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Weather Woes Cause American Corn Farmers To Throw In The Towel
In the nation's 18 major corn-producing states, there has been one refrain for the past few weeks: To plant or not to plant? There comes a point of no return, where the cost of planting outweighs potential remuneration, where yields dwindle and there just may not be enough days for plants to mature before a hard frost
File photo of a corn field in South Dakota. (Matt Gade / Forum News Service)
Written By: Washington Post
June 18th 2019
In the nation's 18 major corn-producing states, there has been one refrain for the past few weeks: To plant or not to plant? There comes a point of no return, where the cost of planting outweighs potential remuneration, where yields dwindle and there just may not be enough days for plants to mature before a hard frost.
For many American corn farmers, that point is now.
On Monday, June 17, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that domestic plantings were at 92% of farmers' total intended acreage, the slowest pace in more than 40 years.
Ohio trailed behind, with only 68% of its corn planted, South Dakota had 78%, and Michigan and Indiana each had 84% of their hoped-for acres planted. Last week, the USDA lowered the projected total yield to 13.68 billion bushels (last year's corn yield was 14.3 billion bushels). And as of Monday, in anticipation of an impending shortage, corn futures continued to trade at their highest level since June 2014.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Centers for Environmental Information, May 2018 to April 2019 was the wettest year on record in the contiguous United States. Already-saturated ground got even more rain in May and into June, said Tyler Urban, 31, who sells crop insurance and farms corn and soybeans near Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
"I know 1993 was another wet year. I've asked the old-timers if this is worse and they're saying yes," he said.
Farmers deal with untenable planting conditions in a range of ways. Urban offers "prevented planting" crop insurance, where farmers who elect not to plant are reimbursed for a portion of what they would have grown (where he farms in southeast South Dakota, farmers are reimbursed 55% of what they would have made for their intended acreage of corn, 60% for would-be soy).
"In my insurance book, 100% of my farmers will have some sort of prevent-plant claim," Urban said. "This year, there are whole farms that haven't been planted. Right now, our ground conditions are finally starting to dry out, but it's too late."
Jonathan Kleinjan is an extension crops specialist, someone who educates farmers about scientific research in agriculture, at South Dakota State University. He describes the current situation as unprecedented. In the southeastern part of the state, he says only 30 to 40% of corn has been planted, with standing water hurting the likelihood of a decent outcome for acreage planted in May.
"The prevent-plant insurance will be enough money to keep you in business for a year unless you were in trouble already," he said. But farmers' decisions to forgo planting will have ramifications for many of the businesses that furnish farmers with equipment and supplies.
"The suppliers who sell seed and herbicides to farmers don't have insurance, so they might be at risk," Kleinjan said.
Erik Gerlach, South Dakota's state statistician, describes other factors affecting farmers: low prices for corn and soybeans, tariffs and uncertainty surrounding disaster and trade relief packages.
In May, President Donald Trump announced a $16 billion bailout for farmers hurt by his trade war with China. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue initially stated that the money would be available only for planted acreage, not acreage forestalled by protracted bad weather. But on June 10, Perdue announced that the administration was "exploring legal flexibilities to provide a minimal per acre market facilitation payment to folks who filed prevent plant and chose to plant an . . . eligible cover crop, with the potential to be harvested and for subsequent use of those cover crops for forage."
On June 6, Trump signed the supplemental appropriations bill that includes disaster aid for farmers and has a provision that would allow payments to farmers for prevented planting. Because details for both the disaster and trade relief packages remain scant, farmers are frequently unsure of which course to chart.
"Each producer's operation in unique to them," Gerlach said. "There are a lot of variables: What's your proven yield, what further costs would you have to expend to plant? In some cases, farmers might plant because they have cattle or hogs to feed."
In northwest Ohio, dairy farmers are likely to keep planting corn until July 1, despite diminishing yields, said Eric Richer, an Ohio State University extension educator in Fulton County. Corn is a desirable crop to feed lactating cows and growing beef cattle. And because the plants don't need to reach full maturity to become corn silage for animal feed, there's a little more wiggle room. Still, Richer said his state's dairy industry, already hard-hit by high farm costs and low sales prices resulting from a milk surplus, will be most affected.
"The level of financial, emotional and mental stress on farmers is significant as a result of late planting in 2019. The spring of 2019 is like no other I've seen in my career," he said. "The new normal for farmers is weather extremes, and that's difficult to manage."
Since 2012, Sam Custer has been an extension educator for Agriculture and Natural Resources in Darke County, Ohio, which produces much of the state's corn and soybeans. Although yields have been strong for the past three or four years, he said it has been a difficult time, with net farm incomes trending downward since 2013. He said that corn and soy already planted this year were planted under poor conditions and that most people anticipate a poor yield.
"As I talked with agricultural lenders last week, they were becoming very concerned there will be some people this fall who will be very financially strapped, they're worried about mental health issues," he said.
Tim Palmer farms 1,000 acres in south-central Iowa, where the majority of corn and soybean acres are typically planted by May 25.
"I have an aversion to seeing acres going unplanted. But we had one of the coolest and rainiest Mays on record, and that's not conducive to healthy corn and soybean planting," he said.
He has planted corn in June several times, he said, but it's a tough decision because a bad yield is averaged into 10-year harvest numbers and negatively affects crop insurance guarantees in the future. He finished planting all the corn he was going to plant last week and is working to get all his soybeans in the ground.
"I've just got a little bit left," he said Monday morning. "I was out there 12 hours a day from Friday to Sunday, planted about 250 acres. I'd take a break for a sandwich. Now it's fertilize, spray and hope Mother Nature takes care of the rest of it."
This is article was written by Laura Reiley, a reporter for The Washington Post.
Related Topics
AGWEEK | AGRICULTURE CORN | USDA FARMING | SOUTH DAKOTA | NORTH DAKOTA
Controlled Environmental Farming Inc. Advances Urban Farming in Tucson, AZ
We are highly appreciative to the City for their forward-thinking Urban Farming Zoning Regulations. Tucson’s focus on food accessibility aligns well with CEF’s mission to offer healthy, affordable, fresh local food to the community as well as providing purposeful employment,” said CEO Kristen Osgood
Controlled Environmental Farming Inc. (CEF), Carlton, MN is advancing its concept of local, organic product cultivation within the city limits of a municipality through its recent preliminary site plan review success in Tucson, AZ. Making use of the highly progressive Urban Farming Zoning Regulations that the City of Tucson has, CEF presented a site plan that works well with the existing infrastructure, provides a beneficial, sustainable business to the Tucson community and is providing positive development to an odd shaped piece of property, increasing the City’s tax base. “We feel a very strong local connection when we can partner with progressive communities like Tucson.
We are highly appreciative to the City for their forward-thinking Urban Farming Zoning Regulations. Tucson’s focus on food accessibility aligns well with CEF’s mission to offer healthy, affordable, fresh local food to the community as well as providing purposeful employment,” said CEO Kristen Osgood
CEF intends to address the demand for locally grown, year-round nutritious quality food at competitive and consistent pricing through the construction of a new, patent pending, organic food production facility. The facility, engineered as a kit, can be placed anywhere geographically and permits the cultivation of a wide range of fruits, vegetables, herbs, shrimp and fish.
Ric Espiriti, the project’s Site Plan Architect noted, “Tucson’s progressive Urban Farming regulations recognize the nutritional and environmental benefits of local, Urban Farming and the benefit to the community.” In CEF facilities, product cultivation occurs through a proprietary closed loop, aquaponic water flow system that uses fish waste to provide nutrients (food) to the fruits, vegetables and herbs. The system is contained in a controlled environment facility, which has the benefit of consolidating and intensifying sustainable product growth while eliminating the risk factors that affect product quality, quantity and pricing. Processing and distribution operations are also contained within the facility which has the benefit of streamlining operations and increasing food safety.
“This concept, in the City, could be the start of something big for Tucson,” said Barrie Herr, their land Broker, at Long Reality, “I can see business and educational expansion resulting from this concept”. In spring 2020, CEF plans to start building the 40,000-square foot facility which will produce annually, 480,000 pounds of fruits, vegetables and herbs to schools, hospitals, food distributors restaurants and grocery stores. Sales will also be available directly to individuals. The project also calls for a drive – up lane, using on-line ordering and payment methods. CEF will also cultivate 48,000 pounds of tilapia and 10,000 lbs of fresh shrimp.
“I very happy with the results of our first, proposed, large city placement of one of our facilities. The City of Tucson should be commended for their advanced ideology on inner city land usage development,” remarked Bruce Carman, Owner and Director of Technology of CEF.
For more information on Controlled Environmental Farming Inc.
And its Urban Farming Model:
Bruce Carman: conenvfarm@gmail.com
Giovanni Del Brenna – Paris Agricole
Each photograph reveals innovative ways to grow organic products in the very heart of one of the main European capitals
JUNE 6, 2019
Giovanni Del Brenna documented the evolution of a particular Parisian urban project that aims to turn more than 100 hectares into areas intended for agricultural production.
