Creating a sustainable business model
In 2015, Seeds of Change was looking for a lighting solution that would meet the demand of their local restaurant market and operate efficiently as a profitable business model. Due to the unique requirements restaurants have versus the grocery store market, Seeds of Change needed to find a way to gain precision control over their crop yields and quality. Additionally, Seeds of Change hoped to customize crops specific to restaurants’ needs, while controlling flowering times to deliver consistently fresh produce.
Learning how to grow indoors
The Alaskan social enterprise contacted LumiGrow excited about the possibilities of a dynamic spectrum lighting solution. Seeds of Change implemented 360 Pro 325 fixtures in their 8,000 square foot warehouse. The fixtures were deployed using indoor towers.
The three full-time staff members immediately began running lighting trials. They were heartened by the quick results - they were able to decrease leaf curl and improve overall quality in chard by boosting light intensity.
“We are all new to hydroponics, so we’ve been learning a lot,” says Sundance Visser, Seeds of Change’s Operations Manager. With support from LumiGrow, they got the strategies dialed in to improve flavor and consistently hit precise flowering times to meet their restaurants’ needs.
Impressive savings and successful expansion
“What we’ve been able to accomplish with the dynamic LEDs is incredible! We’ve been able to cultivate better tasting crops of higher quality that’re more attractive to our restaurateurs,” says Lyndsey, who was Seeds of Change’s Lead Grower the year they implemented the lights. “Traditionally our basil had spicy ends that restaurants didn’t want, and it took lots of labor to go through and clip these. We’re now using spectrum to create a more appropriately flavored basil crop while saving on labor costs.”
Seeds of Change is also using LumiGrow fixtures to grow strawberries year-round and are currently the only facility doing so in Anchorage.
As far as profitability and energy-savings are concerned, Lyndsey reports that they’re also thrilled with the cost-savings: “Other local facilities can barely be profitable due to the electricity usage of HPS. We’re definitely seeing a huge savings in energy due to the LEDs. When we started growing in our second zone, our electric bill only went up one sixth! Our savings are so much more than we ever expected!”
Seeds of Change started growing in a third zone in their warehouse in April 2018. The additional space allowed them to plant additional leafy greens and experiment with new crops like stevia.
They have also expanded to serve several Alaskan produce box delivery services and grocery stores.
“The produce boxes are delivered to people even in villages, where they may only have a small general store that doesn’t have much produce,” says Sundance, “They would need to fly to one of the major cities that has a grocery store to find produce otherwise.”
The expanded growing space has also created the opportunity for Seeds of Change’s youth employment program to grow. They have partnered with several Anchorage youth advocacy groups and anticipate that they will employ up to 20 youth growers this year.
“Choosing LumiGrow has been so good for our business,” says Lyndsey. “We definitely recommend them to anyone looking for customizing crop production with precision.”