How do you overcome the environmental challenges of indoor farming?

Lettuce being grown as baby greens at Purdue University are harvested 15 days after planting seeds. Seeds are sown close together to minimize loss of photons between plants. Photo courtesy of Cary Mitchell, Purdue Univ. Researchers with the OptimIA project are working to solve the environmental control issues facing indoor farm growers. While some might […]

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Purdue University: New LED strategies could make vertical farming more productive, less costly

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue University researchers have designed two simple LED lighting strategies to increase yield and reduce energy costs for the vertical farming sector of indoor agriculture. The close-canopy and focused-lighting strategies developed by PhD candidate Fatemeh Sheibani and professor Cary Mitchell, both in the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture in Purdue’s College of Agriculture, capitalize on LED lighting’s special […]

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The Case for Standardizing Reporting and Benchmarking Yield in CEA Facilities

By Jenn Frymark and Charu Sharma The Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) industry is growing rapidly, driven by the increasing demand for fresh, sustainable and locally grown produce globally. As the industry continues to evolve and adopt new technologies, it is essential to standardize reporting metrics. This not only will improve the overall industry output by […]

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Hort Americas and Spanish Company Agrifast Partner to Tackle Waste and Labor Issues

DALLAS and ELCANO, Navarra, Spain—Feb. 22, 2023—In a move to address agriculture’s mounting labor problems, while also providing a more environmentally sustainable solution, commercial horticultural supplier Hort Americas announced today it’s now the exclusive distributor of Agrifast’s Tomsystem in the United States and Canada. Between limited availability and the rising costs of employing qualified ag […]

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Execs from IFPA, Bright Farms, Soli Organic, Local Bounti join Indoor Ag-Con 2023 Keynote line-up

“The Ever-Changing Business Model of Controlled Environment Agriculture Farming” Joins Headliner Keynote Line-Up On Feb. 14, 2023-Las Vegas,NV – Indoor Ag-Con is excited to announce the latest addition to its headliner keynote schedule for the upcoming February 27-28, 2023 edition at Caesars Forum. Titled “The Ever-Changing Business Model of Controlled Environment Agriculture Farming,” this keynote panel will be […]

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Valto Biocontrol wins challenge Mexico

Amsterdam – 7 February 2023. The winner of the start- and scale-up challenge, organized by GreenTech Americas in cooperation with the Netherlands Embassy in Mexico and the Netherlands Business Support Office Querétaro, is Valto Biocontrol with the product V10. The Dutch start-up was selected out of 7 impressive entries. The goal of the challenge is to […]

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Ohio State, Rutgers, Cornell, University of Arizona, Koidra and Hort Americas team up to lead USDA-awarded grant

AdvanCEA research to focus on helping greenhouse growers create optimal conditions, increase yields, and reduce waste. By Tom Trush, Hort Americas BEDFORD, Texas—Feb. 1, 2023—Commercial horticultural supplier Hort Americas announced today that it has joined The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES); Rutgers University; Cornell University; the University of Arizona […]

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What impact does light have on controlled environment leafy greens production?

Researchers at Michigan State University have used the Controlled-Environment Lighting Laboratory to study the effects of different colors of light on the growth of leafy greens. Photo courtesy of Erik Runkle, Mich. St. Univ. OptimIA researchers are studying the impact light and its interaction with other environmental parameters can have on indoor leafy greens production. […]

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Equilibrium CEO Dave Chen joins CEO Keynote Line-up for Las Vegas 2023 Indoor Ag-Con

Press Release – Equilibrium CEO Dave Chen will lead the day two opening morning keynote address for the 10th annual edition of Indoor Ag-Con, February 27-28, 2023, at Caesars Forum, Las Vegas, NV. Themed “The Future of Farming Grows Here,” the largest vertical farming & controlled environment agriculture (CEA) gathering in the United States will give attendees the opportunity […]

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Becoming an Environmentalist while trying to turn a profit

Photo: Close friend and Kansas farmer enjoys a break. Credit: Chris Higgins Thoughts of a businessman just trying to figure it out, while not messing up. “Isn’t it pretty to think so?” – The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway In a previous article, I posed the question, Who Should Lead The Environmental Movement? In this […]

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Why the Jury is still out on Robotics and Autonomous Intelligence (AI) In Agriculture

Photo: Chris Higgins, Hendersonville NC. Recent company failures and layoffs will likely have people second guessing their commitment to the agtech movement and possibly controlled environment agriculture (CEA). The past 15 years of my career have seen a rollercoaster of interest in my chosen industry. In the 2000s, the Canadians and Mexicans drove investments as […]

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DesignLights Consortium Announces the Official Release of New Horticultural Lighting Technical Requirements

Proposed to take effect March 31, 2023, Version 3.0 fosters sustainable growth in the controlled environment agriculture sector, while supporting decarbonization efforts MEDFORD, MA – The DesignLights Consortium (DLC) has announced the final version of it Horticultural Lighting Technical Requirements Version 3.0, increasing the efficacy and establishing additional minimum performance baselines for LED luminaires, lamps and controls used by […]

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How is OptimIA helping vertical farms grow more efficiently and economically?

The OptimIA project, which was funded by USDA in Sept. 2019, is focused on the study of the aerial environment and economics for producing indoor leafy greens. Photo by Rosemary Brandt, College of Ag and Life Sciences, Univ. of Ariz. OptimIA is a research and outreach project aimed at offering production and economic information that […]

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Business Insider visits AppHarvest and talks advanced tech for agriculture

One Of The World’s Largest Indoor Farms Is Using Advanced Tech To Build A More Resilient Food System Business Insider — AppHarvest is exploring the future of indoor farming and agriculture technology by using up to 90% less water, human-assisting AI, and the power of the sun for reliable food growth. Alongside local education efforts, […]

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