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Trend Report – Indoor Ag-Con 2025

Written by Indoor Ag-Con on . Posted in Blog, Exhibitor News, Press Releases.

Indoor Ag-Con, the largest show dedicated to indoor agriculture, is the place to find the latest trends shaping the future of farming. Come March 11-12, farmers, growers, ag tech leaders, suppliers, advocates and enthusiasts will converge at Westgate Las Vegas to experience an expanded Expo Hall with 200+ exhibiting companies offering the most cutting-edge products, services and tools on the market.

Indoor agriculture has reached new heights, with innovative technologies and practices, helping pave the way for a sustainable future in food production. As the world faces increasing challenges such as climate change, water scarcity, and urbanization, the indoor farming sector is stepping up to provide solutions to address these global issues. 

(Photos above from L-R: Thrive Agritech, VelociGro, Inc., ZGROUP USA, Priva)

Below are some of the trends shaping the indoor agriculture industry today and a selection of highlights from Indoor Ag-Con 2025 exhibitors.

Hydroponics Innovation

Hydroponics, the soil-free cultivation of plants using nutrient-rich water, has become a standard in indoor agriculture. Recently, innovations in hydroponic systems have improved plant growth rates and reduced water consumption. 

Just Vertical (Booth 1113) crafts and distributes state-of-the-art, sustainable vertical hydroponic farming systems, revolutionizing agriculture. The innovative systems empower growers, whether small-scale or large-scale, to cultivate fresh, nutrient-rich produce in any space. At Indoor Ag-Con, check out their NEW Just Vertical Grow Racks, Free-Standing Grow Racks redefine flexibility and efficiency in indoor agriculture, setting a new standard for accessibility and innovation. Unlike traditional systems that cater exclusively to experienced growers or specific scales, Just Vertical grow racks are designed to empower anyone—from beginners to seasoned professionals—on any scale. By optimizing vertical and horizontal growing spaces, our technology ensures that every inch of your operation works harder for you.

Concert Bio (Booth 841SZ-1) optimizes greenhouse crop performance‍ via the plant microbiome. They are using cutting-edge data science to identify and provide beneficial microbes to hydroponic growers – creating the ideal microbiome for their crops to thrive. Developing the ideal microbe products to enhance greenhouse crop performance. As agriculture transitions from traditional to hydroponic methods, recreating the delicate balance of microorganisms found in soil – and which plants need to thrive – has become essential for improving crop growth, quality and resilience. Their platform, developed for hydroponic greenhouses, leverages our unrivaled microbiome database to unlock a whole new level of understanding about the hydroponic microbiome and how to improve it.

Profile’s Growing Solutions (Booth 425) division offers a comprehensive portfolio of products that improve substrates and growing / soil blending operations. These product brands include HydraFiber engineered fibers; Profile Sphagnum Peat Moss and Profile Coconut Coir; Florikan controlled-release fertilizer; and a line of Quick Plug bonded media technology for propagation and food production. They now have a line of hydroponic solutions that includes HydraFiber + Coir grow bags and HydraFiber + Coir grow blocks – combining two leading substrates into one hydroponic solutions to service the CEA market with high-performing, cost-effective growing solutions. Profile will have the new hydroponic grow bags on display at Indoor Ag-Con.

Sustainable and Eco-Friendly Practices

As consumers increasingly demand sustainable food options, indoor agriculture has responded with environmentally friendly practices. The use of renewable energy sources such as LED lighting, solar and wind power is on the rise in indoor farming operations, reducing reliance on fossil fuels. Additionally, many indoor farms now implement zero-waste practices, reusing water and recycling materials used in farming operations.

Thrive Agritech (Booth 533) is a recognized leader in the design, engineering, and manufacturing of advanced LED lighting systems specifically for the indoor agriculture market. By focusing on advanced technologies and energy efficient solutions, Thrive Agritech enables growers to optimize plant development, productively increase yields, and reliably reduce operational and maintenance costs. With a deep understanding of the unique challenges faced by indoor agriculture operators, Thrive Agritech delivers on both lighting and power distribution solutions focused on lowering costs of production and maximizing profitability. Thrive Agritech’s commitment to innovation, energy efficiency, and superior customer service positions their company as a trusted partner for growers looking to capture the full potential of a lighting manufacturing partner. 

