing climate change isn't one of them.
By Deena Shanker | June 21, 2017, 8:46 AM CDT
In places such as New York and Boston, the appeal of the self-sustaining rooftop farm is irresistible. If only enough unused space were converted to fertile fields, the thinking goes, local kale and spinach for the masses could be a reality, even in the most crowded neighborhoods.
Proponents claim that city vegetable gardens are a solution to nearly every urban woe, providing access to healthy foods in neighborhoods that lack it, as well as economic stimulation, community engagement, and significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. But a new study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology says that in colder climates such as the Northeast's, the emissions reductions are minimal.
"Urban farming advocates tend to focus on the distance from farm to fork, equating local food with environmentally sustainable food, oversimplifying the complexity of food sustainability to a single aspect," the researchers write. In reality, the carbon reductions made possible by urban farming are much smaller than many had assumed. In the best case scenario, urban farming would only reduce a Northeastern's city's food-related carbon footprint by 2.9 percent, the study found.
The study's authors used Boston to prove their point.
They first established the city's food-related environmental impact baseline by combining publicly available dietary information with data on the burden required to supply that food. Next, they determined the space available for urban farming, including both ground lots and usable rooftop space. Finally, they used data from several farms in Boston and New York to understand the resources used, including fossil fuel-based power, the vegetables they yield, and their overall environmental impact. Ultimately, the researchers found the environmental gains from urban farming to be "marginal."
The reason is that while city-grown vegetables can have a slightly lower environmental impact than those grown thousands of miles away, horticulture has never been the real problem. It's not apples and tomatoes that are responsible for most of the diet's greenhouse gas emissions; it's animals. Meat and dairy products contribute 54 percent of the American diet's potential impact on climate change. If city residents really want to lower their carbon footprints, they should become vegan. For bonus points, they can turn their roofs into solar gardens instead of vegetable ones.
There are many reasons to embrace urban agriculture. Greater access to produce could help improve the diet of city residents, and replacing pavement with soil could help abate water runoff, for example. But slowing climate change isn't one of them. The potential economic benefits of urban farming are also less promising than proponents had hoped, the study found. Even if Boston-grown vegetables were sold within the larger metropolitan area, the value would still be less than .5 percent of regional gross domestic product. And while some of that growth would go to low-income neighborhoods, the majority would flow to areas with poverty rates below 25 percent.
"I am positive about urban agriculture," says Benjamin Goldstein, of the Technical University of Denmark and the lead author of the study. "I just want to make sure it's done for the right reasons."
City Roots Urban Farm Becomes Hub For Eat Local Movement In The Midlands
City Roots Urban Farm Becomes Hub For Eat Local Movement In The Midlands
- By Stephanie Burt Special to The Post and Courier
- Jun 18, 2017
Eric McClam at the family's City Roots urban farm in Columbia.
COLUMBIA — In 2009, when Robbie McClam and his son, Eric, started City Roots Farm, they usually had to follow an introduction by explaining that the urban property was out by the Columbia Municipal Airport. These days, there is rarely any follow-up reference needed.
City Roots has expanded into a hub of the local food movement in the capital city, providing not only fresh veggies to the chefs and farmers market shoppers in the region, but microgreens to the Southeast, a CSA for local residents, an event venue, and even a children’s day camp this summer. And they are not stopping there.
Martha and Eric McClam hold daughter, Tessa, at City Roots. She is growing up around the farm, and so are 3,000 to 4,000 children who visit each year through Richland County schools.
“Columbia is a completely different place from when I left in 2004 to when I returned in 2009,” says Eric McClam, who heads the operation that employs 20 staff members and five interns. “The arts scene and the food scene were really beginning to be intertwined, and there was a general awareness of sustainability that made us excited.”
So when McClam knocked on the kitchen door of Kristian Niemi, who was then cooking at Rosso Trattoria, to gauge the chef's interest in purchasing local products, Niemi responded with an enthusiastic yes, especially if the consistency and quality was up to high-end restaurant standards.
Thus, the McClam family had their assignment and went to work, creating a diverse farm on 3 acres that in 2018 will reach an expanded 40 acres (including land leased elsewhere in Richland County). Approximately 30 restaurants in the Columbia area use City Roots produce, including Niemi’s current flagship, Bourbon. That’s not counting the chefs outside the immediate region who have access to the products through distributors. Although City Roots produces a wide range of fruits and vegetables, from blueberries to oyster mushrooms to tomatoes and even cut flowers, its main crop is microgreens.