Each photograph reveals innovative ways to grow organic products in the very heart of one of the main European capitals: strawberries grown in containers, vertical farms that are directly connected to one of the biggest French supermarket, vegetable gardens on the rooftop of some historical buildings as the Opera Bastille.
“Urban agriculture” is an oxymoron that has become reality, a new way of life that challenges the photographer’s eye. A magnificent visual playground that shows a very positive evolution in Paris – two worlds, a priori contrasting, connected: the countryside and the city, the natural and the artificial.
Giovanni Del Brenna – Paris Agricole
3rd June • 1st July 2019
Hotel de Ville
rue de Lobau – rue de Rivoli
75004 Paris
Russia: City Farming In Tomsk
The Orlov family started an unusual business two years ago. Despite Siberian frosts, they successfully grow strawberries year-round with the help of their own engineering inventions
Growing Strawberries In The Basement of a Block of flats
The Orlov family started an unusual business two years ago. Despite Siberian frosts, they successfully grow strawberries year-round with the help of their own engineering inventions.
In the basement of a regular 5-storeyed block of flats, the city farmers grow their berries, without a single ray of sunshine and natural warmth.
“The agricultural method is based on hydroponics and aeroponics”, explains Alexander Orlov, demonstrating the small farming facility. “These are important factors, but lighting is even more vital. The technology was worked out by my son; it is his know-how that formed the basis of our business”.
The family have various technical devices, but the main factor is lighting, due to which the berries get all the needed warmth and light for growth, aroma and color.
The inventive son, Kirill Orlov, is a professional engineer, who specialized in applied mathematics in Tomsk University. His lamps allow for reduced energy consumption and stabilize the temperature regime. One lamp lasts 7.5 days, if used 18 hours a day. With these lamps, strawberries grow and ripen faster, productivity increases up to four times.
“I had already retired when one day my son came and suggested growing strawberries. He experimented with light before and grew greenery like onions, parsley and spinach quite successfully. The volume wasn’t big and nobody had thought he was going to start big production”, shares the father, Alexander Orlov.
The local government supported the idea; they liked the systematic approach and the idea of growing and selecting strawberries in Tomsk all year round. The first grant that was received for the complex creation came from the local government. Currently the growers have three rooms, two of which are occupied with beds for 3000 berry bushes and various systems, and the third one contains the enterprise management system: water conditioning, fertigation and irrigation unit and other equipment.
“We get a lot of positive feedback from customers on our Instagram page, both private persons and restaurant business representatives. Parents write that they are happy that our strawberries cause no allergic reaction with children”, shares Mrs. Alla Orlova.
“Our dream is to create the best greenhouse not only in Siberia but also in the world”, shares Kirill. “We have an opportunity to pick a suitable land plot for the construction and we want to show that Siberia can boast the most advanced agricultural technologies and contemporary profitable greenhouses. Any plant can be grown with our technology, not only strawberries but also greenery and tulips that we purchase in huge amounts form the Netherlands. I feel we can do it with the support of the family. Further development will be related to expansion of our interest and gradual fulfillment of the plans”.
The vegetation period in Orlov’s greenhouse lasts 45 days, after which harvesting is done every day all year round. 40 thousand bushes can produce 40-60 tons of berries per year.
Source: rg.ru
Publication date: 5/15/2019
Urban Farming In The US: Breaching The Urban-Rural Divide
Farming is one of the oldest professions there is. But as society has urbanized, we have gradually lost our connection with the industry that puts food on our plates
Tuesday, June 04, 2019
Farming is one of the oldest professions there is. But as society has urbanized, we have gradually lost our connection with the industry that puts food on our plates. One jarring survey in the U.K. found that nearly 1 in 10 elementary school children think that tomatoes grow under the ground.
In parallel with urbanization has come the severing of our relationship with the people and land that grows our food. But now we are hearing that a new urban revolution in food is apparently sweeping through our city centers… so, can urban farming change our relationship with food? And can it be part of our reimagining of urban land uses?
Cutting down the food miles
Politically, agriculture tends to be treated as a "rural" issue — remote from the concerns of urbanites and left for farmers to battle over, as long as the food arrives on our supermarket shelves safe and sound.
So why bother bringing food production back into our cities? Surely we don’t have enough space left as it is.
When our societies were far less urbanized than they are today, food growing was woven into communities — indeed, the extraordinary and complex way we have developed to eat and source our food is a relatively new phenomenon.
Well before the advent of the Brooklyn urban-homesteading-hipster, the first settlers in the U.S. were growing their own, as were abandoned inner-city neighborhoods in the 1960s. Globally, small farmers still control the largest share of the world’s agricultural land.
One of the major benefits of farming within the city is that it brings the grower much closer to where it is eaten, cutting down dramatically on food miles. It can act as green infrastructure — absorbing storm water, combatting the urban heat island and filtering the air — and has a key role in injecting fresh produce into the nation’s "food deserts."
Finally, urban farms can transform the fractured relationship between farm and city into something more symbiotic. At Chicago’s City Farm, growers make use of one resource that is all too plentiful in American cities — food waste — to enrich the poor urban soil for producing vegetables. The strategy harks right back to that used by market traders in 19th century Paris, where the mess left behind by the horses of the market traders would be used to nourish local urban gardens.
Finding fertile ground
With a growing population, space within our cities is at a premium as never before. We also have more mouths to feed. But that doesn’t mean there is no fertile ground for growing.
The pressure on cities like Tokyo and New York have also been forcing agriculture onto rooftops.
But there are some obvious benefits to rooftop farms once you give it some thought. There are not quite so many rats on rooftops, and certainly fewer deer to nibble at your wares, even if dealing with high winds can take a bit of ingenuity.
In contrast, in some post-industrial cities like Detroit, urban agriculture has sprouted up in disused lots left over as the inner city was deserted as manufacturing declined. Indeed it was in such urban areas where the roots of the modern community gardening movement began in the 1970s.
The Michigan Urban Farming Initiative in Detroit has been described — only slightly wincingly — as one piece in the nation’s first urban "agrihood." Taking it up a level is the Hantz Group, who are controversially attempting to build the world’s largest urban farm, on land they snapped up in 2008 when land prices plummeted.
Scaling up urban farming
For many of us, our vision of urban farming is the rustic urban allotment or volunteer-led community garden. While those ventures are empowering and provide huge dividends in social capital and physical and mental health, urban farming is attracting the attention of commercial growers, too. They are trying to prove that urban farms can not only be environmentally beneficial but can turn a profit as well.
For many, this means embracing new technologies — and this is where we depart from the nostalgic vision of the urban homestead. Tokyo, one of the cities with famously intense pressures on land use, has been one of the cities experimenting with vertical urban farming — where crops are stacked up in warehouses and lit with UV lights.
Many of these crops use hydroponic technologies, which are a method of growing plants without soil. Instead of being embedded in the soil, nutrient-rich water or very moist air (known sometimes as “liquid soil”) is trickled or misted over their roots. New York-based Gotham Greens grow bok choy, basil and lettuce like this.
Others, including celebrated Milwaukee-based urban farm Growing Power have gone a step further by experimenting with aquaponic solutions — which throw fish into the mix.
NASA has been testing hydroponics out with a view to feeding colonies on the Moon. But, at the other end of the spectrum, hydroponics also made an appearance this year at the staunchly traditional Chelsea Flower Show in London.
Despite some teething problems (not least around energy use), the benefits of this "controlled-environment agriculture" (CEA) are considerable. The sun can always shine, and conditions can be controlled to an extent impossible on traditional farms.
As a consequence, the yields tend to be much higher and plants grow faster. The burden on water resources is also much lower compared to traditional methods and — handily for deindustrializing cities — the systems pack well into disused carpet factories.
We might recoil from this vision of vertically stacked lettuces, so distant is this futuristic image from the rural agricultural idyll we grew up with. But the precision that these technologies allow enable these growers to grow pesticide-free, which is more than can be said for most traditional farms.
Whether or not it makes you feel warm and fuzzy about the source of your food, we are likely to see a lot more of technologies like this.
Planning cities for a food revolution
Like many of the best ideas, urban farming is not a new idea but the revival of a tried and tested one. But despite the immediacy of the food crisis, one of the most exciting things about the supposed urban farming "revolution" are its co-benefits.
Urban growing projects are not only a response to the environmental and nutritional crisis posed by a growing population and a hungry planet, but it is also a response to the breakdown of community.
As advocates of "food sovereignty" tell us, the act of urban farming also answers a deep need in the modern world to take back control, and gardening has long been a reaction to periods of economic instability. The Victory Gardens encouraged during the Second World War are the most well-known example, and Cuba’s self-sufficiency experiment a more recent one.