VelociGro Inc (Booth 631) offers patented technology to improve the environment by replacing traditionally wasteful agricultural methods, with gel based biodegradable and compostable grow plugs and mats. They nurture growth that’s not just better for plants, but better for our planet by: Increasing crop yields by up to 40%, Reducing water usage by an average of 30%, Cutting pesticide use significantly, promoting healthier food and ecosystems and helping indoor farms to create a truly “controlled environment” by using our substrates. They are debuting the HYPERroots FT seed starter plugs, HYPERroots FT Microgreen mats, and HYPERroots Liquid at Indoor Ag-Con.

Priva (Booth 525) is a leading technology company specializing in innovative solutions for sustainable horticulture and building automation. They empower growers with advanced climate, water, and energy management systems, optimizing greenhouse operations for increased productivity and resource efficiency. Their offerings include state-of-the-art climate controllers, crop registration tools, and data-driven insights to help businesses achieve sustainability and operational excellence. With a strong commitment to innovation, Priva partners with clients to shape the future of sustainable agriculture and smart environments. Priva will showcase showcase PIM (Priva Irrigation Management), a powerful tool that helps growers optimize irrigation strategies, ensuring precise water, nutrient, and energy use, at Indoor Ag-Con.

PathoSans (Booth 629) enables customers to produce effective and sustainable cleaning and sanitizing solutions, using just salt, water, and electricity. Through on-site generation, customers can not only produce the solutions they need, when they need them, but they can eliminate the need to bring harmful chemicals into their growing environment. They help put the ‘control’ in controlled environment agriculture. At Indoor Ag-on, they will showcase the newest and smallest on-site generator, the Concentrate Compact generator. This unit is wall-mounted and by producing concentrate, it offers the most flexibility in application possibilities.

Farm-to-Table Accessibility

The growth of indoor agriculture has resulted in fresher, locally grown produce, reducing the carbon footprint associated with long-distance transportation. Indoor farms in urban areas are creating farm-to-table solutions that allow consumers to access fresh and nutritious food grown within their communities. This trend is further supported by advances in logistics and supply chain technologies, ensuring faster delivery and reducing food waste.

ZGROUP USA (Booth 615) specializes in innovative modular refrigeration solutions, offering cutting-edge Cold Storage, Blast Chiller, Blast Freezer and Ripening technologies. With over 20 years of experience, ZGROUP enhances food safety, reduce waste, and promote sustainability. Their blast chiller, which optimizes the freshness of products from farm to table, features innovative forced air cooling system that ensures rapid and efficient cooling, preserving the quality and flavor of the food. This solution is designed for easy integration into farms or packing facilities and is essential for maintaining an effective cold chain. 

Based in Etten-Leur the Netherlands, TAKS Handling Systems (Booth 231) develop, make and assemble innovative packing hall solutions and transport systems that are both modular and custom-built. Their systems can process produce such as vegetables and fruits fast and efficiently and will save you a significant amount of labor. When it comes to the automation of your packing hall or logistic system, TAKS Handling Systems has the perfect solution for every situation. Discover our versatile modular products and interesting custom fit solutions.

Sormac Inc (Booth 1003) offers the best post-harvest solutions for indoor growing. Sormac leads the ways in developing process solutions for CEA-grown products. Whether you grow your product in a greenhouse or in a vertical farm of if you use hydroponics, aeroponics or aquaponics. All products are grown gently. This gentle treatment needs to be continued after harvesting so products will look defined in the shops where they battle for the attention of the consumer. Sormac’s proven systems help customers to deliver the highest quality product.

Robotics and Automation

The integration of Robotics and Automation in indoor agriculture is revolutionizing the way food is grown, with precision and efficiency at its core. Advanced robotic systems are being deployed to automate tasks such as planting, watering, pruning, and harvesting, significantly reducing the reliance on manual labor. Sensors play a crucial role by continuously monitoring key environmental parameters such as light, temperature, humidity, and soil moisture, providing real-time data for optimizing crop growth. 