A view of one of the greenhouse tunnels where microgreens are grown.
“We grow 20 varieties of microgreens that are in 32 Whole Foods Markets in the Southeast, Growfood Carolina food hub in Charleston, various farmers markets we participate in, and even on Carnival Cruise Ships,” McClam explains. The greens are grown primarily in five high tunnels on the farm, and the fast-growing specialty crop provides a stable base for the farm, which allows for creativity and experimentation.
For example, in 2015, the farm installed a tilapia pond system to begin aquaponic farming on site, and after working with that for a year or so, is now transforming that pond into more of a demonstration pond for schoolchildren. They didn’t bank all their efforts on the tilapia venture being successful, so as a agribusiness, they were able to redirect efforts elsewhere. It's a nimbleness that is often lacking for single-crop farms.
Microgreens growing at City Roots farm, which has become a major supplier of the leafy produce in the Southeast.
It also allows them to take chances and have vision for the space as a unique entity beyond just crops and harvest.
“I just walked up to Eric at the farmers market one day and said, ‘I want to have a dinner on your farm,’” says Vanessa Driscoll Bialobreski, a Columbia native, event planner and public relations professional who had recently moved back to the city and was looking to get involved in the local community.
City Roots said yes, and from there, things "just blew up,” Bialobreski says. Over the past six years, at least 13,000 tickets have been sold to more than 200 events at the farm.
Bialobreski is now the managing partner for the Farm to Table Event Company, which runs those events and counts Robbie McClam and Niemi as partners as well. It has created a symbiotic relationship that continues to help all parties while at the same time creating events for the city, including a recent sold-out James Beard Foundation dinner and a Mardi Gras Festival. “It’s great for us to get involved in the community as a team and bridge that farm-to-table gap,” Bialobreski says.
City Roots has become a hub for the community, not only at farmers markets and wholesale to local chefs, but also has a gathering space for a growing number of local food-centric events.
“City Roots is such an important part of the overall food culture that is helping to put Columbia on the map as a destination,” says Kelly Barbrey, vice president of sales and marketing at Experience Columbia SC. “Many of our local restaurants are using their produce, microgreens and flowers, all of which are grown right here in the heart of the city, and local residents and out-of-towners love coming to unique events held at City Roots, like the Rosé Festival and Tasty Tomato Festival, to feel connected to the energy and vitality of our community.”
Beyond the festive events, the up to 4,000 schoolchildren who visit each year, the first annual summer day camp, and the locals who shop in the farm store, City Roots is now working to bring even more people to the farm through canning and pickling. At the moment, staff is working on building out a kitchen that will meet DHEC approval. Not only will it help the farm preserve produce that can be another specialty product, but the kitchen can be a space where people can come to learn the skills of pickling and preserving.
With the rise of the collaboration between Farm to Table Event Co. and City Roots, the farm is serving the community in multiple ways, including through special events.
It seems there’s always something “cooking” at City Roots, from the Midlands farms database they are building and sharing for area chefs to the consideration of produce being included in Blue Apron. Eric McClam and his staff are not only willing to consider new ways of bringing local produce to consumers, but are creating a more stable and sustainable regional culture through that produce.
“When we started, we were the only show in town so to speak when it came to buying local produce,” McClam says. “Now local produce, or at least the consideration, is part of people’s vocabulary. We are happy to be right at the time when Columbia caught the local food craze.”
Clariant Ups R&D Support for Agriculture
Clariant Ups R&D Support for Agriculture
KELLY MARSHALL JUNE 23, 2017 LEAVE A COMMENT
Clariant is excited to announce their new greenhouse at Clariant Innovation Center (CIC) opened earlier this week. The state-of-the-art greenhouse will offer R&D for crop protection and managment, along with yield-enhancement solutions.
The 400sqm greenhouse offers smart simulation of environmental conditions such as humidity, light, rainfall and temperature, creating a proper climate for testing to supplement Clariant’s existing laboratory testing facilities at the CIC. The aim is to reduce development time and speed-to- market for advances in the niche growth areas of Plant Growth Regulators, Foliar Fertilizers and Bio-herbicides. These have been identified as focus areas to Clariant for successfully addressing current customer-specific needs and future global food demands.