Urban planners and city authorities have to lend a hand. Planners until recently have seen urban farms as too "low value" of an activity to afford urban space, but that is starting to change.
This might mean tweaking zoning laws to allow these uses to creep back into the city. In 2013, Detroit’s urban agriculture ordinance finally made the city’s hundreds of gardening plots legal, which is at least somewhere to start.
About the Author
Lucy is a UK-based urban and environmental planner, with a background in Open Data policy and energy policy. She is fascinated by how we grow our cities and towns, and how we can learn from place, as well as how apparently dull policy details can transform the experience of our everyday built and natural environment. She writes here about urban spaces in the U.S. and beyond from all kinds of perspective — from the busker to the policy maker.
Boston, MA - Farm To Sprout On A Mattapan Street
By adamg on Fri, 05/10/2019
Rendering of proposed Flint Street farm from filing with BPDA.
The Urban Farming Institute of Boston is getting ready to break ground on quarter-acre farm on Flint Street in Mattapan, behind the Wave gas station.
The institute will use $135,000 in city funds - allocated from the revenue from the Community Preservation Act surcharge on local property taxes - for a permanent farm that will train local residents in urban farming - and to develop better techniques for urban farming - while adding a new source of fresh food to the area.
The institute has used the site for a couple of years for several temporary raised beds in which to grow vegetables. The city money will help pay to clear the entire site of poison ivy and ready it for more permanent cultivation.
The new farm will be a couple blocks from the institute's Fowler Clark Epstein Farm on Norfolk Street.
More details and schematics (10.7M PDF).
Tags: Flint Street Urban Farming Institute of Boston
Rendering of proposed Flint Street farm from filing with BPDA.
US (ME): Student, Aquaponic Farmer With 22 Employees Awarded
At a special luncheon in early May, President Clayton Rose of Bowdoin College presented six seniors with awards to celebrate their personal achievements and contributions to the College.
Inaugurated in 1997 by Bowdoin President Robert H. Edwards, the President’s Award recognizes a student’s exceptional personal achievements and uncommon contributions to the College. The student’s actions demonstrate particular courage, imagination, and generosity of spirit; and they benefit the atmosphere, program, or general effectiveness of the College.
Trevor Kenkel, a biology and economics major, is the founder and president of Springworks Farm in Lisbon, an organic aquaponics business and a model for sustainable agriculture. He runs his farm while pursuing his studies at Bowdoin, earning him this descriptor: "part scientist and entrepreneur, part environmentalist and farmer—and full-time Bowdoin student."
Trevor Kenkel with President Rose
Kenkel has grown Springworks into the largest aquaponics farm in New England, employing twenty-two people and supplying organic lettuce to more than 130 customers, including Bowdoin College, UMaine Orono, Colby, and thirty Hannaford supermarkets.
Biology professor Barry Logan, who has spent time working with Kenkel at the farm, describes his student as a “collaborator” who “works really hard to create an extraordinary balance” between his classes and his impressive business venture. And a former proctor of Kenkel's praised his “warm-heartedness, willingness to welcome others, and his ease with conversation.”
Publication date: 5/10/2019
Urban Agriculture, An Agricultural Model Unlike Any Other
April 26, 2018
The city and the countryside sharing the same space. Jonathan V. Larocca / Flickr , CC BY
Author Lionel Garreau
Lecturer HDR in Strategy & Organization, University Paris Dauphine - PSL
Declaration of interests
Lionel Garreau does not work, does not advise, does not own shares, does not receive funding from an organization that could benefit from this article, and has declared no other affiliation than his academic position.
Partners
Université Paris Dauphine provides funding as a member of The Conversation FR.
See the partners of The Conversation France
Agriculture is undergoing profound changes . Various forms are developing: smart agriculture , permaculture , agroecology, etc. There is today an ideological competition between these forms of agriculture, as evidenced by many works that propose ways of improving agriculture as it is currently practiced, without questioning the foundations of these models. .
The book by Benoît Biteau, resistant farmer, advocates the validity of the model of organic agroforestry. The book shows the benefits of this type of agriculture, both for economic reasons for farmers, and ecological for society. For its part, the work of Xavier Beulin (former president of the FNSEA) persists in a conventional but improved model (what could be called a smart agriculture ) in his book Our agriculture is in danger, what to do . Or the book Organic farming, hope or chimera presenting a debate between two opponents, pro and antibio, who each camp on their positions.
Bio, scandales sanitaires, guerre des prix : l’agriculture française à la croisée des chemins
Practices in "simple loop"
Despite their interest in improving agricultural practices, these forms of agriculture actually offer only "simple loop" learning , that is, an adjustment of practices that improve the way agriculture is implementation, without, however, calling into question the frames of reference in which it is developing.
Therefore, the competition between these various forms is always based on the same arguments: for or against the use of phytosanitary products (the famous pesticides) and its practical consequences, the yields per hectare, respect for the environment, etc. The founding principles are never questioned by their supporters, making the dialogue unproductive.
The single loop and double loop learning model, according to Argyris and Schön (1978). Author provided
Despite their differences, these currents of thought are based on three shared pillars: land would necessarily be needed to produce agricultural commodities; agriculture is practiced "horizontally" in fields; finally, agriculture requires dedicated plots, separated from plots of housing.
The new model of urban agriculture
An agricultural model, however, seems to implement what is called "double-loop" learning; that is, a correction of past mistakes by re-examining reasoning processes, problem-posing ways, underlying values, and goals.
This model is that of urban agriculture. This one is extracted from the foundations evoked above: necessary use of the land, horizontal agriculture and separation of agricultural parcels and dwelling. And, beyond challenging these frames of reference, it incorporates in its reflection other parameters shared by the scientific community: CO 2 consumption related to the transportation of agricultural products; the ever-increasing rate of urbanization; soil depletion or the need to consume less water.
By combining the questioning of certain factors and adding others, based on empirical observations, a new model has emerged with urban agriculture, which proposes a different future. It helps rethink how agriculture can develop today.
This mode of agriculture is also based on various formats: home farming, decentralized agriculture in modules intended for production (premises inside the building, containers, gardens on the ground or on roofs, etc.), vertical farms urban.
Sensitize city dwellers to the problems of food production. artefatica / Flickr , CC BY-SA
What development?
This new model breaks the codes of agriculture ... to the point that a company like Agricool- which produces strawberries in urban containers using no chemical pesticides - can not claim the organic label because it does not use no land!
We see here that the frameworks defined by the public authorities become obsolete. The latter will have to adapt to the new practices that are inventing each day in this sector: because the consumer would not understand that a product of the same quality as another, organic, can not eventually benefit from the same label.
Urban agriculture has, of course, not only advantages: a cost of production currently above the market average, a strong energy requirement, an impossibility to exploit very large plots (although the yield annual strawberries in 30m 2 containers at Agricool is the equivalent of 4 000m 2 in the field), the difficulty of ensuring livestock breeding, etc.
But it contributes to profound changes in the classic frames of reference of modern agriculture. While not forgetting to rely on new resources, using, for example, digital data from sensors to better manage water consumption.
Horticulture + Engineering + Data Science + Nutrition = A New Kind of Farm AeroFarms is passionately working to fundamentally transform our food system, in an environmentally sustainable and socially responsible way. http://aerofarms.com/environmental-impact/ …
The development of urban agriculture will not only go through a niche population and the development of startups such as Agricool , AeroFarms , Topager (realization of vegetable gardens on the roofs) or Roof Green (which will open soon). a vertical farm in Paris).
It will also be of interest to large companies in the real estate construction, energy or data management sector for this type of opportunity. This is also the interest of this new model: developing devices that make it possible to bring together actors who until now met little, while reconnecting the urban population with the problem of food production.
This article is based on the study conducted by the students of the Master's degree "Corporate Policy and Business Strategies" at Paris-Dauphine University as part of the Economic Intelligence Trophy, which took place on the 9th April 2018.
Agriculture town planning food cities farmers urban agriculture organic farming alternative consumption greening farming lands
Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rosselló Nevares to Attend Ribbon Cutting Ceremony of Fusion Farms Facility
MAYAGUEZ , PUERTO RICO, USA
May 17, 2019 /EINPresswire.com/
The husband-and-wife team behind Fusion Farms, a hurricane-protected aquaponics farming initiative, are finally celebrating a hard-earned success. This Tuesday, May 21st 2019, Kendell Lang and Lisa Jander together with the island of Puerto Rico will be celebrating the ribbon cutting ceremony at their pilot facility in Mayagüez, and Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rosselló Nevares will be attending.
Since their first visit to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico several years ago, Kendell and Lisa dreamed about moving there to establish a sustainable agricultural initiative that would contribute to the island’s recovery from financial insolvency and hurricane damage.
