However, with the agricultural sector already heavily criticised for its contribution to global warming, and the sector vulnerable to climate change impacts, increasing global food production to feed an additional two million inhabitants using conventional models is no longer seen as viable.

Plant factories with artificial lighting (PFALs) – more widely known as vertical or indoor farms – are recognised as a promising model that protects food production from weather extremes, optimises yields and can reduce the overall impact of agriculture on the environment.

In their latest venture, two pioneers of indoor farming – Toyoki Kozai and Eri Hayashi – have collaborated with an impressive range of international experts to produce a new book: Advances in plant factories: New technologies in indoor
vertical farming.

“Professor Toyoki Kozai and Dr Eri Hayashi have had a major influence on the advancement and global understanding of vertical farming,” says Christine Zimmermann-Lössl, Chairwoman of the Association for Vertical Farming, Germany.

“This new book addresses key topics such as energy modelling, the nutritional components of crops and spectral manipulation. We see tremendous value in this latest publication from Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing and are confident that it will become a standard reference book in this area,” she concludes.

The book provides an authoritative review of the latest research in the development and application of PFALs for a range of crop, including the application of machine vision, plant phenotyping and spectral imaging to monitor plant health and growth.

PFALs are viewed by many as a more resources-efficient production model with less environmental impact. For example, when compared to conventional open-field production, PFALs have been proven to reduce water consumption by 90% per kg of produce and pesticide and herbicide usage by almost 100%. And it’s the technology within the system that enables this.

“One of the core technologies of the PFAL derives from the use of an airtight and thermally insulated cultivation room with sensors for measuring all resource inputs, product outputs, environmental factors and plant traits or phenotype,” says Professor Toyoki Kozai, co-editor of this new book.

“This means that plant environmental factors can be controlled at an optimum point with minimum resource inputs and waste outputs, regardless of local weather, soil and ecosystem conditions,” he adds.

What makes this book particularly valuable is that it also addresses the continuing challenges that indoor farming faces.

The editors, along with the contributing authors, identify where more research and investment is required to tackle some of the biggest obstacles facing indoor farming, including the current rate of resource consumption (electricity, plastics and fertilisers), as well as the emission of greenhouse gases during the construction and operation of PFALs.

AmplifiedAg, an agtech company built on the principles and architecture of enterprise-grade multi-tenant SaaS agricultural technology, has broken the segmented application mold and announces the release of the Enterprise Farm Health (EFH) function for operators running on its AmpEDGE farm software platform. The EFH provides users with a single all-encompassing view of an entire farming enterprise and the inbound and outbound supply chain. 

Instead of only being able to access data farm by farm, the Enterprise Farm Health function assembles and organizes details from every farm in a user’s network – across all site locations, facilities, and farm environments including container farms, vertical farms, and greenhouses.

This visibility provides the user with the real-time health of an entire organization and its key functions to easily access consolidated environmental, operational, financial and risk reporting. 

From the enterprise viewpoint, the user can narrow in on a farm facility, to a site location, all the way down to an individual farm unit, and be able to navigate and control all of the associated functions and data analytics including environmental controls systems, harvest yields, food safety metrics, inventory, client orders, finance, and more. 

“The AmpEDGE Enterprise Farm Health function is a critical component to an indoor farm operation, especially one that is scaling,” says Don Taylor, CEO and founder of AmplifiedAg. “Indoor farming has a complex set of requirements and operations, and the EFH enables the farmer to track and report on the global breadth of an organization for complete agricultural and agribusiness management.” 

The EFH and the AmpEDGE platform at large is positioned to assist the evolving needs of modern agriculture with its multi-farm multi-site management capabilities, especially as the need to move food production closer to the end consumer increases. 

“We’re seeing more and more farmers that are diversifying their operations by blending their existing greenhouse production, and even field production, with vertical farming to add meaningful capacity to their business,” adds Taylor. “This is where AmpEDGE and the EFH function truly shine with the versatile ability to track and manage a farmer’s fully integrated operations and supply chain network.” 

AmpEDGE is a farm and supply chain management platform that correlates and streamlines the inner and outer workings of a farm including environmental control systems, business operations, and financial integrations all in one application. AmplifiedAg provides AmpEDGE software and control systems to independent vertical farms, greenhouses and other controlled agriculture environments. The software and controls are also fully integrated into AmplifiedAg’s container farming systems that are in operation by third parties across the country. 

Learn more about AmpEDGE and AmplifiedAg farms and technologies at www.amplifiedaginc.com. 

About AmplifiedAg 

AmplifiedAg^®is an innovator and leader in the CEA and indoor agriculture sector. The company’s technologists, horticulturalists, and farmers bring together the power and potential of the most comprehensive CEA technology platform and indoor farming practices to enable the next generation of scalable and sustainable food supply. AmplifiedAg engineers and implements fully enabled enterprise-scale container farms and an integrated software and hardware technology platform to support the evolving needs of the agriculture industry, retailers, government entities, NGOs, and others

seeking to develop modern food supply solutions. The company also operates its market-leading brand Vertical Roots^®. 

Our mission is to modernize and localize agriculture with indoor farming technology for farmers and communities across the globe. 

Learn more about AmplifiedAg 

www.amplifiedaginc.com | LinkedIn: @amplifiedag | Instagram: @amplifiedaginc

This article is first because I firmly believe labor is the biggest challenge we face today, as well as for the next 10 years in controlled environment agriculture (CEA), and in commercial horticulture and general production agriculture.

Victor Loaiza Mejia posted the following on LinkedIn on August 10, 2023: 

“I disagree with your assessment of the lack of ‘grower or production leadership’. Traditionally the greenhouse industry has had a legacy program (like Ivy League College) that benefited growers that come from outside the NAFTA countries. The local younger generation of growers and operators need opportunities to grow into these positions. They need mentoring and support.

“My vision of protected agriculture is more regional (USA, Canada, Mexico) than only thinking about the USA. As you mentioned in the article, the growing surface has decreased in the US but has increased in Mexico for example. The oldest greenhouse companies operating in the US and Canada are now some of the largest tomato marketers in the USA, purchasing greenhouse produce in Mexico at a very large scale, without really having ‘skin in the game.’ I see this as a big entry barrier for new companies based in the USA.

“The opportunity for small greenhouse companies is to resist the push to buy the newest closed greenhouse and buy only the necessary technology and develop their local market. Creating Cooperatives style of relationships with other small growers might be beneficial.”