Located in Europe’s leading robotics hub, Odense, Denmark, 4XROBOTS (Booth 1114) has developed the world’s first 4-armed collaborative delta robot. Designed for modern production environments in the horticulture sector, their robot aims to improve productivity and operational efficiency. The 4X robot is capable of speeds up to 1,000 mm/second while maintaining collaborative features. This combination of high speed and safety makes it ideal for quality-driven Pick & Place applications. The robot’s 4-armed mechanical design significantly extends its physical reach, providing a larger workspace and greater flexibility. Additionally, it features intuitive programming for fast implementation and remote system access for enhanced uptime and reliability. These innovations collectively set new standards in efficiency, reliability, and operational ease for collaborative robots. 

Rooted Robotics (Booth 1032) creates innovative automation solutions for vertical and indoor farming, specializing in affordable, modular systems designed to empower small and medium-sized growers. Their products, including tabletop seeders, harvesters, and washers, streamline labor-intensive tasks while boosting efficiency and yield. With a focus on flexibility, their machines can be integrated into fully automated workflows using groundbreaking L.I.N.C. (Linearly Integrated Networked Conveyors) technology. See the new L.I.N.C. seeder, harvester, and tray/NFT channel washer at Indoor Ag-Con.

Growbud (Booth 431) provides truly wireless grow medium sensors for indoor agriculture. The Growbud software platform enhances plant cultivation by providing real-time environmental monitoring, advanced analytics, and seamless integration with Growbud’s suite of sensors. The insights provided by the platform allow cultivators to dial in irrigation controls to increase crop yield. At Indoor Ag-Con, Growbud will be debuting the Growbud Dro and Vero substrate sensors.

For more information on the 2025 exhibitors, visit Who’s Exhibiting 2025 – Indoor Ag-Con

ABOUT:

Founded in 2013, Indoor Ag-Con has emerged as the largest trade show and conference for vertical farming | greenhouse |controlled environment agriculture. Its events are crop-agnostic and touch all sectors of the business, covering produce, legal cannabis | hemp, alternate protein and non-food crops. More information, visit www.indoor.ag

 

CropKing and Lubing Collaboration Brings CropKing NFT Channel to Agriculture Producers Around the World

Written by Indoor Ag-Con on . Posted in Blog, Exhibitor News.

CropKing Inc., based in Lodi, Ohio, is proud to announce a collaboration with Lubing Systems, L.P. to expand the CEA offerings of both companies. This marks a significant step in making the CropKing NFT Channel more accessible to businesses and users around the globe by decreasing lead times and shipping costs. 

“We’ve seen an increase in demand for our hydroponic NFT channel outside of the United States, and we are excited to remove some of the logistical barriers by expanding our global footprint. While the CropKing NFT channel will continue to be made here in our Lodi facility for domestic customers, this collaboration will allow us to ship directly to customers abroad from Lubing’s manufacturing location in Germany. Lubing has been a wonderful vendor over the past few years and we are very excited to continue to work together to provide the best hydroponic and environmental solutions to agricultural producers around the world.” said Paul Brentlinger, CEO of CropKing Inc.

“We are excited to expand Lubing’s product offerings into the horticulture sector, building on our 75 years of experience in agriculture equipment manufacturing. In collaboration with CropKing, we will be manufacturing their hydroponic NFT channels internationally. We believe that our background in agriculture and manufacturing makes this a great fit for our company and we look forward to serving the horticulture industry with the same commitment to innovation and quality that has defined us for decades.” said Chris Hawk, President of Lubing USA.

For more information about CropKing visit http://www.cropking.com/.

Skytree Introduces Latest Direct Air Capture Unit for CEA At Indoor Ag-Con 2024

Written by Indoor Ag-Con on . Posted in Blog, Exhibitor News.