In 2018, they made the move from San Diego, California and after more than a year of hard toil against the monumental tasks of fund-raising, interpreting government grants and incentives, and completing bank applications, they managed to secure the first Fusion Farms facility in Mayagüez, a municipality in western Puerto Rico. With the help of #PRIDCO, #USDA and the Department of Agriculture, to name a few, Fusion Farms is well on the way to pioneering a sustainable indoor agriculture model for the island.
The Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
The ribbon cutting ceremony is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, May 21st 2019 at 1:30 PM where community members will be able to see the vision for the indoor farm.
“We are pleased to announce that Governor Ricardo Rosselló Nevares is scheduled to come to the Fusion Farms facility in Mayagüez,” says CEO and co-founder Kendell Lang. “He will be doing a site visit, tour of the building, presentation, and ribbon cutting ceremony to officially welcome Fusion Farms to Puerto Rico. Fusion Farms is proud to be at the forefront of what the Department of Economic Development is incentivizing for innovative agriculture solutions, specifically our hurricane-protected aquaponic vertical farm.”
Also in attendance will be the Secretary of the Department of Economic Development and Commerce, who will be discussing their delivery of $9 million USD to the Programa de Hidroponicos (Program of Hydroponics) and Pymes Innovadoras (Innovative Small to Medium Enterprises) in an effort to advance the agriculture sector of Puerto Rico.
“Fusion Farms is excited to create jobs and work with the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez, Department of Agriculture. By working together, we can address the needs of the community and begin to establish food security for the island. The current incentives offered to all farmers are making it possible for agriculture to thrive,” says Lisa Jander, co-founder and Director of Operations of Fusion Farms.
“We are incredibly grateful for this opportunity and look forward to welcoming everyone to our ribbon cutting ceremony!”
To attend, please visit the Facebook Event page, click “Number of Spots”, and then “Reserve” to secure a spot at this ground-breaking ceremony.
About Fusion Farms
Cultivando buena comida para buenas personas / Growing good food for good people
Fusion Farms is the first indoor aquaponic farm of its kind on the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico. The concept seeks to transform the unused Puerto Rico Industrial Development Company (PRIDCO) buildings that are scattered across the island into hurricane-protected, vertical #aquaponic farms. Within this contained and controlled environment, vegetables, micro-greens, and herbs can be grown and supplied to the island, greatly reducing its dependence on imported fresh produce. Furthermore, Fusion Farms will be able to supply a fresh, #sustainable source of fish protein, since Tilapia are an essential component of aquaculture.
For more information about Fusion Farms and to become an investor in this opportunity, go to http://www.fusionfarmspr.com
Andrew Braithwaite
Distributed by: Release-News.com
+44 7532285902
email us here
Purdue Startup Assists Cameroon With Developing Hydroponic Farming Methods, Entrepreneurship
May 15, 2019
A second visit by Heliponix startup to the African continent strives to develop new agricultural processes, self-reliance for countries.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Cameroon, a West African country in the Congo region, has long relied on foreign aid to feed its citizens due to the extreme desert climate in some areas and a continued influx in refugees and orphaned children from neighboring nations.
Through support from the Mandela Washington Fellowship, Scott Massey, a Purdue University graduate and founder of Heliponix, recently completed a workshop to provide Cameroon residents and farmers with practical advice and resources to develop low-cost hydroponic farms to increase the production of agricultural products and encourage entrepreneurship to advance self-reliance while using local materials.
Scott Massey, founder of Heliponix, steps over some pipes at the beginning of a hydroponic farm workshop at the University of Ngaoundéré in Cameroon. Massey, a Purdue University graduate, traveled to Cameroon to teach people about hydroponics and entrepreneurship. He is the co-founder of Heliponix, which makes the GroPod, an innovative appliance that fits under a kitchen counter and grows produce year-round. (Photo provided) Download image
Massey’s company makes the GroPod, an innovative appliance that fits under a kitchen counter and grows produce year-round.
“Organizations providing food for some of the most at risk groups in Cameroon are reliant on nonprofits, which can make it difficult for them to always have a consistent source of quality food ,” Massey said. “We built hydroponic farms at certain locations to allow them to grow their own food, have some degree of independence from foreign aid, and overcome the extreme desert climate that often makes it difficult to grow crops.”
Massey credited the Mandela Washington Fellowship, which seeks to promote business development and civic engagement through the academic and entrepreneurial empowerment of African people, with the advancement of his contributions to the area and other programs to help the country feed its population while fostering independence. The program provides young entrepreneurs and leaders with the chance to travel to the United States for a short period of time for an opportunity to develop their skills and learn from mentors in American colleges and universities.
Massey, a graduate of the Purdue Polytechnic Institute in Mechanical Engineering Technology with a Certificate in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, was accepted into the program in 2017 and was later granted the status of American Professional, which made him eligible for the Reciprocal Exchange Grants. That led to his recent three-week trip to Cameroon.
Joseph Daliwa (left), Bello Mohamadou (center) and Scott Massey (right) work on a hydroponic system for orphans in Cameroon displaced by regional conflict. Daliwa and Massey got involved in helping in Cameroon through the Mandela Washington Fellowship, which seeks to promote agricultural empowerment of African people. Mohamadou is an English and science teacher in Ngaoundere, Cameroon. (Photo provided)Download image
During that trip, modular farms also were built at farm build at the University of Ngaoundéré with the purpose of teaching students how to build and maintain the farms. Massey adapted the GroPod device in these modular farms using the same concept but taking into consideration the availability of different resources. A video about his work is available here.
“There are some concepts from the GroPod that we have incorporated into these designs, but it was important that we design the device with local materials so that they would be able to build it and replicate it themselves,” Massey said.
He also lectured at the University of Yaoundé, teaching students about hydroponic technologies and basic entrepreneurial skills. Through these lectures, Massey was able to share his experiences as an entrepreneur and offer advice that could help guide students in their own entrepreneurial ventures.
Massey’s lectures also focused on teaching the students how to pitch their ideas, an ability he said is essential to attract investors and grow a company.
“For any entrepreneur, the art of pitching is vital. As an entrepreneur, it is important to be able to properly articulate what the problem is that you are solving, what makes your solution unique, and what the opportunity is behind the solution. Having this clear articulate story-telling ability is what we were trying to help the students achieve, and that’s something that the Purdue Foundry does very well. Going through their program was a tremendous help for me and I am sharing this knowledge where I can,” Massey said.
Massey said taking part in programs at the Purdue Foundry, an entrepreneurship and commercialization accelerator in Discovery Park's Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship at Purdue, was essential in helping get his company off the ground.
This was Massey’s second trip to Africa through the Mandela Washington Fellowship’s Reciprocal Exchange Grant, which gives recipients the opportunity to travel to different sub-Saharan countries in the continent. In 2018, Massey traveled to Togo, where he assisted in developing sustainable agriculture methods.
About Purdue Foundry
The Purdue Foundry is an entrepreneurship and commercialization accelerator in Discovery Park’s Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship whose professionals help Purdue innovators create startups. Managed by the Purdue Research Foundation, the Purdue Foundry was co-named a top recipient at the 2016 Innovation and Economic Prosperity Universities Designation and Awards Program by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities for its work in entrepreneurship. For more information about funding an investment opportunities in startups based on a Purdue innovation, contact the Purdue Foundry at foundry@prf.org.
Writer: Zeina Kayyali, zmkayyali@prf.org
Purdue Research Foundation contact: Tom Coyne, 765-588-1044, tjcoyne@prf.org
Source: Scott Massey, scott@heliponix.com
In This Toms River Greenhouse, Fish Help Grow Organic Lettuce
Producing Aquaponic Greens is a Group Effort
For The Family Behind HS Farms.
By Lauren Payne | | April 23, 2019
Appears in the April 2019 issue
Photo by James J. Connolly
Heather and Mike Scannell started growing aquaponic lettuce in 2016 in their garage. Their three children gobbled it up. Next, the Toms River couple moved their garage system to their backyard. After a successful growing season, Mike, a financial advisor, cut back his work hours to focus on growing more greens.
Heather Scannell places a lettuce seedling into a styrofoam clip that will hold it in one of the holes on a floating raft (pictured below). In 55 days, the sprout will develop into a perfect head of lettuce.
Photo by James J. Connolly
Today, Heather and Mike operate HS Farms, the state’s only organically certified home-delivery aquaponics farm. Aquaponics is an agricultural method that combines aquaculture (growing aquatic animals) with hydroponics (growing plants in water). This symbiotic process can yield a perfect head of lettuce in about 55 days, much faster than the average 90 days for lettuce grown the traditional way, in dirt.
At HS Farms, the process starts with fish. The two 300-gallon tanks in the Scannells’ 1,500-square-foot greenhouse each hold about 50 fish—a mix of goldfish, cod and tilapia. Their waste feeds tens of thousands of minuscule shrimp in a smaller, connected tank. The shrimps’ digestive systems and bacteria help convert the waste to nitrates; the nitrate-rich water then spills over a tank of clay balls, crushed clam shells and worms, further enriching and filtering the water.