Well, Victor, yes. That’s really all I have to say. Yes, I agree. I should have and could have selected my words better, while also providing more details behind my statement. If I would have, you would have seen that we are saying almost the same thing.

Now that we officially agree, let’s break this conversation down into the realities that drive the factors you highlight.

Where did the head growers, production managers, and vice presidents of operations come from in the U.S. controlled environment agriculture industry?  

The U.S. greenhouse vegetable industry started in the early to mid 1980s. (The Canadian greenhouse industry started a few years prior, and the Mexican greenhouse industry began about 10 years later.) Initially, the industry was almost 100% focused on growing tomatoes. Much of the industry was built off importing not only Dutch greenhouse technology, but also Dutch growers who were equipped with the training and knowledge needed to operate this new technology.  

As years went on, the U.S. continued to attract growers from the Netherlands, as well as nearby areas such as the United Kingdom and Belgium, which also had well-established glasshouse industries. Many of these early immigrants were well experienced with some education. They were young males eager to make their mark on a new industry in a new world thought of as “the land of opportunity.”

Now these same individuals have been in our small industry for 30-40 years. They are getting close to retirement, but many still work. This is an important part of Victor’s criticism and if you compare it with the graph below, you see why they have aggressively held on to positions of power.  

The industry does not have enough companies that can pay them the money they want or to promote others into key positions, while protecting their own careers and those of their friends. (Nothing new here. This occurs in all industries. Normally, industries have more companies and the impact is not so drastic.)

What about the other skilled labor needed to profitably operate a greenhouse vegetable facility?

Greenhouses require lots of skilled labor to operate successfully, especially when the operations are anywhere from 10-200 acres. You need IPM managers, labor managers, assistant growers, junior growers, packhouse managers, logistics managers and more. The list goes on and on. 

So where did these people come from? In many or most cases, Mexico. In the 1990s, the largest vegetable greenhouses in the U.S. were in southwestern Texas and southeastern Arizona — a short drive from the U.S.-Mexico border. This attracted young, educated Mexican (again mainly) men to jobs that paid well, provided year-round employment (not always the case in agriculture) and opportunities to work in a highly technical field that showed promise for advancement.

Now fast forward 30 years. These guys are ready and prepared to take over, but there are not enough opportunities for everyone to be in charge. This also means that as new companies open, we have a lack of ongoing opportunities to attract talent and give individuals chances to grow and develop the skills needed to run smaller or more niche organizations.

A change in politics. A change in opportunities. H-2A.

Simultaneously, we have seen a shift in our ability to bring labor into the United States. U.S.-based agriculture businesses rely heavily on worker visa programs to bring in groups of individuals to work jobs not often desired by locally available workers. The H-2A program allows U.S. employers or U.S. agents who meet specific regulatory requirements to bring foreign nationals to the United States to fill temporary agricultural jobs. (The word “temporary” is key!)  But, this program and our attitude toward migrant workers has shifted significantly over the past 30 years.  

According to the USDA, “Hired farmworkers make up less than 1 percent of all U.S. wage and salary workers, but they play an essential role in U.S. agriculture. According to data from the 2017 Census of Agriculture, wages and salaries plus contract labor costs represented just 12 percent of production expenses for all farms, but 43 percent for greenhouse and nursery operations and 39 percent for fruit and tree nut operations.”

The tightening of our southern border means that we rely on the H-2A program more than ever.  According to a July 2023 article in NPR, “The number of guest worker visas issued each year has more than quadrupled over the past decade. But the program is rife with labor rights violations, and farmers who have come to depend on it don’t love it, either.”

As I stated before, U.S.-based greenhouse producers are competing directly with Canadian greenhouse growers, as well as Mexican greenhouse producers, for consumers’ wallets in produce aisles across the United States. This means, as the American portion of the greenhouse-grown industry, we need to be conscious of all costs (of which labor is a significant portion). It is safe to say that we have learned and can confirm that locally available labor is not as efficient as the labor we get through worker visa programs. 

Why is local labor not as efficient as our immigrant workforce?

I will not even attempt to answer this question. But, what I can report is that through interviews with major greenhouse tomato growing operations, it is estimated that you need 3-4 times the amount of local labor as you do immigrant, migrant or visa workers. (This number seems true regardless of pay and benefits, based on information we received from the recently announced bankrupt company AppHarvest.) 

Conversations with on-site labor managers makes me believe that one main reason this perception exists is because this talent pool is seen as an unskilled labor force. Labor managers all agree that is far from the truth. The truth is, many of these individuals are skilled based on experience gained at other farms. These skills make them eager to be employed based on “production output,” as they recognize that their production compensation will far out pace any hourly rate that they might be paid.

According to USDA statistics from October 2022, the H2A program has expanded since 2005. But has it expanded enough to keep up with the demand? Especially the demand of the controlled environment agriculture sector?  

Even if we could keep up with demand in the greenhouse (or vertical farm), these programs do not allow us to address the issue of finding talented operational managers with experience to run the facility based on the current glass ceilings that appear to be in place.

So questions around labor, management and leadership remain for the U.S.-based controlled environment agriculture industry. From finding the experienced staff needed to operate an efficient greenhouse to providing the most talented in that group the opportunity to advance and excel. 

And Victor, my response to your comment remains “yes.” Now my question back to you is, how will you and your contemporaries lead our industry in change?

Urban Ag News would love to hear from you.  Please let us know your thoughts and comments.

The labs will be customized to carry out CEA vegetable production research unique to the Fort Pierce laboratory.AmplifiedAg has also supplied 16 vertical farming labs to the USDA-ARS U.S. Vegetable Research Lab in Charleston, South Carolina, designed to support its wide range of CEA research in vegetable growing processes, LED spectrum analysis, renewable energy, plant pathology, and plant breeding and selection for controlled environments. 

“The USDA has done a tremendous job of supporting research efforts in controlled environment agriculture, urban farming, and sustainable farming practices, and we’re extremely proud to be a provider for their continued innovation and research at ARS laboratories across the country,” says Don Taylor, CEO and Founder of AmplifiedAg.