“The new Crop Solutions greenhouse creates the perfect environment for fostering joint development in the areas we see as having most potential for delivering sustainable crop protection and, in the bigger picture, addressing the world’s increasing nutrition requirements,” said Britta Fünfstück, Member of Clariant’s Executive Committee. “It’s a level of support that sets us apart within our industry and we are excited at the prospect of contributing even more closely to the innovations of tomorrow.”
The new facility reinforces Clariant’s focus on sustainability and puts the company in a stronger position to provide answers going forward. Keep watching for unique solutions to come.
ShopRite Expands Locally Grown Program
ShopRite Expands Locally Grown Program
JUNE 23, 2017
Continuing its long-held tradition of carrying locally grown products, ShopRite has expanded its Locally Grown program, offering a rich variety of products throughout the supermarket — from fresh fruits and vegetables to farm-raised beef, seafood, flowers, baked goods, honey, craft beer and roasted coffees.ShopRite associate Chun Hung of Cherry Hill, NJ.
ShopRite associate Chun Hung of Cherry Hill, NJ.
“ShopRite has been partnering with local farmers since our inception almost 70 years ago,” Derrick Jenkins, vice president of the produce and floral division at ShopRite, said in a press release. “But more than ever, we are meeting increased customer demand for locally sourced products by working hand-in-hand with local entrepreneurs, family farms and businesses to procure and sell products that have been locally grown.”
ShopRite recently joined state officials in announcing the debut of the “Grown in Monmouth” label. Its stores in New Jersey’s Monmouth and Ocean counties will feature flowers and plants branded with the new label and sourced from local farms.
Many seasonal and unique products can also be found on a store-by-store basis. These “hyperlocal” products are produced by local independent businesses and growers, including greens that have been grown on local hydroponic or indoor “vertical” farms.
“ShopRite is proud to work with local family farms and businesses because local is not only how we source our food, it’s who we are,” Jenkins said in the release. “We look forward to offering shoppers an ever-increasing assortment of locally made products and goods throughout the year.”
We Kid You Not: Goats Clean Up Parks and Educate Communities on Urban Farming
We Kid You Not: Goats Clean Up Parks and Educate Communities on Urban Farming
By AINE CREEDON | June 16, 2017
June 14, 2017; Denver Post
Imagine waking up on a Saturday morning to eight goats being walked on leashes down your street, heading to a local park where the honorary goat-welcoming committee awaits them. In Wheat Ridge, a western Denver suburb, this unusual landscaping goat crew turning heads is becoming a local attraction and is also educating communities on urban agriculture.
In 2013, Wheat Ridge’s Five Fridges Farm was struggling with how to address an overgrown noxious weed problem they were facing. The land was in a tough spot for lawnmower access, and chemicals simply weren’t an option for the local organic urban farm. So, Five Fridges Farm decided to bring in a group of its LaMancha male goats to the 1.5-acre enclosure, where they spent several weeks grazing on weeds.
Using goats as landscapers has become a perfect solution to their problem and they are now being brought to graze in other open spaces within the community. Due to their unique digestive systems, goats are able to consume invasive weeds without redistributing any of the seeds in their excrement. As the weeds are removed, the goats enjoy a nutritious meal, and the land also further benefits from fresh manure for fertilization.
Amy Weaver, owner of Five Fridges Farm, says the most surprising outcome of the project has been the community support that has erupted. Over the past few years, the goats have become a big hit with local residents, which flock to visit the hard workers cleaning up their parks.
This is the fourth year the Wheat Ridge community has successfully used LaMancha goats to manage invasive weeds and vegetation in natural areas, and these popular yearly visitors are providing a great opportunity to educate the community about urban farming. “People have big questions about their food system. This is a place where people can ask questions without judgment,” Amy Weaver explained. “The money from the products isn’t what fuels the farm. It’s the education that comes from it.”—Aine Creedon
ABOUT AINE CREEDON
Aine Creedon is Nonprofit Quarterly's Digital Publishing Coordinator and has worn many hats at NPQ over the past five years. She has extensive experience with social media, communications and outreach in the nonprofit sector, and spent two years in Americorps programs serving with a handful of organizations across the nation. Aine currently resides in Denver, Colorado where she enjoys hiking with her dog Frida and is currently serving on the advisory board of the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network Denver and also co-leads their Marketing and Communications Committee.