Finally, the water is fed into troughs covered with floating foam rafts.
Michael and Heather Scannell with children,
from left, Allison, 12; Ryan, 11; and Jacqueline, 8.
Photo by James J. Connolly
“The process is chemical free and entirely sustainable,” says Mike. Seedlings of spring greens, romaine, butter-crunch lettuce and kale are clipped in place through holes in the rafts, their roots dangling in the enriched, pH-balanced water. The resulting produce tastes incredibly fresh. “I haven’t bought store-bought lettuce in two years,” says Heather.
Michael and daughter, Allison, survey one of the 300-gallon fish tanks. Photo by James J. Connolly
Mike tends the crop daily. Heather, a physical therapist, puts in several hours each week, planting seeds and separating seedlings. On weekends, Allison, 12; Ryan, 11; and Jacqueline, 8; all pitch in, planting, feeding the fish or, in Jacqueline’s case, digging for baby worms nestled deep in the clay balls. “I love worms,” she says. “I name them all Squirmy and Fasty.”
The Scannells deliver their produce to families in Ocean and Monmouth counties. Mixed greens run $4 for 5 ounces. Their organic lettuce is also available at the four Dean’s Natural Food Market locations in New Jersey.
Heather and Mike plan to build two more greenhouses within the next several months. “Our goal,” says Mike, “is to grow everything you need to make a salad.”
Italy: Thirteen Hectares of Lettuce Grown On A Floating System
All types of lettuce are grown with the floating system on an area of 13 hectares. The whole system is automated to produce salad marketed under the brand name Ninfa. The location is Standiana, (Ravenna), near the large amusement park Mirabilandia, famous in Italy. "Here we also have fun with water - and we produce lettuce with water", entrepeneur Gianluca Rossi says.
The owner Gianluca Rossi
High quality
A production site of this size, with these technologies is not often seen in Europe. According to Rossi he gets positive responds on his systems, even from the major seed companies in the world.
"The 13 hectares are part of a 100-hectare farm. The design took more than six years to complete and I did it myself together with the leading experts. I made many trips abroad before it was done", he recalls.
Here is how the roots appear in the support, just removed from the water
On the track, oriented in the direction of the processing warehouse, the panels with the lettuce.
Gianluca shows how everything is done with utmost care. "Our greenhouses only serve as protection, not to anticipate cycles. The production runs from mid-April to December, while in the winter months it is suspended."
The cultivation takes place with floating panels certified for contact with food. The roots are immersed in water. Nutrition is carried out with the classic triad of elements N, K, P and microelements. Weed killers are not needed, of course. Defence follows the technique of integrated control.
Watch the video!
The positioning of the panels with lettuce on the railroad.
180 hectare land
"With traditional methods, adds Rossi - considering also the rotations, in the open field - it would take 180 hectares of land to produce what we can do in 13 hectares of floating system. In our case, the rotation is nothing more than the replacement of the "old" water that is not wasted but returned to the fields of the remaining 87 hectares of our company".
No water waste
At first glance, it might seem that there is a waste of water, but that is not the case. "Careful management allows for prolonged and waste-free use. With the same number of plants produced, the reduction in water consumption varies between 70 and 80% compared to a traditional method".
Here are some other numbers: 9 million cultivated plants expected in 2019, 4000 tons of products and 169,000 floating support panels. "Our history goes back a long way, Rossi points out, because it was my father, from a very young age, who dedicated himself to the trade in vegetables. At a national level, we are already known for our activity as traditional producers, and now we want to make ourselves known for this new reality".
Aerial view of the Standiana farm. There are 13 hectares of greenhouses with lettuce grown in floating systems
Minerals
Water, like the earth, does not of itself, contain enough nutrients, but they are both a means of mixing, holding and conveying them. Unlike traditional methods, in the tank, the mineral salts are available only to plants that absorb according to their daily needs, excluding leaching, waste and dispersion into the surrounding environment or in the aquifers.
"More yields, less waste of nutrients, less water consumption, no forcing, concludes Rossi. There is a difference, even from an organoleptic point of view. The panel tests carried out on the Ninfa salad have shown a higher percentage of mineral salts than traditional crops, with a significant increase in shelf life.
Spreading Hydroponic Farming Technologies Across India
AmHydro And Farms 2050
On April 9th, Farms 2050 of Bangalore and AmHydro of Arcata, CA celebrated the grand opening of what is the largest commercial hydroponic farm in India to date.
A rich agricultural heritage that has been challenged by a harsh climate, water scarcity and a rapidly growing population to feed has created an urgent need for newer, more sustainable farming methods in the region. In response to this need, Farms 2050 and AmHydro partnered to develop effective controlled environment agricultural (CEA) facility that provides local growers with the ability to produce large volumes of nutritious, high quality crops, all while using 95% less water than conventional farming techniques.
Construction nearly complete on state of the art greenhouse and packing house facilities
The first (of many) new hydroponic farms in Bangalore include a 45,000+ square foot climate controlled greenhouse, highly productive AmHydro hydroponic growing systems, and a 5,000 square foot packing house with processing, cooling, and shipping facilities. Each technology was carefully chosen to provide the highest level of performance while also remaining economically sustainable and providing growers with a fast return on investment. The initial farm features systems to produce both leaf crops (culinary herbs, lettuce, and greens), as well as vine crops (peppers, tomatoes, and cucumbers).
High performance AmHydro NFT leaf crop system, ready to plant
Prior to the grand opening event, AmHydro CEO Jenny Harris and VP Joe Swartz traveled from California, USA to Bangalore to fine tune and test the greenhouse and hydroponic growing system. When this was complete, they trained the local farming team in all aspects of high level hydroponic crop production; from proper seed selection, germination, crop production techniques to harvest, processing, storage and food safety. Professional film crews were on hand to assist in the production of instructional videos, providing present and future farmers with growing guidance and information.
Instructional videos of microgreens seeding techniques being filmed
In a lavish public ceremony, Farms 2050 and AmHydro then signed a mutual MoU with the support of Indian government officials to develop additional sustainable, high producing hydroponic farms across the region. Sharing the stage with the Minister of Water Resources, Minister of Revenue, and the Minister of Agriculture, Farms 2050 CEO Basan Patil and AmHydro CEO Jenny Harris signed a historic MoU to develop more hydroponic farms and controlled environment agricultural technologies in various locations within India. The primary goal of this venture is to dramatically improve the economic empowerment of local farmers as well as providing high quality vegetables, greens, and fruits to their communities.
Left: Indian Government Officials along with Farms 2050 and AmHydro Right: AmHydro CEO Jenny Harris
The signing event receiving national press attention
On the final day of the visit, local religious leaders stopped by to bless the new operation with good luck and success. Planting is now underway and plans for the next farm are already in development.
For more information:
AmHydro
amhydro.com
Moving Forward With Urban Farming
April 8th, 2019, Economy | News
by SHAZNI ONG / pic by ISMAIL CHE RUS
URBAN farming could be the answer to the ever increasing cost of living, amid the rapid development that has resulted in limited space for food production.
Urban Farm Tech Sdn Bhd founder Francis Chuah (picture) said almost every space — be it a balcony, front yard or backyard — is a potential plot for urban farming.
He said farming is no longer only about having a wide-open agriculture land out in the countryside.
“Other than the rooftop or any horizontal vacant space, we can even develop a wall farming system that utilises the vertical surface of a building,” he said in an exclusive interview with The Malaysian Reserve recently.
With a relatively small space — perhaps a balcony of just 8ft (2.44m) wide and 10ft high — one can grow organic vegetation that would satisfy the need of a whole family sufficiently.
Chuah said the new farming technique, otherwise known as urban agriculture or urban gardening, could contribute in providing people with locally produced food and within the city limits, if not the world.
The engineer-turned-entrepreneur also said it is possible to help the needy in coping with food scarcity and hunger through the growing of plants within and around cities, communities and rooftops.
“If you see our design or concept of the urban farming system, we can grow food wherever there is a surface and sunlight.
“When I talk about surface, it does not only mean horizontal surface but also vertical. We have the idea, technicalities, technology and skills to build, make and grow food,” he said.
Chuah added that one can even utilise the indoor space that’s originally not able to grow plants due to insufficient light.
“Implementing urban farming in an office space is also a brilliant idea, as it is not only producing food for employees, but would make the environment greener and eco-friendly too,” he said. The world population is expected to rise by about three billion by 2050.
It is estimated that nearly 80% of the population will be living in urban areas or centres.
The rapid process and development of urbanisation in developing countries is accompanied with subsequent issues and problems such as urban food insecurity and urban poverty.
Most developed countries have established urban farming as a solution for urban food insecurity.
Chuah said there is a bright future for such an agriculture concept in Malaysia.
“I have seen transformation over the past two years since I began urban farming. I saw how the market grew and I can still see that there are many potential places that can be turned into urban farming,” he said.