In addition to supplying labs for third-party research, AmplifiedAg has an extensive R&D program that includes CEA cultivation of tomatoes, peppers, strawberries, potatoes, rice, medicinal herbs, and saplings such as Loblolly pines. The company is also collaborating with farms on the development of healthy fruits and vegetable transplants for greenhouse and field production.AmplifiedAg’s vertical farming labs – known as AmpLAB – are purpose-built research modules complete with a hydroponic propagation station and NFT channels for dual growing functions, and are fully integrated with proprietary environmental control systems and a SaaS-based farm software platform for total lab management. The software’s robust data collection enables USDA scientists with informed analysis to expedite research data. To create an all-encompassing laboratory, AmpLAB also includes a certified food-safe work zone with storage, sinks, and a dedicated workspace for researchers for experimentation and analysis in a clean, controlled environment.

Guy Blanchard’s keynote is scheduled for Wednesday, September 20, 2023, at 9 a.m.

The CEA Summit East is co-hosted by Indoor Ag-Con, the largest vertical farming | CEA gathering, and the CEA Innovation Center – a partnership between the IALR and Virginia Tech’s School of Plant and Environmental Sciences and the Virginia Seafood Agricultural Research and Extension Center.

During his keynote, Blanchard will share how AeroFarms is emerging stronger in the months following a Chapter 11 filing, touching on growing retail partnerships with leaders like Walmart, H-E-B, The Fresh Market, Whole Foods, Amazon Fresh, and other initiatives. He will also provide updates on AeroFarms’ newest farm in Danville, which continues to scale according to plan. 

Blanchard brings extensive project finance and corporate development experience for AeroFarms, a leading clean-technology company that builds and operates commercial state-of-the-art indoor vertical farms around the world, helping transform agriculture. A Certified B Corporation, AeroFarms has been recognized by Fast Company as one of the Most Innovative Companies in the World and by Inc. as one of the Top 25 Disruptive Companies. Guy last served as Senior Vice President, Corporate Development, at Amonix, Inc., a concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) solar power systems equipment manufacturer and developer. 

Guy has also served as a Managing Director for Fortress Investment Group’s Drawbridge family of funds, where he was a principal investor with a focus on structured investments in long-lived assets. Prior to that, Guy was Vice President of Corporate Finance at GATX Capital Corporation and CFO for JTP Manufacturing. Guy holds a bachelor’s degree and an MBA, both from the University of California, Davis.
“We are excited to welcome Guy Blanchard to our CEA Summit keynote stage. AeroFarms has been a trailblazer in the indoor farming industry, and his address will undoubtedly provide invaluable insights into the path forward for the indoor farming sector as it confronts new challenges, and new opportunities, head-on,” said Brian Sullivan, CEO, Indoor Ag-Con.

“Having Guy Blanchard share his perspective on AeroFarms’ journey through recent challenges aligns perfectly with our mission to foster collaboration and innovation within the CEA community,” adds Dr. Scott Lowman, Co-Director of the CEA Innovation Center, and Vice President of Applied Research at IALR. 

The CEA Summit East is custom-tailored for new and well-seasoned CEA industry members from throughout the Eastern US, including indoor and greenhouse growers, facility owners and operators, educators, government officials, real estate developers, architects, construction specialists, sales and marketing teams and others.

During the two-day event, industry members will have the opportunity to hear from CEOs, researchers, and experts leading keynotes, panels, and breakout sessions; explore tabletop exhibits presenting the latest CEA innovations and services; and enjoy a host of networking opportunities ranging from meals and coffee breaks to an evening social event.

QUICK FACTS:

WHEN:                Tuesday, September 19 – Wednesday, September 20, 2023 

WHERE:              IALR Institute Conference Center, 150 Slayton Ave, Danville, VA 24540

INFO:                  For information on exhibiting or attending visit www.ceasummit.com  

ABOUT INDOOR AG-CON
Indoor Ag-Con is the premier global event series focused on the future of indoor farming. Since 2013, the trade show and conference, the industry’s largest, has been at the forefront of the rapidly expanding vertical farming and controlled environment agriculture sector, providing a platform for industry leaders, innovators, and researchers to connect, share knowledge, and drive the industry forward. More information- www.indoor.ag  

ABOUT THE VIRGINIA TECH-IALR CEA INNOVATION CENTER
The Virginia Tech-IALR Controlled Environment Agriculture Innovation Center is a joint project between IALR and Virginia Tech’s School of Plant and Environmental Sciences and the Virginia Seafood Agricultural Research and Extension Center. By developing strategic partnerships with both industry and academia, the goal of the Innovation Center is to conduct research and educational programming to develop, promote and advance the CEA sector in the U.S. and internationally. More information–www.ialr.org/cea

OptimIA project members are sharing their indoor farm research findings with the controlled environment agriculture industry and the public through a variety of educational and informational outlets.

The indoor farm industry is very fluid right now with changes occurring on a weekly basis. New companies are starting, some are leaving the industry, while others continue to receive millions of investor dollars to expand their operations. While financial stability is a key factor in the sustainability of some of these businesses, the need for production- and economic-related information is crucial to profitably producing quality leafy greens crops. Those with the financial backing have been able to develop and implement their own technology to produce indoor crops. New indoor farm growers, existing operations with limited financial resources, and even large-scale farms already in operation continue to look for sound production- and economic-related information that they can apply to their businesses.

Improving the indoor farm industry

In 2015 when members of the OptimIA project team initially submitted a USDA Specialty Crop Research Initiative grant proposal for funding, the primary focus of their research was on the production of leafy greens in indoor farms, but the focal points were moderately diverse.

“We went through the proposal submission process for several years before USDA approved the grant for the OptimIA project,” said Erik Runkle, who is project director and a horticulture professor at Michigan State University. “The proposal that was finally approved was to study the aerial environment as well as economics for leafy greens grown indoors. The aerial environment refers to air circulation, humidity, carbon dioxide concentration, light and temperature.”

One of the major objectives of the OptimIA project was to focus on industry outreach.

“The outreach program objective was to engage with stakeholders in the indoor vertical farming community,” Runkle said. “Prior to submitting the proposal to USDA, the project team members worked with an industry advisory committee and stakeholders from the indoor farm community.”

OptimIA team member Chieri Kubota, who is a professor and director of Ohio Controlled Environment Agriculture Center (OHCEAC) at Ohio State University, said proposals submitted for USDA Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) grants usually require both a strong research and outreach focus.

“USDA SCRI-funded projects focus on problem solving to move a specific industry forward,” Kubota said. “Not only is the research important, but also implementation of research findings in the industry sector. This is basically outreach extension. The proposals cannot just focus on research alone. It is important to have strong outreach activities.”