Newbean Capital Launches Finance Arm To Support Indoor AG
Contain Inc Partners With AmHydro, Bright Agrotech & CropKing:
Newbean Capital Launches Finance Arm To Support Indoor AG
Newbean Capital, a registered investment advisor and organizer behind the Indoor Ag-Con events, has launched an alternate finance arm, Contain Inc.. “Our goal is to become the alternate finance provider of choice to indoor farmers”, said Nicola Kerslake, co-founder of Contain Inc.
The venture has partnered with three indoor agriculture technology providers to provide lease financing to their customers. For longstanding industry consultant AmHydro, it will offer lease financing for the company’s Get Growing! greenhouse bundle packages. AmHydro has been designing and building innovative, hydroponic systems for over 30 years. It manufactures and helps to install food-grade growing systems for both small and large commercial operations. AmHydro offers systems for the small business entrepreneur up to the large multi-acre commercial suppliers of companies such as Whole Foods and Costco.
Contain Inc has recently arranged a five-year lease agreement for Bright Agrotech’s ZipFarm equipment at a 6.5% rate for MyChoice Programs, an East coast nonprofit that supports individuals with developmental disabilities to participate in their communities. As one of its innovative programs, it decided to transform a building into a vertical farm that could feed both the residents of its homes and the local community using Bright Agrotech equipment.
Its newest partner - CropKing - a manufacturer and distributor of commercial greenhouse structures, hydroponic growing equipment, and supplies. Known for working with family farms, it has specialized in the business of controlled environment agriculture and hydroponic growing since 1982. It offers both bucket and NFT systems for indoor grows.
See also :
contain.ag
amhydro.com/financing
brightagrotech.com
cropking.com
mychoiceprograms.com
Publication date: 6/20/2017
Vertical Farming Conference
Vertical Farming Conference
Herman van Bekkem will discuss the Greenpeace vision for ecological farming and especially Vertical Farming in Europe’s main cities, on the 28 June 2017, at the Vertical Farming Conference in Venlo, The Netherlands. Herman van Bekkem is an agricultural expert with Greenpeace and tries to educate the agricultural sector for ecological farming on the seven principles set up by Greenpeace. (The report on the Greenpeace vision for ecological farming, and the seven principles, can be downloaded freely from their website)
“There are many pros and cons regarding Vertical Farming, but this development offers the possibility to use far less pesticides and fungicides, which are no longer needed. This way the impact on the environment is reduced as well which is a great benefit. But the question is if Vertical farming is the solution to many of the agricultural challenges, as we know them today,” says Van Bekkem.
Culture
“The present use of large numbers of greenhouses for instance in the Netherlands has its pros, but also a larger number of cons. By planting huge amounts of the same crop in one greenhouse creates a good feeding ground for fungi and plagues. Simply the uniformity makes it very vulnerable to any diseases which may be in the greenhouse. That is why we encourage farmers to grow different kinds of crops in one greenhouse so as to build in some resistance and use far less pesticides and fungicides.
“A monoculture in a greenhouse has many weaknesses and this way you can turn it around. This new way of farming is also important for Vertical Farming as it is close to a greenhouse culture,” according to Van Bekkem.
He is reserved on the success of Vertical Farming especially in Western Europe. He explains his view:
“There are not that many vertical farms in cities, look at the Netherlands, there are only very few of them. Only in Asia you see them now coming up in cities. But the biggest problem is that a handful of large corporations control large parts of our food system right this moment, which is in fact not working in a positive way for Vertical Farming. Corporations and food policy makers are stubbornly sticking to an increase in yields as the global goal. This obscures the real challenge; we need to rethink how we use the food we are producing, right now and in the future. In a better food system, ecological livestock systems would make use of the agricultural land and resources not required for human food needs and at the same time drastically reduce the amount of animal products we produce and consume globally.”
Use of insects
Van Bekkem is also very positive about the use of insects to battle crop illnesses.
“At a micro and macro level it is most useful to use insects, to counter insects that attack the crop or otherwise destroy it. Instead of pesticides you can use for instance the parasitic wasp or the predatory mite, two useful weapons in the battle against the insect pests. Not only do they take care of each other but also the soil improves where the crop is grown. Even flowers will bloom and with the right seasonable change of crop the soil improves a lot. But on top of that the crop gets stronger and more resistant towards any enemies. This way the circle is round again and the environment has much improved.“
Sustainable
“It is possible to increase soil fertility without the use of chemicals. Ecological Farming also protects soils from erosion, pollution and acidification. By increasing soil organic matter where necessary, we can enhance water retention and prevent land degradation. Something which we can do on the small scale vertical farms very directly, so as to improve the quality of food directly as well as the enclosed environment,” concludes Van Bekkem.
