The summer is long and finally there is some time to read. Therefore we created a “long” version of the newsletter. Long articles, podcasts, less short term news, close and more distant related to vertical farming and sometimes with some thoughts from us. Hope you enjoy it.
Hope you enjoy it. You can find earlier newsletters here, you can follow us on Twitter and please ….. :
‘There’s a lot of opportunity in profits not just purpose’: The $6trn opportunity in sustainable food systems (by Foodnavigator)
The economic opportunity of disrupting the US$8-10 trillion-dollar food sector though a focus on sustainable innovation is significant. Investment funds FTW Ventures and Obvious Ventures weigh in on the technology and trends they are betting on.
PODCAST Austin Webb - Transforming Modern Agriculture (by Vertical Farming Podcast)
Join Harry Duran, host of Vertical Farming Podcast, as he welcomes to the show, CEO and co-founder of Fifth Season, Austin Webb. Fifth Season is a consumer tech company and indoor farming pioneer with Carnegie Mellon University roots that is creating a new era of fresh foods. Its commercial-scale indoor vertical farms use proprietary robotics, AI, and smart operations technology to grow leafy greens and herbs at affordable prices year-round. Today, Harry and Austin talk about the origin story of Fifth Season, the relationship he has with the city of Braddock and how Austin initially got involved in vertical farming. Austin expounds on the concepts of smart manufacturing and pest pressure and speaks to the learning curve he’s experienced as a first-time CEO. Finally, Austin speaks to the mission of Fifth Season and what excites him most about his future endeavors.
The effects of vertical farming on indoor carbon dioxide concentration and fresh air energy consumption in office buildings (by Elsevier Science Direct)
The introduction of vertical farming (VF) into buildings is one of the latest directions in ecological design, which can absorb CO2 and release oxygen based on the plant photosynthesis. Office buildings are particularly suitable for integrated VF due to their spatial form, working hours and other characteristics. In this study, the effect of VF on indoor CO2 concentration was investigated in an enclosed office. Additionally, the reduction in building ventilating energy consumption by using the VF was assessed. Results concluded that the CO2 absorption rate of the VF vegetables can be up to 9.2 times higher than that of shade-loving landscape plants owing to higher net photosynthetic rate (NPR). And also, for a normal 30 m2 office with 1–3 occupants, the indoor CO2 concentration of a 100-plant-scale VF could be reduced by 25.7%–34.3% resulting in a reduction in building ventilating energy consumption by 12.7%–58.4% on the basis of the number of occupants and growth status of VF.
PODCAST How AI and Genomics Are Reshaping Farming (by HBR)
As the world population grows and climate change intensifies, how can we transform the food supply chain to be more sustainable and resilient? Mike Zelkind, co-founder and CEO of 80 Acres Farms, is building a network of hyper-efficient, high-tech, indoor farms to provide local communities with fresh, nutritious produce. He joins Azeem Azhar to discuss the challenges of disrupting the farming industry to innovate the future of food.
Vertical farming start-up AeroFarms to list at $1.2bn valuation in Spac deal (by FT)
AeroFarms, a US indoor producer of leafy greens and herbs, is to go public at a $1.2bn valuation after merging with a special purpose acquisition company, the latest in a string of agricultural or food tech groups seeking to tap into the green investing boom.
PODCAST Future of Agriculture: Applications for Blockchain in Agriculture - Part 1
Innovations in the agricultural industry come in many forms. From technological advances to improving farming practices, the world is slowly but surely guaranteeing safe and sustainable food sources for generations to come. But, what if we take that a step further? What if we have a system in place that enables traceability, security, improves food safety and gets everyone involved in making sure food quality is top notch? That is what the concept of Blockchain seeks to implement.
FOODE: Creating sustainable food systems for European Cities (by Metabolic)
The challenge. Cities are continuously growing and are facing challenges in providing affordable, nutritious, and safe food for their residents without crossing planetary boundaries. Today, European cities are overwhelmingly net importers of food, and over the last decades citizens have been increasingly disconnected from their food sources. Local initiatives taking place in cities bring about the opportunity to enhance local food security and create local supply chains, yet these initiatives often face cultural, economic, policy, and environmental barriers that hinder their ability to establish themselves and scale.
Product-Market Sales Fit (What Comes First?) (By a16z)
One of the toughest challenges for founders — and especially technical founders who are used to focusing so much on product features over sales — is striking “product-market fit”. The concept can be defined many ways, but the simple definition shared in this episode is: it’s when you understand the business value of your product.
Oops! Farms are wasting twice as much food as we thought (by FastCompany)
Around 2.5 billion metric tons of food is wasted on farms each year—that’s nearly twice as much as in previous estimates. When added together with all the other food that is never eaten—from excess produce on supermarket shelves to the strawberries rotting in the back of your fridge—around 40% of all the food that is grown globally is ultimately tossed out.
See you next time & enjoy your summer.
The Real Plant team
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