Multiple outreach activities, educational materials

Even before the grant proposal was submitted to USDA, OptimIA team members had already begun interacting with members of the indoor farm industry.

“We had been engaging stakeholders as a sort of proposal activities,” Kubota said. “We started doing the Indoor Ag Science Café almost a year in advance of submitting the grant funding proposal. That way we were engaging our stakeholders trying to develop a community educational platform that was a main activity. Indoor farm growers and equipment manufacturers are the general target audience of the project’s research. Team members are also constantly answering questions from growers and venture capital companies regarding indoor vertical farms.”

The OptimIA website includes a variety of educational materials including Research Highlights articles , scientific research journal publications and trade magazine articles, including Urban Ag News.

The OptimIA team members have also shared information from their research at various scientific- and grower-focused industry conferences. In July several members shared their research findings at Cultivate’23 during an educational workshop on the Essentials of Hydroponics Production: A tHRIve Symposium.

Team members have also been developing online educational materials under OptimIA University, which include YouTube videos.

“We have posted several lectures with topics based on discussions among the project members,” Kubota said. “The concept of OptimIA University is free access to whoever wants to use the online materials. The grower sector is the targeted audience.

“Rather than offering courses for a fee, we decided to make the information available to everyone, including growers and other companies that want to use it to train their employees. It consists of YouTube video lectures with pdf slides and additional reading materials. The OptimIA University website is about half completed and there are other course lectures still pending.”

The OptimIA researchers also hold an annual invitation-only stakeholder meeting.

“The annual meetings are specifically for our advisory committee which gives team members an opportunity to share information about the research in progress and that has been recently completed,” Runkle said. “It’s also an opportunity for the committee members to provide feedback and guide future project activity.

“We also invite growers and company representatives who we have worked with in some capacity on research projects. This includes growers with whom we may have conducted research trials or representatives from companies that have provided us with equipment or supplies used in our research.”

Educating the public

Even though the primary focus of the OptimIA project outreach program is members of the indoor farm industry, the team members also extend their educational activities to the general public.

“OptimIA researchers at Ohio State participated in the COSI Science Festival organized by the Columbus Museum of Science and Industry,” Kubota said. “This is a community STEM educational event in which companies and scientists participate and showcase their technologies and science. It is held in May over multiple days. We participated as an OptimIA group. We showed how leafy greens can be produced using different hydroponic systems with LED lights. OptimIA team members at Michigan State University and at University of Arizona have also done similar STEM programs related to hydroponic crop production for the public.”

For more: Erik Runkle, Michigan State University, Department of Horticulture; runkleer@msu.edu; https://www.canr.msu.edu/people/dr_erik_runkle; https://www.canr.msu.edu/profiles/dr_erik_runkle/cell. Chieri Kubota, Ohio State University, Department of Horticulture and Crop Science; kubota.10@osu.edu; https://hcs.osu.edu/our-people/dr-chieri-kubota; https://ohceac.osu.edu/. OptimIA, https://www.scri-optimia.org/.

This article is property of Urban Ag News and was written by David Kuack, a freelance technical writer in Fort Worth, Texas.

Cannabis water use efficiency (WUE) refers to the amount of water a cannabis plant uses to produce a certain amount of biomass or yield. Supplemental light, such as artificial lighting in indoor cultivation, can have significant effects on a plant’s water use efficiency. 

Here’s how:

1. **Increased Photosynthesis:** Supplemental light, especially in indoor growing environments, can enhance photosynthesis in cannabis plants. When plants can capture more light energy, they can convert more carbon dioxide and water into sugars and other organic compounds. This increased photosynthetic activity can potentially lead to improved water use efficiency, as more water is used for productive processes.

2. **Transpiration and Stomatal Regulation:** Transpiration is the process by which water is released from a plant’s leaves through small openings called stomata. These openings also allow for the exchange of gasses, including carbon dioxide and oxygen. When more light is available, plants often open their stomata wider to take in more carbon dioxide, which can lead to increased water loss through transpiration. This could potentially decrease water use efficiency if not properly managed.

3. **Optimal Lighting Management:** To maximize water use efficiency under supplemental light, it’s important to manage light levels effectively. Providing the right amount of light for the growth stage of the cannabis plant can help maintain a balance between photosynthesis and transpiration. Using light intensity and duration strategies, growers can optimize the plant’s ability to produce energy while minimizing excessive water loss.

4. **Growing Medium and Watering Techniques:** The choice of growing medium (soil, coco coir, hydroponics, etc.) and the watering techniques employed can also influence cannabis water use efficiency. Proper substrate choice and irrigation practices can help regulate water availability to the plant roots, preventing both water stress and waterlogging — both of which can impact WUE.

5. **Genetics and Environmental Factors:** Cannabis cultivars vary in their response to light intensity and other environmental factors. Some strains may exhibit better water use efficiency under supplemental light compared to others. Additionally, environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity, and CO₂ levels can also influence water use efficiency.

To push these limits, Callado and Hernandez regulated and analyzed the quantity and demand of resources and plant growth factors on an ongoing basis. They added light and water-control and measuring capabilities to every plot in the greenhouse, in addition to measuring temperature and evapotranspiration. 

As shown in Figure 1, the cannabis crops were grown under four light levels using two Current dimmable fixtures per plot supplementing sunlight. The L1000 PPB lighting fixtures delivered uniform supplemental light intensities of 150, 300, 500, and 700 μmol m⁻² s⁻¹ for 18 hours, while the Daily Light Integral (DLI) from the sun and LEDs were on average around 18, 30, 40, and 52 mol m⁻² d^-1. However, they present preliminary results for the three highest light levels. 

Moreover, the fertigation system was triggered independently at each plot when the pots’ water container capacities were 80%. This maintained consistent water and nutrient levels in pots regardless of the crop growth rates. Finally, the water use was quantified with load cells (scales) under the plants.

The Results and Conclusions

It’s easy to conclude from known knowledge that the impact of supplemental light on cannabis water use efficiency can be complex and depends on various factors, including light intensity, duration, genetics, and environmental conditions. Proper management of these factors, along with optimized growing practices, can help improve water use efficiency in cannabis cultivation. 

As the cannabis industry continues to evolve, research and experimentation in this area will provide more insights into how to achieve the best water use efficiency outcomes.