For more information and registration to the Vertical Farming Conference, go to: https://www.verticalfarmingconference.com/
The interview was made by Jakajima, the organiser of the conference.
Sheryl Crow, Jack Johnson & The Avett Brothers to Join Willie Nelson & Friends at Farm Aid
Sheryl Crow, Jack Johnson & The Avett Brothers to Join Willie Nelson & Friends at Farm Aid
6/13/2017 by Thom Duffy
Sheryl Crow and Willie Nelson onstage at Beacon Theatre in New York City.
Kevin Mazur/WireImage
Sheryl Crow, Jack Johnson and the Avett Brothers will join Willie Nelson and friends at the 32nd annual Farm Aid food and music festival taking place Sept. 16 at the KeyBank Pavilion in Burgettstown, Pa., outside Pittsburgh.
The guiding foursome of Farm Aid -- Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews -- also will share the bill with Jamey Johnson, Blackberry Smoke, Valerie June, Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real and Insects vs. Robots, with other artists to be announced. Matthews will perform an acoustic set with Tim Reynolds, as part of their summer tour. Promise of the Real backed Young on his 2015 album The Monsanto Years and a subsequent tour.
Tickets for the concert go on sale June 23 via LiveNation.com and Ticketmaster. A limited number of pre-sale tickets will be sold beginning at noon ET June 14 at farmaid.org/concert.
Each of this year's featured headliners is a longtime supporter of Farm Aid and its efforts to support family farmers, and the Good Food Movement. Crow, who has been touring this summer with Nelson and Bob Dylan, played Farm Aid in 2003 in Columbus Ohio. The Avett Brothers previously have played benefits for organizations including the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association in their native North Carolina, and Johnson has been a frequent presence at Farm Aid (including one memorable appearance as a cow).
10 Reasons Why Willie Nelson's Farm Aid Is Unlike Any Other Music Festival
This marks the third time Farm Aid has come to Pennsylvania, following concerts in Burgettstown in 2002 and Hersey, Pa. in 2012. Agriculture is the state's leading economic enterprise, contributing nearly $75 billion to the state's economy each year. The state is home to 58,200 farms and ranks 22nd nationally in farm sales.
Pennsylvania is also considered the birthplace of organic agriculture and a leader in sustainable agriculture practices. In Pittsburgh, 30 miles east of the concert venue, urban farming has thrived. The organization Grow Pittsburgh has launched more than 60 farms to increase access to fresh food and farm training programs for young people.
"Family farm agriculture is the heart of Pennsylvania," says Nelson, founder and president of Farm Aid. "What's happening in western Pennsylvania and the region shows us that we can count on family farmers to strengthen our communities and connect people. Whether we live in rural or urban places, food -- and music -- brings us all together."
At the same time, western Pennsylvania has lost 2,539 farms -- a 13 percent drop -- in the past decade, an example of an economic crisis facing farmers nationwide. Farmers have faced a multiyear slump in crop and livestock prices. Since 2013, America’s farmers and ranchers have weathered a 45 percent drop in net farm income, the largest three-year drop since the start of the Great Depression, Farm Aid reports.
The circumstances echo the farm foreclosure crisis of the mid '80s that led Nelson to stage the first Farm Aid benefit on Sept. 22, 1985 in Champaign, Ill. The farm advocates who rose up in that era were recently profiled in a new documentary, Homeplace Under Fire.
Farm Aid has been staged every year since 1985, at venues around the country, and is the longest-running concert for a cause in pop music history. Since Nelson founded the organization, it has raised $50 million for advocacy efforts and direct support of farmers.
But more than an annual benefit concert, Farm Aid has been a 30-year-plus effort, led by Nelson, to fight corporate control of America's farmland, shape national farming policy, and promote the Good Food Movement.
Each year, Farm Aid serves as an annual gathering of activists focused on food issues, environmentalism and social-justice battles. Many farmers and activists travel to the event to network, share strategies, listen to the music and eat family farm food on a menu that Farm Aid has trademarked "Homegrown Concessions." With composting practiced backstage and promoted to the audience, the concert aims for zero waste.