Amsterdam and Indoor Ag-Con, Las Vegas, NV – March 11, 2024 – Skytree, a pioneering climate tech company specializing in carbon utilization and removal solutions, today announced the availability of Skytree Stratus, the company’s newest decentralized Direct Air Capture (DAC) unit for onsite carbon capture and utilization. The Skytree Stratus unit can generate as much as 2750 lbs. (1250kg) of CO2  per day to meet the needs of large greenhouses and vertical farms.

Stratus is Skytree’s second decentralized DAC unit brought to market in the last seven months, following the launch of the smaller scale Skytree Cumulus launched last fall. Cumulus units are currently generating CO2 at CEA facilities around the world including Wageningen University & Research Center in The Netherlands.

Once installed onsite, Stratus captures CO2 from the ambient air to be deployed to enrich crop yield and increase productivity. The fully modular nature of Stratus allows for multiple units to be combined into a “Skytree Stratus Hub” to meet larger volume needs. Through partnerships, Skytree offers local liquefaction of CO2, required for storage of liquid CO2, enabling CEA businesses to continuously capture and store CO2 in use during peak production periods.

Stratus is available in hybrid and all-electric-powered configurations, designed to optimally integrate with the location’s onsite energy source. The dual-powered Skytree Stratus Hybrid uses onsite thermal heat which reduces the need for electricity, delivering considerable savings as compared to the all-electric version. Over time, Skytree expects to drive Stratus’ energy consumption to under 1kWh per kg of CO2  generated.

“Following the successful commercial launch of the Skytree Cumulus, we are excited to debut our much larger Stratus system with shipments starting later this year,” said Rob van Straten, Skytree CEO. “The introduction of Stratus reflects our great momentum and the strides we continue to make in providing CEA businesses with an innovative alternative to fossil fuel-based CO2. CEA businesses facing or expecting supply chain challenges and price instability want an independent and continuous supply of CO2,” van Straten continued. “Stratus offers a reliable CO2 source for businesses seeking to boost crop yield while, at the same time, securing supply, and reducing carbon footprint.”

Through the company’s Uptime Assurance Guarantee program, Skytree guarantees high uptime, monitors, and measures CO2 generation, and conducts all preventive and corrective maintenance to ensure uninterrupted operations.

For more information about Skytree Stratus, click here:

About Skytree:

Founded in 2014 and headquartered in Amsterdam, Skytree harnesses CO2 from ambient air through the power of direct air capture technology (DAC). By providing local, onsite CO2 generation across multiple markets including vertical farming, greenhouses as well as mineralization, Skytree enables a transition away from fossil fuel-based industrial processes and avoids transport to where the CO2 is needed.

Born out of the European Space Agency (ESA), during the development of a CO2 scrubber, space scientists evaluated over 50 sorbents. Skytree founder, Max Beaumont, was a system engineer on this team and spun out the technology through the ESA incubator program ‘ESA-BIC’. With a decade of research & development, the company has since registered 17 patents, in 5 patent families across US, Europe, and China and is ready to monetize the technology through multiple use cases.

The Skytree Stratus initially is focused on high tech greenhouses that require large volumes of CO2 with initial customers in The Netherlands, Canada and United States.

Ageye Acquires Hyve

AGEYE Announces Aquisition of HYVE Brand At Indoor Ag-Con

Written by Indoor Ag-Con on . Posted in Blog, Exhibitor News.

AGEYE will Assume Sales, Installation, and Support of HYVE Systems Moving Forward

(Raleigh, North Carolina – March 11, 2024) AGEYE, a forefront innovator in AI-powered crop intelligence for controlled environment agriculture (CEA), proudly announces its strategic acquisition of the HYVE® brand from DASCOM Americas. The company will also assume leadership roles for sales, installation, and support of HYVE systems moving forward. This pivotal move, an extension of the partnership that started in 2022, merges AGEYE’s leading AI technology with HYVE’s scalable, automated vertical farming system, and provides a clear and focused team and direction that will bring undistracted attention in providing the best, most comprehensive system for commercial farming operations.