While it is subjective to the kind of vegetation that one grows and how the crops would be marketed afterwards, urban farming can serve as a decent supplementary income for the planters.
“According to our record, one could generate a revenue of about RM600 per month from growing vegetables for a space of about 30ft x 8ft,” Chuah said.
Three years ago, the former project manager for water treatment engineering projects looked at the organic farming concept seriously by putting some research and development works before setting up a farm at a house in Bandar Saujana Putra, Selangor.
With just a capital of about RM100,000, his intention was clear — to get urban communities closer to nature by growing food in their own areas.
“This urban farm is about 2,000 sq ft, and it combines different types of aquaponics systems and concepts.
“Why the variety? That is because we want to show people that you can use different vacant places to grow your food through the aquaponics system.
“Through the system, we manage about 1,800 pots of vegetables,” he said.
From Fumes to Farming: Pittsburgh Sheds Industrial ‘Steel City’ Past to Open Nation’s Largest Urban Farm
Pittsburgh, the western Pennsylvania city once a hub for soot-spewing steel and coke mills, is about to become home to the nation’s largest urban farm. A 23-acre urban farm project named the Hilltop Urban Farm is set to open in 2019 just two miles from downtown Pittsburgh
iStock/linephoto
Pittsburgh, the western Pennsylvania city once a hub for soot-spewing steel and coke mills, is about to become home to the nation’s largest urban farm.
A 23-acre urban farm project named the Hilltop Urban Farm is set to open in 2019 just two miles from downtown Pittsburgh.
“The land was just kind of sitting there, fenced and looking very post-apocalyptic,” Aaron Sukenik, head of the Hilltop Alliance, which is building the farm, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
“On top of farmland where winter peas and other fresh produce will be grown by local residents and sold in the community, the farm will feature a fruit orchard, a youth farm and skills-building program. Hillside land will eventually have trails,” Reuters notes of the project.
“I can’t imagine the last time that a mayor had the opportunity to cut a ribbon on a farm in the city of Pittsburgh, and not just a farm, but the largest urban farm in America,” the city’s Mayor Bill Peduto boasted at the project’s ribbon cutting last month.
At the center of America’s Rust Belt, which runs from Detroit up to Buffalo, Pittsburgh has made inroads in recent years to reimagine itself and shake-off much of the rust image. While once known as the Steel City, with skies black from industrial pollution, it’s also been the home to mega food brand Kraft Heinz, which is now working toward improved sustainability initiatives and decreasing its carbon footprint, including how it manufactures within its hometown city and around the world by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, energy and water usage, and decreasing its waste by 15 percent globally by 2020, it notes on its website.
Pittsburgh’s relationship with industrialist Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919) injected the city with world-class museums, libraries, and universities. And its association with pop artist Andy Warhol (1928-1987) who was born in the city, also lends itself to a thriving eclectic art scene (even though Warhol distanced himself from Pittsburgh and spent most of his adult life in New York City) that has come to shape much of the city’s post-industrial image.
And one can’t talk about Pittsburgh without acknowledging its spiritual life-blood, which, despite the city being home to the world’s best-selling ketchup, is not red at all, but black and gold — the colors of the city’s three major sports franchises: the Pittsburgh Pirates, Penguins, and Steelers. With 16 championship wins between them, the Steel City is better known these days as The City of Champions, a wellspring of pride for locals. (With another Stanley Cup win earlier this summer, the Penguins became the first team to win back-to-back championships in nearly two decades.)
“Every fanbase thinks it has the best and most passionate on the planet. Regardless of the city, there is a legion of fans walking around with an inferiority complex, just waiting for someone to ever question their fandom,” Tyler Conway wrote in the Bleacher Report in 2014. “Pittsburgh has those people. They’re there, they’re annoying and no one ever wants to sit within 10 rows of them at a stadium. But taken as a whole, the fans stand out for their duality between passion and rationality.”
That mix of passion and rationality sustains the city through the long, grey winters, and hot, humid summers. And for a city that’s not quite sure how to shed its 100-year-old industrial image, team spirit offers unity, a common ground and a strong foundation in visioning about the city’s future.
“Pittsburgh is the forefront for the next generation of creative connoisseurs in the Northeast,” Michaela Trimble wrote in Vogue. “Google now calls the town’s old Nabisco factory home; Uber tested its first driverless cars here; and new, community-focused hotels like Ace Hotel Pittsburgh are collaboratively beckoning in a new meaning to black and yellow pride.”
The steel mills that once lined Pittsburgh’s three rivers have long been abandoned — some retooled into trendy shops, restaurants, hotels, and lofts. Parts of the city have become artistic hipster havens with New Yorkers escaping the high rents of Brooklyn just five hours east to open restaurants, bars, coffee shops, and art galleries in the more affordable neighborhoods of Pittsburgh.
the Farm plans
Urban farms and farming projects are of course nothing new — they can be found in major U.S. cities like Chicago and New York. Twenty percent of fresh food can now be attributed to urban operations. The number of farmers markets has also increased significantly in recent years. The USDA notes that in 1994, the number of markets across the U.S. totaled 1,755. Today there are more than 8,000 farmers markets nationwide, most of which are found in densely-populated urban areas. But food deserts –areas without easy access to fresh foods — are significantly more common than farmers markets or urban farm projects. According to the USDA, more than 23 million Americans live in food deserts.
It’s an issue Pittsburgh-based nonprofit The Fruit Tree Planting Foundation works to address both locally and globally through its fruit orchard-planting projects and educational programs. “As a Pittsburgh-based tree planting organization, we couldn’t be more proud of our city and this initiative to improve food security for our residents,” Cem Akin, FTPF’s executive director, told Organic Authority, adding that the group extends a “standing offer” to Hilltop to provide fruit trees “for any of their nonprofit efforts in the future.”
While not as dire as the burnout in Rust Belt cities like Detroit or Buffalo, Pittsburgh still struggles. For one, Pittsburgh’s layout isn’t a grid (not even close), which can leave its local communities isolated and insular. That can present difficulties when it comes to change — like adding more community gardens, farmers markets, or conventional supermarkets. There can be issues with both community interest and the logistical side of implementation. Pittsburgh also has the largest percentage of communities with “low-supermarket access” in the U.S. for its size (250k – 500k). The Hilltop Urban Farm project is aiming to not only help the city in reshaping its identity and embrace a food-centered upgrade, but it may also serve to solve a very real problem for thousands of residents in these challenged communities, where access to fresh, healthy food isn’t abundant — particularly in the city’s Southside neighborhood where the farm will be located.
“You just have blight, just so much blight in Rust Belt cities,” Heather Manzo, a farm and food business educator for Penn State Extension, an applied research arm of the Pennsylvania State University, and co-author of a 2014 report on the farm project, told Reuters.
“So you see the longstanding residents of neighborhoods who are used to trying to find their place in the world looking at this blight and just say ‘We can do something different, we can do something better’.”
Grow Light Global Market Estimated To Reach USD 5.80 Billion By 2022
The Grow Light Market is growing at the rapid pace; mainly due to the increasing government initiatives to adopt technologies. According to a recent study report published by the Market Research Future, Globally, the market for Grow Light is expected to gain prominence over the forecast period.
Business, Economy, Finances, Banking & Insurance
Press release from: Market Research Future
Global Grow Light Market, By Technology (LED, High Intensity Discharge, Fluorescent Lighting), By Installation (New Installation, Retrofit), By Application (Indoor Framing, Commercial Greenhouse, Vertical Framing) - Forecast 2022
Grow Light Global Market – Overview
The Grow Light Market is growing at the rapid pace; mainly due to the increasing government initiatives to adopt technologies. According to a recent study report published by the Market Research Future, Globally, the market for Grow Light is expected to gain prominence over the forecast period. The market is forecasted to witness a thriving growth by 2022, surpassing its previous growth records in terms of value with a striking CAGR during the anticipated period. Globally the Grow Light Market is expected to reach 5.80 Billion by 2022 at CAGR of more than ~13% from 2016 to 2022.
The key drivers contributing to the growth of the grow light market are growth in the indoor farming, government initiatives to adopt technologies such as LED, growing demand for energy efficiency, long lasting ‘Grow technology’ and environmentally safe products. Also, the demand for these products is increasing in countries such as Netherlands where supplemental lighting is required throughout the year.
However, low awareness among consumers, high cost of capital are the factors hindering the growth of the overall growth of the market. Whereas, high reliability, low power consumption, high commercial greenhouse practices are also propelling the growth of the grow light market.
Grow light is an electric light rather an artificial source of light which is designed to stimulate plant growth by emitting an electromagnetic spectrum for photosynthesis. Grow light is widely used in applications where natural light is not available or where supplemental light required. It is basically a type of electronic lamp designed to accelerate plant growth by electronic magnetic spectrum.
Plant factories support farming practices that are not dependent on the climate. Food factories produce organic vegetables. With the land available for farming depleting quickly, new types of farming are evolving.
