1/27/2024 0 Comments Big farm mobile harvest facebookThis company operates on a FAAS (“farming as a service”) model, running farms that still belong to their clients. The most recent significant European project recorded was last March, when the startup Jungle raised 42 million euros, including 7 million in equity from a pool of investors. That is why entrepreneurs typically turn to investment funds. Launching such a farming initiative requires huge amounts of capital to make the initial investments. According to Statista, the vertical farming market is expected to generate 15.7 billion U.S. They were then exported to the United States and are now slowly making their way to Europe. These vertical farming projects first emerged in Asia in the 2010s, where the booming urbanisation required new ways to feed the population locally. ©Nordic Harvest A concept that is gradually taking hold in Europe and attracting investors Today, Nordic Harvest can deliver 1,000 tons of salads and herbs each year. Finally, even if vertical farms cannot claim the organic label because their products are raised above ground, they do not require any pesticides because no pests come to deteriorate the products. Another advantage of vertical farms is their strategic location close to cities, which allows them to reduce transportation costs to get their products to the consumer. Moreover, the products can be kept for 13 to 14 days instead of three to four for the equivalent products from conventional agriculture, making this model a real solution to fight against food waste. Regarding water, the consumption is about 250 times lower than in a field with one liter of water required to produce one kilogramme of plants. The entire building is powered by wind energy and the light is provided by low energy LEDs. Vertical farming has already proved its effectiveness in terms of resource optimisation. Anders Riemann, founder of Nordic Harvest With the help of innovation and modern technological tools, we want to produce plants in a reduced space with sustainable and ecological methods. Anders Riemann’s long-term objective is to extend this model in order to support the country’s food sovereignty and to fight against imports, which are harmful both to the environment and to the local economy. Today, the plant can deliver 1,000 tons of salads and herbs each year, which accounts for 5% of the Danish consumption. Since light, water, CO2 and nutrients are constantly available, the growth pace of the plant is boosted and provides a perfectly similar taste and nutritional richness. This alternative farming system offers much higher productivity than conventional agriculture: plants can be harvested 15 times a year instead of two in a conventional field. By doing so, we intend to free up agricultural land and fight deforestation, while limiting the use of energy, water and chemicals.” Offering qualitative, nutritious and sustainable veggies at affordable prices “With the help of innovation and modern technological tools, we want to produce plants in a reduced space with sustainable and ecological methods. Underneath this ambitious technological project lies a far-reaching societal mission, as founder Anders Riemann asserts: Today, production is limited to salads and aromatic herbs, but the company also plans to produce berries within two years, and root vegetables within five to ten years. Putting technology and innovation at the service of sustainable agricultureĪfter fundraising 8.5 million euros in April 2020, Nordic Harvest inaugurated the building in December. Plants are artificially irrigated, light for photosynthesis is provided by LEDs, and nutrients come from fertilizers made on-site from fermented plant waste. Here, the entire natural ecosystem of the field is replicated in a soilless agriculture system. We are in the largest vertical farm in Europe, Nordic Harvest in the industrial Danish city of Taastrup. In a huge 7,000-square-meter factory, rows of green salads and herbs rise up 14 levels.
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