Nick Genty, CEO of AGEYE, highlighted the industry’s challenges: “Vertical farmers often struggle with piecing together disparate solutions from various providers, leading to inconsistent results. Some have attempted to develop their own technologies, usually facing limited success and budget overruns. We’ve taken a fundamentally unique approach, combining task-specific yet straightforward technologies to provide a comprehensive, superior alternative that has already demonstrated success in the market.”

Central to this innovative solution is the automation of the entire plant lifecycle, from seeding to harvest. Efficient and practical robotics technology significantly reduces human errors, improves plant health, and lowers labor costs, all without the substantial financial investment typically required by advanced technologies. Enhanced by AGEYE’s sophisticated analytics and crop monitoring, this automation supports informed, data-driven decisions across all farming operations – from irrigation and nutrition to lighting, climate control, and harvesting, setting a new standard for the industry. The comprehensive solution is designed to address the real-world challenges faced by vertical farmers, aiding in lowering operational expenses and growing cost-competitive crops.

“The acquisition of the HYVE brand and day-to-day leadership underscores our commitment to advancing indoor agriculture through technology,” said Bashir Jabbour, Senior Director of Product at AGEYE. “Our turnkey solution, where every component is precisely designed to work together, simplifies the journey to success for growers in a competetive landscape. This cohesive approach allows growers to focus on their primary skill: growing. It spares them the complexity of managing multiple vendors and accelerates the operational setup.”

According to Ron Acorn, President of DASCOM Americas: “AGEYE and HYVE have worked together in a strategic capacity over the course of the last several years. Nick is a seasoned leader, full of energy, and very focused with a

team that is well positioned to take HYVE to a new level. This deal comes at a very opportune time for both companies. AGEYE is geographically and strategically well-positioned to maximize the capabilities of a more full- scale integration of the specific abilities of both companies. The combination of the system infrastructure we have cultivated to this point combined with their superior technology leadership means that there is now one source with a fully focused vision to give commercial growers the most viable and comprehensive pathway to success in their indoor farming pursuits. It is both strategic and practical for AGEYE to assume a more prominent role in bringing this comprehensive solution to market. AGEYE’s leadership, technical expertise, and depth of experience add the final missing piece to an unmatched recipe for prospective indoor farmers who will without doubt change the landscape of commercial farming moving forward.”

This move marks a significant step in AGEYE’s effort to transform vertical farming into a well-known, dependable, and financially viable way to grow crops all year, moving it from a niche method to a widely accepted, sustainable form of agriculture. The goal is to make advanced crop intelligence and automation technology accessible to indoor farmers of all sizes, enhancing their productivity and ensuring sustainable and continuing operations.

For More Information:

To learn more about our solutions and technologies, please visit our websites: AGEYE Technologies: https://ageyetech.com

Grow HYVE: https://growhyve.com

Follow us on social media for the latest updates and insights: Instagram: @ageyetech

LinkedIn: AGEYE Technologies and HYVE Indoor Farming

About AGEYE:

AGEYE specializes in advanced farm management software, IoT devices, AI-driven crop analytics, and fully automated robotic solutions for vertical farming. Our focus is on enhancing revenue per square foot using data- driven precision agriculture. We’re dedicated to making indoor farming viable and profitable by embracing sustainability and leveraging intelligence to simplify complexities. Our technology empowers indoor growers to transform challenges into opportunities, setting new standards for the future of controlled environment agriculture.

 

About HYVE:

HYVE is a business unit of DASCOM Americas which serves the Americas markets and is wholly owned by DASCOM Holdings, a Hong Kong-based company with more than 30 years of experience in providing technology solutions. The company does business in more than eighty countries around the globe and offers diverse solutions for customers in a broad range of markets.

Sollum Donation At Indoor Ag-Con 2024

Sollum Technologies Lights Up Indoor Ag-Con With Charitable Innovation, Pledging Support To Three Square Food Bank

Written by Indoor Ag-Con on . Posted in Blog, Exhibitor News.