The results from Callado and Hernandez suggest that increasing the light amount not only increases the number of branches or cuttings per plant but also could increase the water demand (Figure 2b) and water-use efficiency to produce cuttings (less water per cutting) (Figure 2b). 

In other words, plants grown under an average DLI of 30 mol m^-2 d^-1 for 21 days produced close to 29 cuttings per plant, while plants grown at 52 mol m^-2 d^-1 produced 47 cuttings per plant from new secondary branches. 

Furthermore, plants grown under 30 mol m^-2 d^-1 produced 2.5 cuttings per every liter of water, while plants grown under 52 mol m^-2 d^-1 produced 4.3 cuttings per the same liter of water. This means the crops were more efficient at transforming water into branches under higher light intensities.

So how does this impact commercial growers?

The current research highlights the ability of a cannabis crop to use higher light levels to increase yield and water-use efficiency (higher yield per liter of water). The water-use efficiency for cutting production went from 2.5 to 4.3 cuttings per liter of evapotranspirated water when growing plants under 30 versus 52 moles of light per day, respectively. This would mean that to produce 100 cuttings using 52 moles of light, growers needed 23 liters of water instead of 40 liters under 30 moles of light. 

Figure 1. The top-left picture shows the experimental layout and greenhouse with two L1000 PPB fixtures at each plot or light treatment area (12 plots in total). The top-right picture shows a plot sensor that measures light from the two LED fixtures and the sun. The bottom pictures and arrows represent typical cannabis flower and plant production cycles.

Figure 2 shows the number of secondary branches or cuttings (a) water use per plant, (b) water-use efficiency (branches or cuttings per liter of water) and (c) under three light levels (30, 40, and 52 mol m⁻²) using LED lighting in addition to the sunlight.

To see other research from Hernandez and Callado, please follow this link:  www.gecurrent.com/eu-en/inspiration/researching-the-impact-of-supplemental-lighting-on-cannabis-production

There will be keynote speeches on the latest technology and interdisciplinary research on PFALs and open discussions on business trends, needs for technology development and collaboration specific to PFALs, and future possibilities for social activities with key players such as PFAL operators actively involved internationally. Poster presentations, exhibitions, and sponsored lunch sessions will also be held at the venue, providing an opportunity for interaction and high-level networking among the world’s plant factory leaders and enthusiastic community.

The symposium will feature the keywords, including “Global trends, challenges, and prospects of plant factory business, large-scale strawberry plant factory, fully automated plant factory, improving light and other resource use efficiency in plant factories, plant phenotyping, plant factories with generative AI, next-generation nutrient solution management, breeding, space farms, plant-made pharmaceuticals and functional food, urban farm, plant factories for the circular economy, plant factories in the smart city.” These topics will be covered through open discussions and international collaboration at smart city Kashiwa-no-ha, and online, with a view to achieving “staying healthy simply by living.” The symposium will offer highly interactive sessions from various perspectives with leading international researchers and the hottest business leaders of the moment. 

Speakers/Panelists

Chieri Kubota Professor, the Department of Horticulture and Crop Science, The Ohio State University, U.S.

Leo Marcelis Professor and Head of Chair Group Horticulture and Product Physiology,　Wageningen University, The Netherlands

Hiroki Koga Co-founder and CEO, Oishii Farm, U.S.

Seishi Ninomiya Emeritus Professor, The University of Tokyo, Japan

Francesco Orsini Full Professor, the Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), University of Bologna, Italy

Roel Janssen Chief Business Officer, Planet Farms, Italy

Eiji Goto Professor, Chiba University, Japan

Yoshiaki Kitaya Professor Emeritus and Director of R&D Center for the Plant Factory, Osaka Metropolitan University, Japan

Masayuki Hirafuji Project Professor, The University of Tokyo, Japan

Paul Gauthier Professor, Protected Cropping, The Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, Australia

Katashi Kai General Manager, Shinnippou (808 factory), Japan

Nagateru Nozawa CEO, MIRAI CO., LTD, Japan

Eri Hayashi President, Japan Plant Factory Association

Click https://select-type.com/e/?id=DFQu2EcoBas&w_flg=1 for onsite registration
or https://select-type.com/e/?id=9USB5nqn1p4&w_flg=1 for online registration.

For more information, go to JPFA International Symposium on Plant Factory 2023, or contact the JPFA at symposium@npoplantfactory.org. 

Japan Plant Factory Association

The Japan Plant Factory Association, a nonprofit organization founded in 2010, is devoted to advancing the plant factory industry and controlled-environment agriculture in and outside Japan through academia-industry collaborations.

Its mission is to develop and disseminate sustainable plant factory systems in a bid to address issues concerning food, the environment, energy, and natural resources.

Activities range from research and development in collaboration with research institutes and industrial companies, technical and business support, planning and operation of human resource development programs to educate plant factory specialists, organizing onsite tours, and international projects, including public relations activities.

Facilities: 15 Plant factories and more on the Kashiwa-no-ha campus site

R&D projects by consortium members, applied research at facilities suitable for demonstration, collaboration with academia and industry

Website: https://npoplantfactory.org/en

“Extraordinary” would be a term that comes to mind, but even more so once you meet some of the farmers who brave this climate and manage Village Farms’ high-tech Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) greenhouses. Village Farms’ CEA indoor farming boasts higher yields using less land and significantly fewer precious natural resources compared to open field farming, such as water, because they grow hydroponically and can recirculate their irrigation water time and time again.  Village Farms is a leader in CEA, where inside the enclosed glass greenhouses towering plants are thriving, creating a beautiful indoor garden, while outside an extremely foreboding climate awaits in the desert of Far West Texas.

One such person who manages all this beauty and precision with her expertise in CEA is Abby Lange, Facility Manager for Village Farms Marfa I greenhouse.  Abby started with Village Farms as an intern over 8 years ago while pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Plant Science with a minor in Sustainable Agriculture, and a degree emphasis on Greenhouse Management from the University of Missouri-Columbia.  She now manages 20 acres of Tomatoes-on-the-Vine (TOV) destined for local markets and valued customer-partners including the renowned Texan Grocery chain HEB, for their Texas Roots program, which the company supports.