Farm Aid's support of family farmers extends to its policy of accepting sponsorship only from companies that share its mission. California-based Bonterra Organic Vineyards will be a sponsor of Farm Aid 2017.
Prior to this year's concert, Farm Aid is teaming up with IfOnly to sell and auction signed memorabilia and behind-the-scene tours at this year's event.
Farm Aid also is encouraging festivalgoers and supporters to use the hashtags #FarmAid2017 and #Road2FarmAid to join discussions about this year's concert on social media.
Cincinnati City Council Hopes To Turn Vacant, Blighted Properties Into Urban Farms
Cincinnati City Council Hopes To Turn Vacant, Blighted Properties Into Urban Farms
Amanda Seitz | 6:46 AM, Jun 15, 2017
CINCINNATI -- What if rotting, vacant homes and abandoned, overgrown lands in some of the city's neighborhoods were transformed into urban farms growing fresh produce?
Cincinnati City Council is considering a new pilot program that could flip as many as 10 vacant parcels of land into gardens ready for planting anything from herbs to cucumbers.
Supporters believe the humble start to this project could ultimately alleviate some of the city’s most stubborn problems: food deserts, unemployment and blight.
“It will assist in taking that blight, that was a negative, and not only improving the look, but providing sustenance to the area as well,” said Cincinnati City Councilman Kevin Flynn, who proposed the program.
City crews have struggled to keep up with mowing and weeding the more than 1,000 properties – some of them condemned or abandoned by their owners, Flynn said.
That leaves neighbors frustrated with unkempt eyesores that abut their homes.
Flynn believes unkempt city-owned properties like these could see new life as urban farms. Photo by David Sorcher | WCPO contributor
“It got me thinking: Rather than it being a burden on the city to have to pay to maintain these spots … let’s give them to somebody that will maintain them and how about we plant some fruits and vegetables in these vacant spots?” Flynn told WCPO in an interview last week.
The motion he wrote calls for the city to develop a plan to convert urban farms on city-owned land, identify potential properties, and look into any costs the city might have to consider when launching the program.
His proposal passed with the full support of council earlier this month.
WCPO Insiders will learn how similar programs have worked in other cities, areas of Cincinnati where this development might occur and how it might be funded.
Scotland’s First Vertical Farm Paves The Way For Commercially Viable Crop
Scotland’s First Vertical Farm Paves The Way For Commercially Viable Crops
21 June 2017
A purpose-built vertical farm is being constructed in Scotland for full-scale crop trials to test which plants grow best in an indoor farming environment.
Intelligent Growth Solutions is an indoor horticultural business on a mission to make vertical farming commercially viable by enabling its licensees to be the lowest cost producers.
One of the major challenges is making vertical farming commercially viable through reduced power and labour costs.
IGS is currently constructing the vertical farm at the James Hutton Institute close to Dundee and its on track for completion in the next few months.
It’s being hailed as the UK’s first commercially viable vertical growing environment and involves a collaboration with global automation business Omron, which has a successful history of inventing several disruptive everyday systems that are used all over the world.
These include the world’s first automated traffic signal, the basis of today’s magnetic card systems and through collaborations, Omron also introduced the digital blood pressure monitor and digital thermometer.
IGS is working with Omron on the automation aspects of the project which are vital to hit efficiency and productivity targets. Omron will control and monitor the stacking system, LED lighting and the hydroponics systems.
Further down the line, it is expected every feature of the facility will be automated.
“Vertical farming allows us to provide the exact environmental conditions necessary for optimal plant growth,” says Henry Aykroyd, IGS CEO.
“By adopting the principles of Total Controlled Environment Agriculture (TCEA), a system in which all aspects of the growing environment can be controlled, it is possible to eliminate variations in the growing environment, enabling the grower to produce consistent, high quality crops with minimal wastage, in any location, all year round.”
“A highly integrated automation strategy, patented energy reduction technology and the most advanced biological research available will be the three key pillars to success in this project,” he adds. “Partnering with two leading experts Omron and the James Hutton Institute to deliver this provides the very best opportunity for a new approach to vertical farming.”
Professor Colin Campbell, chief executive of the James Hutton Institute, is delighted with the progress of the facility (pictured).
“This initiative combines our world-leading knowledge of plant science at the James Hutton Institute and IGS entrepreneurship to develop efficient ways of growing plants on a small footprint with low energy and water input,” he says.