Three Square Nevada Receives Check At Indoor Ag-Con 2024In a groundbreaking debut at Indoor Ag-Con, Sollum Technologies, the leader in dynamic LED grow light solution, announces its commitment to go beyond revolutionizing indoor agriculture to make a significant impact on the local community by partnering with Three Square, Southern Nevada’s only food bank.

For each demo of its innovative SUN as a Service® platform performed during the event, Sollum® pledged to donate $ 100 USD directly to Three Square. On the second day of the show, Sollum donated $ 3,000 USD, which will contribute to serving approximately 9,000 meals.

Sollum Technologies designed the only 100% dynamic LED lighting solution that modulates the full spectrum of the Sun’s natural light to illuminate closed environments such as greenhouses, research centers and laboratories. Sollum’s award-winning, turnkey solution consists of internet of things, AI-powered light fixtures that are controlled by Sollum’s proprietary SUN as a Service® cloud platform.

Sollum’s distinctive proposition is a fully scalable cleantech solution that evolves with business needs and multi-zone light management, with each zone benefiting from automatic dimming of an unlimited number of light recipes; this is why it provides unparalleled value in terms of energy savings and, additionally for greenhouse growers, increased productivity and superior produce quality.

ABOUT SOLLUM
Founded in 2015, the company is headquartered in Montréal (Québec, Canada), where its design, development, and manufacturing activities are concentrated, and has a representative office in Leamington (Ontario, Canada). For more information, visit sollum.tech.

Babylon Microfarms STEM Garden at Indoor Ag-Con

Babylon Introduces The STEM Garden At Indoor Ag-Con 2024

Written by Indoor Ag-Con on . Posted in Blog, Exhibitor News.

(Richmond, VA) Babylon Micro-Farms, Inc., North America’s leading manufacturer of on-site, modular vertical farms, officially launched its latest Micro-Farm, the STEM Garden, designed for the education market. The team showcased the new design at Indoor Ag-Con, March 11-12, 2024.  The company is taking pre-orders and will begin shipping units in June 2024.

Their latest Micro-Farming system is designed to engage the senses and expand the mind by delivering an accessible and affordable interactive farming experience to the education market. After delivering Micro-Farms to hundreds of locations worldwide, Babylon has collected feedback from a wide range of educators to inform the design for the STEM Garden. Their engineering team has carefully designed the product to deliver the highest-quality farming experience available to educators at an accessible price point. STEM Garden is simple, reliable, and configurable, making it a workhorse for teaching various science, technology, nutrition, and mathematics topics.

Alexander Olesen (CEO & Co-Founder) said, “The STEM Garden represents the next step in our journey to make hydroponic agriculture accessible to all. We have set the standard for safe, reliable, remotely managed vertical farms manufactured here in the USA, enabling anyone to become an indoor farmer. The STEM Garden is an accessible device that significantly expands the market for on-site vertical farms in the classroom and, eventually, home.”

After researching the education space over the last few years, Babylon has created a versatile growing system to engage, educate, and inspire students by bringing farm-to-table into the classroom. Here are some of the key features:

Hands-on Learning – Removable trays in workstations promote hands-on learning for crop planting, nurturing, and harvesting.

Classroom-Compatible – Our design fits K-12 classrooms, maximizing space without compromising on the quality of education.

Student Led-Experiments – Designed for simplicity, our unit encourages students to work together, promoting teamwork and collaboration skills.

Exciting Seed Varieties – Students can explore the world of plant biology in depth, including different leafy greens, herbs, flowers, and microgreens.

Educational Integration – Get lesson plans and materials for hands-on gardening integrated into your curriculum.

Food Safe Cultivation – Our enclosed and locked gardening system ensures ideal plant growth with minimal effort and a more efficient and secure learning environment.

A dietician with Aramark at VCU, Julia Danisewicz RD, said, “We love our Babylon Micro-Farm; our students love the knowledge that their food was grown just a few feet away. As a dietician, seeing a university like VCU value sustainable, pesticide-free food choices for its students is exciting. I didn’t have a green thumb before working with the farm, but it is so easy to use that now I feel like a pro.”