Double Ended HPS lights are typically used in large commercial greenhouse or large indoor commercial gardening applications where high ceilings require more powerful lights to reach the plants. DE HPS lights are ideal for flowering and fruit production.
UV Light Bulbs are beneficial for plants. UV light activates a plant’s defence mechanisms. UV causes plants to produce oils, antioxidant vitamins and flavonoids to protect themselves from the damaging effects of UV. These compounds produce the vibrant colours, smells and tastes of your plants. If the light source does not produce UV, the colour, smell and taste of the produce gets changed effectively.
LED specialized grow lights. LED specialized grow lights offer homogenous light distribution. Light distribution at precisely the right wavelengths is made possible. LED light sources offer light distribution for good photosynthetic response. Vendors are able to stimulate plant growth. Flora series LEDs provide accelerated photosynthesis and energy savings.
Grow lamps are used in a wide variety of applications, including Home hobbyist, Agricultural universities, Educational programs, Plant physiological research, Biotechnology, Pharmacology, Greenhouses and Plant factories.
Grow Light Market - Competitive Analysis
Characterized by the presence of several major well-established players, the global Market of Grow Light appears to be highly competitive. Well established players incorporate acquisition, collaboration, partnership, expansion, and technology launch in order to gain competitive advantage in this market and to maintain their market position. Strategic partnerships between Key players support the growth and expansion plans of the key players during the forecast period. The Key players operating in the market compete based on product & technology launch, reputation and services. Well established players invest heavily in the R&D to develop products with the adept technologies that are completely on a different level compared to their competition, unrivalled design and features.
Key Players
• Osram LichtAG (Germany)
• General Electric Company (U.S.)
• Iwasaki Electric Co., Ltd. (Japan)
• LumiGrow, Inc. (U.S.)
• Gavita Holland B.V. (Netherlands)
• Hortilux Schreder B.V. (Netherlands)
• Sunlight Supply, Inc. (U.S.)
• Heliospectra AB (Sweden)
• Royal Philips (Netherlands)
• Platinum LED Lights LLC (U.S.)
The Global Grow Light Market is segmented in to 4 key dynamics for the convenience of the report and enhanced understanding;
Segmentation By Technology : Comprises LED, High Intensity Discharge, Fluorescent Lighting and other.
Segmentation By Installation : Comprises New Installation, Retrofit.
Segmentation By Application : Comprises Indoor Framing, Commercial Greenhouse, Vertical Framing, Landscaping and other.
Segmentation By Regions : Comprises Geographical regions - North America, Europe, APAC and
Rest of the World.
Out of these applications, vertical farming accounted for the largest market share because it allows the growing of more number of plants within a single enclosed structure, with the usage of artificial lightings and these can be produce fruits and vegetables throughout the year, within urban areas. Grow light is an electric light rather an artificial source of light which is designed to stimulate plant growth by emitting an electromagnetic spectrum for photosynthesis. Grow light is widely used in applications where natural light is not available or where supplemental light required. It is basically a type of electronic lamp designed to accelerate plant growth by electronic magnetic spectrum.
The key drivers contributing to the growth of the grow light market are growth in the indoor farming, government initiatives to adopt technologies such as LED, growing demand for energy efficiency, long lasting grow technology and environmentally safe products. Also, the demand for these products is increasing in countries such as Netherlands where supplemental lighting is required throughout the year.
Grow Light Global Market – Regional Analysis
Geographically, Europe accounted for the largest market share in the global grow light market, whereas Asia-Pacific is expected to grow significantly over the forecast period. Europe accounted for the largest market share, because Netherlands is a leading exporter of horticultural produce which increases the usage of commercial greenhouse. Also, the concept of vertical farming is gaining popularity in this region.
Asia-Pacific region is expected to grow significantly over the forecast period, majorly due to increasing awareness about the benefits of this technology.
BGC, Bafi Shows Developers What To Do With Your Available Open Spaces
By: Amor Maclang
April 3, 2019
Ralph Becker of Urban Greens
MANILA-based Agri-Tech and urban farming company Urban Greens, (Urban Greens Hydroponics Systems Inc.) is announcing a project tie-up with the Bonifacio Arts Foundation Inc. (Bafi) under the direction of the head curator of The Mind Museum, who oversees all things art- and science-related in BGC.
The project is based on the creation of a prototype hydroponic setup within the premises of The Mind Museum science museum, to show off futuristic farming techniques like hydroponics to grow clean and healthy greens right in the heart of the city space.
Fresh, affordable produce in our cities is often difficult to find. Supermarkets and local markets are still dependent on vegetables grown with traditional farming methods and transported from distant farms.
Filipinos battle with rising food prices, inconsistent quality produce, and limited supply. This will prove unsustainable as the Philippine population is projected to increase from 106 million (in 2018) to 142 million by 2045—about two thirds of which will live in urban areas.
A growing movement of urban farming is providing methods towards more sustainable agriculture practices. Integrating hydroponic farms into our present and future urban spaces is one way to secure access to cleaner and fresher grown produce.
Environment-friendly farming
Urban Greens, a farming company founded in 2016, advocates hydroponic farming as a means to unlocking the ability of anyone, including urban dwellers, to grow their own food more efficiently. Hydroponic farming or hydroponics is when plants are grown without soil. Instead, the plant roots absorb the nutrients it needs from nutrient-rich water.
Compared to traditional farming that is resource-intensive and utilizes chemical inputs, hydroponics uses 90 percent less water and does not use chemical weed or pest-control products. This is critical as the world’s resources of clean water, fossil fuels and arable soil is finite. Decades of intensive agriculture production has also damaged different environments. What is often forgotten is that the health of the planet impacts the health of the people. Finding alternative systems, such as growing food in our own communities, enables our lands and resources to recover for the use of future generations.
Climate-resilient communities and farming systems
Developing climate-resilient communities must be prioritized as the Philippines ranks fifth among the countries most affected to extreme weather events from 1998 to 2017. Scientists have projected that temperatures will continue to increase until the end of the century resulted to extended droughts or intense rainfall, sea-level rise and stronger typhoons. The urban landscape creates opportunities for more protected and controlled farms from the changing climate.
Even with limited space, an urban farmer can choose to stack hydroponic systems or to plant “vertically” to maximize available space both indoors and outdoors. Options that improve the availability and accessibility of quality produce at consistent prices. Vegetables and herbs could be easily grown and harvested indoors, such as offices, restaurants and homes. One could also tend to the plants in an outdoor setting, such as under-utilized rooftops, terraces or backyards.
Urban Greens works with individuals and organizations to find the types of hydroponic system that would address their needs. The company strives to build systems that can be easily used, maintained and refitted using local materials.
Promoting healthier lifestyles and well-being
The proximity of one’s food to the place of work and inhabit encourages individuals to reconnect with nature and what they eat. Freshly picked vegetables are more nutritious and retain improved aroma and flavor. These are often lost when vegetables are packaged and transported through traffic-laden routes.
More hydroponically grown vegetables may help improve the eating habits of Filipinos. In urban areas where convenience is preferred, studies show that the total of local household food expenditures for food away from home has gradually increased from 11.5 percent in 2000 to 17.5 percent in 2012.
The per-capita consumption of Filipino households of vegetables only averages 22.4 kilograms per year. This pales in comparison to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) recommended level consumption of 146 to 182 kg/yr. Higher intake of fresh greens reduce the risks of major chronic diseases and avert nutritional deficiencies.
Settling roots within communities
Establishing hydroponic farms and community gardens make cities more sustainable, providing both green public spaces and access to quality nutrition. In such environment, creative synergy is able to flourish and partnerships can begin to cultivate among residents, farmers, local businesses, academe and local leaders.
As of 2018, Urban Greens has been building a prototype farm in collaboration with the Bafi. Based on its modular and scalable nature, it has the potential to be developed on a much bigger scale supplying produce to establishments and residents within Bonifacio Global City and neighboring communities. Other projects of the company include a partnership with a major real estate developer.
Urban Greens envisions that hydroponic urban farming will evolve the Philippine vegetable food scene and provide a sustainable addition to our communities.
If you want to know more about how to grow your own vegetables and become an urban farmer, Urban Greens also offers to a Hydroponics 101 Workshops for individuals and companies.
Hydroponics is the process of growing plants without soil. As only water is used, there is no need for pesticides, fertilizers or fungicides and much less water than conventional farming is used. Not needing soil or land-space makes it perfect for the urban setting.
In addition, as those greens are grown amid a highly urbanized area surrounded by numerous restaurants and condo units, this project demonstrates how to provide the vegetables and herbs needed by those establishments and dramatically reduce the time and energy used in transportation – resulting in cheaper, fresher and tastier greens. The system itself will always be connected to Internet of Things devices, monitoring the overall status and sending the data to their cloud servers, as to optimize the growing conditions for the plants. This highly modular and scalable prototype system can serve as a potential template for a much bigger urban farm setup.