And Omron field sales engineer Kassim Okera says the vertical farm represents the company’s pioneering ethos of creating innovative solutions for the future.
“Omron’s unique integrated product offering and Sysmac platform combined with extensive market experience, underpin the most innovative vertical farm in the UK which has the potential to be the first vertical farm in the world that is economically viable,” he says.
- See more at: http://www.producebusinessuk.com/insight/insight-stories/2017/06/21/scotland-s-first-vertical-farm-paves-the-way-for-commercially-viable-crops#sthash.RxLn9emg.dpuf
Scotland’s First Indoor Vertical Farm To Start Up In Autumn
Scotland’s First Indoor Vertical Farm To Start Up In Autumn
Scotland's first full-scale indoor vertical farm is being built at the James Hutton Institute near Dundee
ILONA AMOS - 15:25Wednesday 21 June 2017
Scotland’s first indoor vertical farm is due to be up and running later this year.
The purpose-built facility, which is currently under construction on the outskirts of Dundee, will be the first full-scale scheme of its type in the country.
The initial crops to be grown at the experimental unit will be herbs and salad plants, which will be cultivated in vertically stacked layers with hi-tech LED lighting and special hydroponic systems supplying nourishment.
Tomatoes, cucumbers and strawberries will be trialled at a later stage.
It’s hoped vertical farming can help solve the problem of feeding the expanding world population and minimise damage to the planet from increased agriculture.
Growing in this way can offer a number of benefits over traditional outdoor methods, such as reducing the amount of space required and cutting the need for pesticides.
Controlled conditions allow crops to be grown all year round, with success not dependent on seasons or weather conditions.
Their compact nature also means the farms can be sited in built-up areas, making produce more local and therefore reducing transportation.
However, maintaining an optimum artificial environment is costly.
The Dundee project is the brainchild of Scottish-based vertical farming business Intelligent Growth Solutions (IGS) and is being carried out in collaboration with the James Hutton Institute for crop research and global automation business Omron.
Its aim is to deliver the first commercially viable operation in the UK – and possibly worldwide – by cutting labour and power costs.
It is hoped new insights into the varieties of crops best suited to cultivation in an indoor farming environment will also be revealed.
“Vertical farming allows us to provide the exact environmental conditions necessary for optimal plant growth,” said Henry Aykroyd, chief executive of IGS.
“By growing closer to the market in controlled vertical farming conditions, it is possible to accurately predict and grow to market demand, thereby reducing food waste.
“It is locally produced, therefore there is a reduction in food miles, and through the controlled environment there is a greater capacity to control quality, taste and flavour.
“The products are fresher, have a longer shelf life, and crop losses due to weather, disease, drought or pests are effectively eliminated.
“We believe that as populations grow and market demand increases there will be a far greater demand for indoor growing, closer to the consumer and produced as needed, to improve efficiency and reduce food waste.”
He added: “A highly integrated automation strategy, patented energy-reduction technology and the most advanced biological research available will be the three key pillars to success in this project.
“Partnering with two leading experts, Omron and the James Hutton Institute, to deliver this provides the very best opportunity for a new approach to vertical farming.”
Professor Colin Campbell, chief executive of the James Hutton Institute, said: “We are delighted to see how well the work on IGS’s indoor growth facility at our Dundee site is progressing.
“This initiative combines our world-leading knowledge of plant science at the James Hutton Institute and IGS’s entrepreneurship to develop efficient ways of growing plants on a small footprint with low energy and water input.”
Omron field sales engineer Kassim Okera added: “Omron’s guiding principles drive us to be a pioneer in creating and supporting the development of inspired solutions for the future.
“I can’t think of a better example than this one, which uses the most advanced technology to solve a humanitarian need.”
Farm to School Grows With USDA Grants
Since 2013, the Office of Community Food Systems has awarded over $20 million to more than 300 grantees for farm to school, which encompasses efforts to integrate regional foods in child nutrition programs. It also connects children to the source of their food through cooking classes, taste-tests, farm visits and school gardens. Grants range from $14,500 to $100,000 for farm to school planning, implementation and training.
Farm to School Grows With USDA Grants
Omar, the school garden club coordinator, instructs a group of seventh grade students to “pick an adult” and lead them to the greenhouse. The bright blue sky and expansive mountain range set a dramatic backdrop for the six raised beds and two greenhouses. Mona, a precocious 12 year-old student at Magdalena Middle School in New Mexico, wastes no time charging into the greenhouse and swiftly picking red leaf lettuce.