The STEM Garden is available for pre-order today.  Access the info sheet, spec sheet and please sign up for the waitlist here. 

About Babylon
Founded in 2017, Babylon provides an indoor farming service to enable businesses and communities to have a year-round supply of ultra-fresh produce at the touch of a button. They manufacture all their products in the United States. The BabylonIQ software platform remotely manages the modular vertical farming systems network to make sustainable agriculture accessible to institutional food service clients like Compass, Aramark, and Sodexo. The service includes semi-automated vertical farms, software, and supplies wrapped into a flat monthly fee.

Link to TED Talk: Watch my TEDx Talk on “The Next Generation of Vertical Farming

Link to Times Magazine: Top Greentech Companies 2024

Kappa AgTech Silicone Subtrate

Kappa AgTech Unveils Silicone Substrate

Written by Indoor Ag-Con on . Posted in Exhibitor News.

This year at Indoor Ag-Con Kappa AgTech unveils Silicone Substrate, a paradigm shift in hydroponics.

Silicone Substrate is a complete and permanent replacement for all disposable growing media.

No media, ever.

Grow from seed, clone, or rootstock in NFT, DWC, Ebb & Flow, Mobile Gullies, and Aeroponics.

Mass customization ensures a complete solution for your facility.

Booth 1407, see you there!

Center of Excellence For Indoor Agriculture and Microclimates

The Center of Excellence for Indoor Agriculture Announces Partnership With Microclimates, Inc.

Written by Indoor Ag-Con on . Posted in Blog, Exhibitor News.

The Center of Excellence for Indoor Agriculture, a U.S. based company that supports the growth of the vertical farming and greenhouse industry, announced a partnership with Microclimates, a software development company that provides farms with a platform that offers monitoring, control, data analytics and automation to growers.

The new partnership is designed to assist growers from start-up to farm-build to continued operations. The Center brings its business planning, financial analysis, venture strategy and farm operations assessment expertise to the partnership. Microclimates brings its expertise in platform development and software solutions for lighting, climate, fertigation, irrigation, layered mapping and energy management to the partnership. Together they offer clients a robust set of solutions for indoor farm development and growth.

Eric W. Stein, Ph.D., founder and Executive Director of the Center of Excellence notes, “We are delighted to work with Neda Vaseghi and Loren West at Microclimates. They have built a robust and easy-to-use software platform that helps indoor growers to succeed. One of the challenges for growers is to operate a farm in an efficient and sustainable way in order to achieve profitability. Their solution provides a high level of monitoring, control, and automation at an affordable price point.”

Neda Vaseghi, CEO and co-founder of Microclimates says, “We are thrilled to be partnering with the Center of Excellence and Dr. Eric Stein. His unparalleled expertise in indoor agriculture, technology innovation, and sustainable practices perfectly complements our mission to revolutionize CEA. With Dr. Stein’s visionary leadership and our commitment to cutting-edge environmental automation, supported by integration of silos and hardware- agnostic approach, we are poised to unlock new possibilities and drive transformative impact in the agriculture industry. Together, we look forward to shaping a more efficient, sustainable, and resilient future for growers.”

About The Center: The Center of Excellence for Indoor Agriculture provides business expertise and analytical advisory services to investors, entrepreneurs, industry partners, and community organizers to de-risk the process of building sustainable and profitable indoor vertical farms and greenhouses. Services include strategy, due diligence, economic and technical feasibility analysis, market research and analysis, operations assessment, sustainable methods, training and development. The Center and its partners offer indoor farm design solutions based on sustainable architectural design and optimal operations management principles. As the first U.S.-based Center of Excellence dedicated to indoor farming, it promotes best practices, benchmarking, best in class solutions and research. The Center is located in the Philadelphia metro region.

About Microclimates, Inc. Microclimates is a software company that offers a platform for monitoring, control, automation, and data analytics for various aspects of controlled environment agriculture (CEA), including lighting, climate (HVAC), watering, nutrient dosing, energy monitoring, and maps. Its solution aims to address the current scenario where most CEA systems operate independently, functioning as isolated entities. The Microclimates platform seamlessly unifies monitoring & control systems, while providing a hardware- agnostic model. This integration provides users with a centralized software interface, simplifying management by reducing the number of controllers to oversee. Additionally, it brings about cost savings through labor reduction, mitigates risks associated with the use of multiple control systems, harmonizes data across various components, and facilitates informed, data-driven decision-making for operators.