Apart from the project with The Mind Museum, Urban Greens has secured a strategic partnership with one of the major Philippine property developers who has invested an undisclosed sum into the hydroponics company. The main objective of the investment is to revolutionize the hydroponics and precrafted structures business and the vision is to reinvent the farming system, and fabrication, supply and installation of technology of modular buildings, homes, event spaces and other structures making the Urban Greens the biggest vertical farm in the Philippines, and eventually in the global market. Once established, it will not only solve high cost, and inconsistent quality and supply of fresh produce, but also expand its business in branding, marketing, licensing, management, design and supply.
Urban Greens is the regional representative of the international Association for Vertical Farming and the only member in the Philippines.
Urban Greens is a 2-year-old start-up founded by former tech/ corporate biz dev, turned hydroponic enthusiast Filipino-German Ralph Becker with a big vision for accessible and high-end hydroponically grown food for big scale businesses as well as home usage.
Video: 7,000 sq.m. of Hydroponic Lettuce
Lettuce is a short growing season plant, that is why it is more and more popular as a spring vegetable cultivated under the cover. It is mainly grown on substrates such as mineral wool and hydroponic systems. In heated greenhouses, lettuce can be produced all year round. Seedling production lasts from 3 to 6 weeks. Optimal germination temperature is within a range from 18°C to 20°C.
Similarly to other crops, light is one of the most important production factors. Light deficiency might be particularly harmful for seedling and lettuce at the time of the head increase.
Inappropriate lighting, can cause the internodes to lengthen and slow the absorption of nitrogen compounds. Lettuce belongs to the long day. To ensure its optimal growth conditions, it needs at least 12 hours of light access. Especially in autumn and winter periods, it is necessary to use additional lighting sources.
One of the key issues of using LED technology for lighting crops, is its ability to adjust the spectrum, to achieve favorable commercial values of a given plant.
Thanks to the LED COB Leafy spectrum, which has been developed jointly with world specialists engaged in the cultivation of lettuce, plants are characterized by much better growth and visual condition. Furthermore, lettuce stays fresh longer, even on the shop shelf.
In January 2019, Plantalux's horticulture LED COB lamps have been installed on 7000 sq.m. area, as seen in the video below.
For more information:
Plantalux
Jakub Lachowski.
+ 48 730 730 478
jakub.lachowski@plantalux.pl
http://plantalux.pl/en/home/
https://pl-pl.facebook.com/plantalux/
Publication date : 3/25/2019
Video: How Urban Farming is Helping to Feed Tokyo
Japan currently produces just over a third of the food consumed at home. But it's hoping to raise its food self-sufficiency rate to 45%. It’s a challenging task because the number of full-time farmers has been falling.
Japan currently produces just over a third of the food consumed at home. But it's hoping to raise its food self-sufficiency rate to 45%. It’s a challenging task because the number of full-time farmers has been falling.
As part of our Leading Cities series, Mariko Oi looks at how creative urban farming is helping to feed the city’s residents.
No Time, Space to Farm At Home? Hyderabad Hydroponics Firm Has a Doorstep Solution!
With help and guidance from the UrbanKissan, you can now grow fresh produce including lettuces, herbs, greens and exotic vegetables round the year.
by Gopi Karelia March 18, 2019
Population explosion, drastic climate change, and the commercialization of the farming sector leading to the wear and tear of soil, the future of the country’s agricultural scenario looms gloomily above us. This is not a mere hypothesis but an actual fact. The fifth report of US-based The Global Harvest Initiative predicts that by the year 2030, agricultural production will only meet 59 percent of India’s total demand. On the other hand, a NITI Aayog report suggests that the country’s water demand will be twice the supply implying severe water scarcity. Two problems that seem almost insurmountable.
Do not worry, we have a solution! Exclaims 25-year-old Vihari Kanukollu from Hyderabad who has embarked on a mission to change the face of farming. His “farming fields”, however, will be in an urban set up.
With the help of ‘Hydroponic Farming’, a technique largely practiced in Europe and America, he hopes to reduce the burden on traditional farmers by helping urban dwellers grow their own food.
‘Hydroponic Farming uses 95% less water and no soil
Breaking down the concept of hydroponic farming in simple terms, Vihari says that this technique uses 95 percent less water and the food can be grown in any climate or location without soil.
It was during Vihari’s stint in the Finance sector in 2017, when he learnt about hydroponic or vertical farming. Talking to The Better India (TBI) about the trigger that set him on this path he says,
Though I was preparing for a career in finance, I was always concerned about social issues that impact the society at large. In 2017, I came across a report that underlined the increasing gap between demand and supply of food in India.
On researching further, the grim statistics and minimal steps taken to resolve issues startled him.
It was during the same time that he met Dr Sairam, a scientist and a family-friend, who was practicing farming in his own backyard. After conducting a series of successful experiments on hydroponic farming, the duo decided to launch their own company. Srinivas Chaganti, Vihari’s relative got on board to deal with the Internet of Things (IoT).
Thus, was born UrbanKissan, a company aiming to integrate the concept of ‘In My Backyard’ in sustainable farming.
Vihari, Dr Sairam and Srinivas Chaganti
When asked if the hydroponic method of farming is a threat to traditional farming in any way, Vihari says, “No, in fact this type of farming is an add-on to the traditional method. This is for people who want to grow their own food. Our project aims to unburden the traditional farmers by making urban dwellers contribute to the process.”
How To Be An #UrbanKissan
‘I want to grow my own food but in a hassle-free manner? I cannot grow food because I lack expertise, time and space’
If you ever had these thoughts that deterred you from farming, worry not. With help and guidance from the UrbanKissan, you can now grow fresh produce including lettuces, herbs, greens and exotic vegetables round the year. These can be grown anywhere – from rooftops to balconies.
The company offers a range of options, from a model kit of 18 to 36 plants. The kit consists of seeds, coconut waste and a mix of nutrients.
Grow your food in a hassle-free manner
Once you place an order according to your preference, the company will assist you in choosing the site and delivering logistics.The staff will come to your house and help you set up the farm.
After the farm is set up, all you need to do is take out a couple of minutes from your busy schedule every day to water the crops.
“The main role of soil is to provide rich-nutrients to the produce. We broke down these nutrients and prepared an ingredient with it. The seeds can be sown inside the coconut waste and water can be supplied from below. It requires less manual work and is a one-time investment,” says Vihari.
This method allows you to harvest and consume the produce within the same day. This way you get the benefit of fresh produce that is not only nutritionally rich, but also available all year round at a consistent quality.
Among the services provided by the start-up, the feature of marketing customer’s produce is something that the company is leveraging on to encourage indoor farming.
The scalability of this project is from individual households to commercial spaces. If a customer is willing to produce enough to be able to sell in the market we provide our assistance, adds Vihari.
So far, the trio has been successful in setting up 8,000 plants across five states. “After I read articles about heavy metal contamination in green and leafy vegetable that causes cancer, I decided to grow food in my own balcony. UrbanKissan helped me set a kitchen-garden in my house and now I know what I eat is safe and fresh food,” says Lasya, an Urban Kissan in Bengaluru
An Effort To Reduce Food Wastage
As per a World Economic Forum report, India’s annual food requirement is 230 million tonnes and the agricultural output is 270 million tonnes, which means that close to 40 million tonnes of produce is wasted each year during production, processing, retailing and consumption.
From spoiling of food to retailers stocking extra, there are several reasons that are responsible for India’s food wastage problem. We have come up with a solution where the food is produced according to customer’s demand, says Vihari.
The trio is currently developing a vertical farm in the heart of the bustling city of Hyderabad.
Commercial vertical plant in Hyderabad
The first commercial vertical plant being developed at Jubilee Hills Road No 36 has the capacity to produce 50,000 crops (10 tonnes of yield per month). The farm, spread over 2,000 sq feet, will yield vegetables equivalent to 70,000 sq ft in traditional farming, points out Vihari. In other words, almost an acre of produce is grown in the size of an apartment.
Explaining the concept of vertical farming in Hyderabad, Vihari says,
One can walk in and order growing vegetables and watch the entire process of harvesting.They can take back with them fresh produce that contains no pesticides or harmful chemicals.
Sharing the company’s future plans, the trio aims to make major cities that lack space like Mumbai sustainable. They plan to set up vertical farms in these cities and help bridge the demand and supply of food.
Urbankissan plans to set up vertical farms in other cities like Mumbai and Bengaluru
“We’re re-thinking what agriculture looks like in a world where water is scarce, people live in cities waking up to the dangers of pesticides. We want to ensure that everyone has access to safe food by building more farm next to where people live. With our produce we want to have a positive impact not only on our health, but the health of the world,” says the trio.
Want to know more and take a sustainable step? Get in touch with UrbanKissan: support@urbankisaan.com
(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)