Since 2013, the Office of Community Food Systems has awarded over $20 million to more than 300 grantees for farm to school, which encompasses efforts to integrate regional foods in child nutrition programs. It also connects children to the source of their food through cooking classes, taste-tests, farm visits and school gardens. Grants range from $14,500 to $100,000 for farm to school planning, implementation and training.
In May, Erin Healy, the USDA's Director of the Office of Community Food Systems, Food and Nutrition Service, had the chance to visit New Mexico’s Magdalena Municipal School District, a 2015 and 2017 Farm to School grantee. The school used the 2015 funds to contract with Omar, a local farmer who mentors students to grow and harvest over 10 crops. Students proudly shared what they learned from the garden club, including “irrigation systems” and “how to get rid of aphids using ladybugs.” The school’s salad bar is the star of the lunchroom and is described as “restaurant-quality,” as it includes student-grown lettuce, leafy greens, cucumbers and tomatoes from the school garden. Since they no longer need to purchase lettuce during the winter, the cafeteria staff shared, “the garden has saved us a lot of money!”
Using additional grant funds from the state, the school will pay students to maintain the garden through the summer and sell the produce at a farm stand. This type of program is incredibly important in a community like Magdalena, where the closest grocery store is 30 miles away. Joaquin Lujan, a local farmer and partner to the school garden project, explained “New Mexico is one of the poorest economies in the country, and kids go hungry. It is vital that projects like this survive.” When Leslie Clark, the school principal, and Michael Chavez, the New Mexico Department of Education State Director, were asked what they would say to fellow administrators about the benefits of Farm to School, they responded “It reaches kids that would not otherwise be reached and engages them in learning.”
On June 12, the USDA awarded Farm to School grants to 65 grantees, which will reach approximately 5,500 schools and more than 2 million students. Selected projects are located in urban, rural and suburban areas across 42 states and Puerto Rico. The USDA estimates that 37 percent of the target school districts are rural. Additionally, 14 projects will occur in the pre-K environment, while 27 projects will occur in summer feeding programs. State agencies and Indian Tribal Organizations remain a priority for Farm to School grant funding. And this year, 17 state agencies and one Indian Tribal Organization, The Karuk Tribe of California, will be funded.
Learn more about this year’s grantees by checking out the 2017 Farm to School List of Awardees.
Publication date: 6/19/2017
Scottish Trial Site To Test Commercial Viability and Increase Understanding of Vertical Farming
A collaboration with Omron, a global provider of automation and control systems, the purpose-built facility will enable a full-scale trial of a vertical growing environment.
Scottish Trial Site To Test Commercial Viability and Increase Understanding of Vertical Farming
21 June 2017, by Gavin McEwan, Be the first to comment
Dundee-based vertical farming business Intelligent Growth Solutions (IGS) will complete construction of its first indoor growth facility, at the James Hutton Institute (JHI), "in the next few months".
Image: IGS
A collaboration with Omron, a global provider of automation and control systems, the purpose-built facility will enable a full-scale trial of a vertical growing environment.
As well as assessing the format's commercial viability through lower power and labour costs, it aims to yield a better understanding of the plant science involved and types of crops which can be grown best in an indoor farming environment.
IGS chief executive Henry Aykroyd said: "By adopting the principles of Total Controlled Environment Agriculture (TCEA), a system in which all aspects of the growing environment can be controlled, it is possible to eliminate variations in the growing environment, enabling the grower to produce consistent, high quality crops with minimal wastage, in any location, all year round."
Automation will initially control and monitor the stacking system, the LED lighting and hydroponics systems, and will ultimately control every feature in the facility.
JHI chief executive Professor Colin Campbell added: "This initiative combines our world-leading knowledge of plant science and IGS' entrepreneurship to develop efficient ways of growing plants on a small footprint with low energy and water input."
IKEA Just Launched An Indoor Hydroponic Garden That Never Stops Growing Food
IKEA Just Launched An Indoor Hydroponic Garden That Never Stops Growing Food
Best news for all you people with green fingers!
From tasty lemon basil to crispy red romaine lettuce - KRYDDA/VÄXER series makes it easy to grow your own indoor garden all year round. You don't need soil, sunlight or even a spot outside! How does it work? Just keep an eye on the water level and that's it.