Abby’s responsibilities include keeping the greenhouse climate and irrigation ideal for the tomato crop she oversees, prioritizing maintenance activities, keeping the packhouse running as efficiently as possible, continually updating the company’s production forecast with the most accurate information available, assisting in the training of personnel, while keeping all of the above on time and under budget. She also told us, “As an intern I saw a broad range of jobs and work within the company, from Packing to biological control to Human Resources, but instead of merely studying these areas of expertise and helping with basic tasks, I now coordinate them all. It falls to me to ensure that communication is smooth among the Greenhouse, the Packhouse, Maintenance, our Integrated Pest Management (IPM) team, Human Resources, Sales, and our Safety and Compliance teams, and that the work of all these teams is optimized considering the current climate, the market, our staff, and the crop.”

On a personal level, Abby’s goal is to work cross functionally to streamline the company’s crop change processes to be better able to produce more weeks out of the year, and, as she notes, “to never become set in my ways, as there is always more we can do to improve.”  Abby also told us that she sees automation as one of the biggest growth opportunities for Village Farms in Texas. “Everyone is short on staff these days, so we can use automation to position our staff more effectively while making their jobs less physically intensive,” she mentioned. Abby thinks that data utilization is another prime opportunity and noted, “We have decades of climate, yield, and sales data at our disposal, and we are using it more and more, but I think we can implement more advanced analytical models to leverage all that data.”

The multi-dimensional aspect of Abby’s role is a big part of her day-to-day and, from what she shared with us, one of her favorite aspects of her job.  “I absolutely love telling our employees when they’re doing a great job or thanking them for what they do. Seeing the crop well cared-for, or a case of beautiful tomatoes beautifully packaged, gives me an energy like nothing else, so I make a point of reflecting that energy back to the people who make it possible to grow tomatoes in the desert day after day. I’ve heard visiting growers say that the crops and yields we achieve shouldn’t technically be possible here, so it’s something to be proud of,” Abby told us. 

However, Abby also says her role does not come without worry, especially considering the climate in the region. “Sometimes it’s wind, sometimes it’s hail, sometimes it’s pathogens or pests, but in any agricultural effort, there are many factors inherently outside of our control”.  

Village Farms is fortunate to have Abby on their team, and the company is glad she found them.  Abby told us, “Village Farms came to my university during my junior year and presented information about the company’s expansive greenhouse cultivation and sustainable methods. I submitted my resume to apply for a summer internship because I was amazed at how big and productive the company was with such an intensive cultivation system. My sustainable ag classes taught us that agriculture is normally intensive or extensive, but Village Farms was doing both at the same time, so I knew I had to be there.”

Abby sees a bright future for CEA growing, and Village Farms at large. She closed the interview by telling us, “I believe that food independence is of the utmost importance. We import myriad agricultural products because it’s cheaper than producing them here, but we never stop to look at the reasons why it’s more expensive to produce them here, or what might happen if the geopolitical or energy networks we have ever fail, preventing us from importing these things. If we want to be resilient as a nation or even as a globe, these factors need attention.”  She also told us growing in the extreme climate of Texas has its benefits, “I’ve learned more about the costs of indoor or vertical farming, enough to know that it’s the free, carbon-neutral sunlight in our farming operation that is the true blessing.”  And thankfully in Far West Texas there is an abundance of clear skies and sunshine for Abby to grow fresh tomatoes that are sought after by consumers around the US.

About Village Farms

Village Farms Fresh is one of the largest growers, marketers, and distributors of premium-quality, greenhouse-grown fruits, and vegetables in North America. The food the company’s farmers grow are all harvested by hand from environmentally friendly, soil-less, glass greenhouses daily while utilizing the highest level of food safety standards available. The Village Farms® brand of fruits and vegetables are marketed and distributed primarily to local retail grocers and dedicated fresh food distributors throughout the United States and Canada. Since its inception, Village Farms has been guided by sustainability principles that enable the company to grow food 365 days a year that not only feeds the growing population but is healthier for people and the planet. Village Farms is Good for the Earth® and good for you. Good for the Earth® and Garden Fresh Flavor® are not only taglines for the company but the value proposition Village Farms Fresh lives by.  And this is why it Takes a Village® to deliver on this promise.

(JULY 17, 2023 – LAS VEGAS,NV) — Indoor Ag-Con, the largest trade show and conference for vertical farming and controlled environment agriculture (CEA), has partnered with Ceres University, a leading provider of IACET-accredited food safety training and certification, to host a CEA Food Safety Workshop ahead of the March 11-12, 2024 edition of Indoor Ag-Con at Caesars Forum, Las Vegas. Scheduled for Sunday, March 10, 2024 from 1-5 pm, the “Internal Review Class” is designed to help industry professionals build their careers and prepare to meet the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) requirement for internal auditing certification.

Internal audit certification is a mandatory requirement of the GFSI as it demonstrates an individual’s ability to conduct internal assessments of any food safety program.  By developing and maintaining a robust and effective internal audit system, operations can enhance their food safety and food quality processes through actionable improvements. This CEA Food Safety Workshop will provide valuable insights into best practices and common mistakes to avoid for successful programs, as outlined by  GFSI level professors in Food Science.
“We are thrilled to add this important CEA Food Safety Workshop to our growing line-up of educational offerings,” said Brian Sullivan, CEO of Indoor Ag-Con. “Food safety is of paramount importance in today’s rapidly evolving CEA industry, and our collaboration with Ceres University underscores our dedication to arming our attendees with the necessary skills to meet global standards.”
“Partnering with Indoor Ag-Con to host the CEA Food Safety Workshop is an exciting opportunity for Ceres University,” adds Karl Kolb, Ph.D., President, Ceres University. “Our aim is to empower professionals in the CEA industry with the knowledge and skills required to achieve and maintain the highest food safety standards. This workshop will provide attendees with proven tools and insights needed to enhance their internal audit processes and drive continuous improvement in their operations.”
The registration fee for the workshop is $575 which includes:

• Admission to 4-hour workshop and course materials
• Ability to earn up to 3 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) upon completion  
• Indoor Ag-Con Expo Hall Only Pass, which includes access to Expo Floor March 11-12, 2024; admission to all Indoor Ag-Con Expo Theater presentations; Expo Floor Welcome Happy Hour; and access to expo floor of National Grocers Association (NGA) Show running concurrently at Caesars Forum

Workshop instructors include Dr. Karl Kolb, president of Ceres University and Ceres Certifications, International (CCI) and Kellie Worrell, GlobalG.A.P. Scheme Manager, CCI. Dr. Kolb is a  microbiologist with a quality background and more than 30 years as an industry professional. In addition to her current role with CCI, Kellie Worrell has managed the Food Safety Program for multiple vegetable farms, including a wide variety of crops. CCI features GLOBALG.A.P. among its many GFSI food safety schemes.