Innovating for Tomorrow: Good Natured Highlights Sustainable Packaging Trend

Written by Indoor Ag-Con on . Posted in Blog, Exhibitor News.

 

good natured Products Inc. (Indoor Ag-Con 2024 Booth #1323) has been making bio-based packaging since 2006 and has witnessed transformative changes in packaging expectations, driven by a deepening commitment to sustainability and a keen response to regulatory and consumer demands. The landscape is changing fast, and companies are trying to make sense of what’s best for their business and the environment. Sometimes, this complexity leads to confusion, and when people are confused, they might hesitate to act. Part of the company’s approach is to provide simplified, actionable insights to make it as easy as possible to make the switch to sustainable packaging.

Key trends to Watch:

  1. Brand Loyalty through Sustainability: Businesses are seeing sustainable packaging as more than an environmental choice—it’s a brand builder. With a significant majority of consumers favoring eco-conscious packaging, adopting recyclable, compostable, and reusable options is becoming a strategic priority for companies that want to stay ahead.
  2. Clarity is King: Transparent packaging isn’t just aesthetically pleasing; it’s a trust builder, offering consumers a clear view of the product, assuring them of its freshness and quality—a critical decision factor in today’s market.
  3. Navigating Regulatory Shifts: The dynamic regulatory environment demands agility and foresight. Collaborating with packaging experts can help businesses stay compliant and help avoid the pitfalls of investing in a packaging platform that may be at risk of regulation in the coming years.
  4. Focus on Freshness and Safety: A combination of materials, closures and design choices can have an impact on enhancing product longevity and safety, both of which are crucial in minimizing waste and boosting consumer confidence.
  5. Material Simplification: Optimizing materials for better recycling and composting is becoming a key topic to reducing environmental impact and promoting a circular economy in packaging. Although the EU has been moving faster on this front, similar approaches are expected to come to North America in the coming years.

As the agri-food sector evolves, so does its approach to sustainability, extending beyond packaging to encompass all aspects of operation, from water conservation to energy efficiency. Indoor Ag-Con provides a platform to explore these innovations, underscoring the industry’s commitment to sustainable practices.

We’re eager to engage with the forward-thinking community at Indoor Ag-Con, sharing insights and exploring sustainable packaging solutions that align with broader environmental goals,” remarks Paul Antoniadis, CEO of good natured®. “Sustainability is a journey, and every step, no matter how small, is part of our collective path toward environmental change, and from our experience your customers will reward your efforts.”

Visit good natured Products Inc. at Indoor Ag-Con to delve into these trends and discover how integrating sustainable packaging into your business can create value and a positive environmental impact.

Indoor Ag-Con 2024 Features Shark Tank Entrepreneur

Written by Indoor Ag-Con on . Posted in Exhibitor News.

Running March 11 & 12, the Indoor Ag-Con is the largest vertical farming/controlled environment agricultural gathering. One of the new Exhibitors this year was featured on ABC Shark Tank’s popular 100th Episode.

John D. Smith of ViteWall (pronounced like “vitamin”) invented a plastic Drywall Alternative that is made for indoor irrigation required by the vertical farming industry. ViteWall takes just 2 hours to be installed in a room (versus over 2 days for drywall) and has a dual-sided radiant barrier to save electricity. This can reduce 20 to 30% of heat or cold.

Smith was recently quoted in AgWeek: “Ag producers are doing things themselves, so our ViteWalls go up easy and fast, plus are made of PolyPropylene Plastic so they can be easily power-washed. ViteWalls offer a dual sided Foil + White Radiant Barrier to save energy, plus are flame retardant, unlike drywall.”

Visit Vitewall Plastic Drywall Alternative Wall Systems in booth 1321!

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