The workshop is designed for anyone in the CEA industry dedicated to ensuring the highest standards of food safety and quality, including food safety managers, quality assurance professionals, compliance officers, and executives with a vested interest in protecting their brand’s reputation.   During the workshop attendees will learn how to organize an internal auditing program;  master risk-based approaches; educate and empower teams to become food safety advocates; effectively document findings; conduct an interview; uncover root cases, and more.

For more information and registration details for the CEA Food Safety Workshop, visit: www.indoor.ag/ceafoodsafety.

OptimIA researchers are using crop modeling to identify the most favorable environmental parameters for growth and yield of indoor farm lettuce crops and how to prevent tipburn.

One of the research objectives of the OptimIA project, which is being funded by USDA to the tune of $2.4 million, is to study the aerial environment for producing indoor leafy greens. The aerial environment refers to air circulation, humidity, carbon dioxide concentration, light intensity, and temperature. Prior to preparing the project proposal, members of the OptimIA team surveyed stakeholders of the indoor farm industry to identify the challenges and needs of the industry.

“There was a lot of feedback related to environmental parameters, especially airflow,” said Murat Kacira, an OptimIA team member who is director of Controlled Environment Agriculture Center and professor in the Biosystems Engineering Department at the University of Arizona. “The indoor farm industry had a real need for optimizing the environmental variables related to light, temperature, humidity management and control. Leafy greens growers wanted to be able to understand plant growth, quantify the plant response, yield, as well as the quality attributes under various environmental conditions.”

Crop modeling predictions, potential

Kacira explains crop modeling is simply crop growth and yield prediction.

“Given setpoints for air temperature, photosynthetic active radiation, humidity, carbon dioxide enrichment, we were able to model crop growth and predict the kilograms or grams of lettuce yield on an hourly or daily basis and also at the end of the production cycle,” he said.

Kacira’s lab used modeling to focus on plant growth and yield predictions for lettuce in indoor vertical farms considering environmental variables, including temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide level and light intensity.

“Considering the co-optimization of different environmental variables, there are many combinations of those setpoints that are possible,” he said. “It takes a lot of time and effort to study all those combinations. A model we did was focused on plant growth and yield prediction for growing lettuce in indoor vertical farms considering environmental variables. Using modeling can help to narrow down the combinations or the possibilities that can occur.

Another modeling study enabled Kacira to identify the possibility of dynamic carbon dioxide enrichment.

“We looked at whether carbon dioxide enrichment should be done for the full production cycle from transplanting to little leaf harvest or whether it should be done during different phases of production leading to savings either for electrical energy or carbon dioxide use,” he said. “Also, we considered how carbon dioxide enrichment and control would be incorporated with lighting controls. For example, can the light be dimmed while increasing the carbon dioxide level to achieve a similar yield outcome, but with a control strategy enabling electrical energy savings during production.”

Determining best airflow distribution

Kacira is also using modeling and computer simulations to study airflow and airflow uniformity to design alternative air distribution systems to improve aerial environment uniformity and to prevent tipburn in lettuce crops.

“Early on we used computational fluid dynamics (CFD) space simulation and modeling to study airflow,” he said. “We looked at some existing air distribution systems to understand what would be the environmental uniformity and aerodynamics in indoor vertical farms. Then we studied what-if scenarios. We developed design alternatives that can deliver optimal growing conditions with improved aerial environment uniformity and help prevent lettuce tipburn.

“Our CFD simulations and experimental studies confirmed that vertical airflow compared to horizontal airflow was more effective reducing aerodynamic resistance with improved airflow and transpiration, thus preventing tipburn in lettuce.”

Some of the outcomes determined by Kacira and his team have been presented to OptimIA stakeholders and CEA industry members through seminars, webinars and research and trade publications. Kacira will continue using computer simulations, modeling, and experimental studies to design and test more effective localized air-distribution methods, environmental monitoring, and control strategies for indoor vertical farms.

Production techniques for preventing tipburn

Chieri Kubota, who is a member of the OptimIA team and professor and director of the Ohio Controlled Environment Agriculture Center at Ohio State University, and graduate student John Ertle studied various techniques for reducing or preventing tipburn. These techniques have application to lettuce crops produced in indoor farms and greenhouses.

“Growers can reduce the light intensity at the end of the production cycle to mitigate the risk of tipburn,” Kubota said. “If growers want to reduce tipburn and they can tolerate reduced yields, they can lower the light intensity towards the end of the production cycle.

“For example, when the daily light integral (DLI) was reduced by 50 percent for the final 12 days of production (out of 28 days), the incidence of tipburn can be largely reduced for cultivars sensitive to tipburn-inducing conditions. However, this approach reduces the yield and likely the quality of lettuce, while reducing the loss by tipburn. Therefore, efficacy of this approach is dependent on the cultivars and their growing conditions. More research needs to be done to refine this approach.”

Another technique growers can use to prevent tipburn is to stop growing lettuce before it enters the final 1½ weeks of the six-week growing period. This is what many growers are doing because they can’t take the risk of tipburn occurring. Plants are being harvested at this young stage.

Among the techniques that Kubota and Ertle examined, they found that the most effective in preventing tipburn was using vertical airflow fans. This technique was originally discovered by a research group at University of Tokyo in the 1990s and implemented into greenhouse hydroponics at Cornell University.

“We confirmed that when vertical airflow is applied under conditions that highly favor tipburn induction, tipburn can be prevented very effectively,” Kubota said. “We created an environment based on our previous knowledge which always induces tipburn. We confirmed the use of vertical airflow fans reduces tipburn.”

For more: Murat Kacira, University of Arizona, Controlled Environment Agriculture Center; mkacira@arizona.edu; http://ceac.arizona.edu/.

Chieri Kubota, Ohio State University, Department of Horticulture and Crop Science; kubota.10@osu.edu; https://hcs.osu.edu/our-people/dr-chieri-kubota; https://ohceac.osu.edu/. OptimIA, https://www.scri-optimia.org/.

This article is property of Urban Ag News and was written by David Kuack, a freelance technical writer in Fort Worth, Texas.

OptimIA at Cultivate’23

If you are attending this year’s Cultivate’23, July 15-18 in Columbus, Ohio, you have the opportunity to hear OptimiA researchers, including Murat Kacira and Chieri Kubota, discuss some of the findings of their research. They will be speaking during the Essentials of Hydroponics Production – a tHRIve Symposium on Saturday, July 15 from 8-11 a.m.

By encouraging students to showcase their work through poster presentations, the competition seeks to foster collaboration opportunities between individuals in academia and private industry, while also connecting commercial companies with qualified candidates.

“We are proud to co-host the graduate student poster competition at the CEA Summit East Conference,” said Brian Sullivan, CEO, Indoor Ag-Con. “This competition not only provides a great platform for students to share their research, but also enables commercial companies to discover talented individuals who can contribute to the future growth and innovation of the CEA sector.”

The Virginia Tech-IALR Controlled Environment Agriculture Innovation Center is dedicated to advancing research and development in CEA. The center’s Co-Director and IALR Vice President, Scott Lowman, Ph.D., adds, “The graduate student poster competition is one more way we’re bridging the gap between academia and industry, promoting knowledge exchange, and opening doors to new collaboration in the CEA field.”

Graduate students interested in participating in the competition are invited to learn more and submit abstracts detailing their research by August 1, 2023, via www.ceasummit.com/#poster-competition.

A panel of experts will review the abstracts and select ten finalists to present their work through poster presentations at the conference. Selected candidates will receive a complimentary full access graduate student conference pass ($395 value) to attend the conference/competition. Judging will be held during the event and the winner will be announced at the day two keynote breakfast session on September 20, 2023.

Following its successful debut edition in October 2022, which brought together more than 200 attendees from 28 states, CEA Summit East 2023 will continue to foster connections and collaboration among growers, educators, scientists, extension specialists, suppliers, engineers, tech specialists, architect/developers and other industry members. Throughout the two-day event attendees will have the opportunity to explore the latest innovations from tabletop exhibitors, enjoy networking opportunities, and attend a full roster of keynote, panel presentations and research/industry showcases.

For more information about the graduate student poster competition and the September 19-20, 2023, edition of CEA Summit East, visit the conference website at www.ceasummit.com

ABOUT INDOOR AG-CON
Indoor Ag-Con is the premier global event series focused on the future of indoor farming. Since 2013, the trade show and conference, the industry’s largest, has been at the forefront of the rapidly expanding vertical farming and controlled environment agriculture sector, providing a platform for industry leaders, innovators, and researchers to connect, share knowledge, and drive the industry forward. More information- www.indoor.ag

ABOUT THE VIRGINIA TECH-IALR CEA INNOVATION CENTER
The Virginia Tech-IALR Controlled Environment Agriculture Innovation Center is a joint project between IALR and Virginia Tech’s School of Plant and Environmental Sciences and the Virginia Seafood Agricultural Research and Extension Center. By developing strategic partnerships with both industry and academia, the goal of the Innovation Center is to conduct research and educational programming to develop, promote and advance the CEA sector in the U.S. and internationally. More information–www.ialr.org/cea

Attendance
The event was attended by 200 exhibiting companies from 19 countries; Mexico, Canada, the United States, Colombia, China, Cyprus, Spain, France, India, Sri Lanka, The Netherlands, Latvia, Russia, Turkey, Germany, Belgium, Italy, New Zealand and Greece.

Conference
The Conference Programme was also well attended by 281 professionals, with more than 20% attendees than in 2022. This success was mainly due to the high level of the (international) speakers who discussed and analysed the opportunities of protected horticulture in the region. They also shared their experience and practices on how to increase crop productivity. 

Quotes from the industry
Claudia Plasencia, Head of Marketing Invermex, expressed her enthusiasm for her participation. “There are a lot of visitors and investors who come looking for suppliers and new businesses. GreenTech Americas has grown a lot and we are convinced to continue participating to introduce our products to more buyers”, she indicated.
Francisco Cabrera, manager of the import department at Excalibur Plastics, highlighted that during this edition the exhibitors established a greater number of business relationships, thanks to the prestige that the event has acquired and to the high influx of visitors. “It was a meeting point to close deals and that more potential customers know about our offer”, he added.

A word from the organization
According to its organizers, the third edition exceeded all expectations of visitors and exhibitors with the increase of attendees in a single place and exchange of knowledge and solutions to connect technology with the industry.

Mariska Dreschler, Director of Horticulture – GreenTech Global, explained that on the exhibition floor, a great diversity of high-tech technology solutions were to be spotted, adapted to the climate needs of Mexico and applicable for countries with similar climate conditions. “We are proud that for the third time, the event was a great face-to-face gathering of leading and innovative parties, active and interested in the protected horticulture sector. With an increasing amount of visitors from both Mexico and surrounding countries, GreenTech Americas is here to stay as an regional hub, with its own focus. It is in strong synergy with our worldwide positioned GreenTech Amsterdam show which will be organized from 13-15 June this year”, she indicated.

“We are excited about the response we’ve gotten this year. And convinced that protected horticulture is gaining ground in Mexico and in the region. Thanks to the benefits it offers to improve the quantity and quality of the crops, in addition to a more sustainable techniques rather than traditional agriculture, which allows savings of water and energy”, commented José Navarro, General director of Tarsus.

Partners of the event
The event is supported by the Asociación Mexicana de Horticultura Protegida A.C. (AMHPAC); the Centro Universitario CEICKOR; the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; among other prestigious organizations and institutions, who provided exchange of knowledge, experiences and success stories among industry suppliers from Mexico and other countries.

About GreenTech Americas
GreenTech Americas is part of the GreenTech portfolio and focuses on Mexico as well as the rest of the Americas. The goal is to meet the specific needs of growers, breeders and suppliers. GreenTech Americas enables a greater exchange of knowledge, experiences, and success stories of the horticultural industry in this region. The show is organized by RAI Amsterdam and Tarsus México and the fourth edition will be held from 12 – 14 March 2024. Please find more information at www.greentech.nl/americas/.

About GreenTech Amsterdam
GreenTech Amsterdam will be held from Tuesday 13 – Thursday 15 June 2023. The exhibition is a global meeting place for all horticultural technology professionals with the focus on the early stages of the horticultural chain and the current issues growers face. GreenTech is supported by AVAG, the industry association for the greenhouse technology sector in the Netherlands. More information via www.greentech.nl or follow Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram or YouTube.