GreenTech Agro and Philips to develop cooperation

Philips and US based GreenTech Agro (GTA) signed a letter of intent at the GreenTech trade show in Amsterdam last week to formalize their cooperation in the field of City Farming utilizing the “Growtainer™” container developed by GTA. Their intent is to cooperate in further development and marketing of the Growtainer™ containers and Growracks™ equipped with Philips LED lighting.


Reinier Donkersloot, Business Developer Philips City Farming, Gus van der Feltz, Global Director Philips City Farming, Glenn Behrman, Founder & President at GreenTech Agro LLC, Udo van Slooten, General Manager Philips Horticulture LED Solutions Roel Janssen, Project Implementation Manager Philips City Farming

The Growtainer™ is a highly engineered modular and mobile vertical production environment in a 20’ or 40’ shipping container that has been modified to provide an optimum controlled environment for growing a wide range of crops in all environments and climates. This allows for a significantly higher yield in a shorter time than conventional production methods. The Growtainers™ will be equipped with the most advanced low energy consumption LED lighting from Philips. In addition, they make use of a water conserving hydroponic system, crop specific vertical shelving, a state of the art HVAC and Environmental system, including a CO2 enriched atmosphere, all controlled by an advanced PC based system, The Growtroller™. With a Growtainer™, fresh vegetables can be grown almost anywhere.

Growtainers will soon be opening up close to consumers and Growracks™ will find their way into schools, hospitals and restaurants. These facilities will achieve a higher production level, with a known harvest date and a product that can be controlled in terms of its appearance, taste and nutritional value. Cultivation takes place without the use of pesticides and reduces water consumption by at least 90% compared to traditional cultivation methods, with the multilayer technology allowing for an efficient use of space.

Philips has been developing light sources for horticulture for many years and continues to invest heavily in horticultural lighting. In R&D for LED, a dedicated team of engineers works full-time to improve existing concepts and to develop new lighting systems for the horticulture industry. Specialists such as plant physiologists and technical engineers have been trained in the key horticultural countries to provide full support to growers and breeders. Working with research institutes, universities, growers and partners, Philips is able to meet a grower’s unique needs.

GreenTech Agro’s founders are experienced business people with many years of engineering and horticulture experience. They’ve invested considerable time and resources in developing a state of the art solution to the growing problem of food insecurity. The GTA – Philips City Farming collaboration brings together all of the components necessary for successful technology based production including LED Lighting, Irrigation, Climate and Environmental Control, Plant Physiologists and more.

For more information
Philips Horticulture LED Solutions
Marjan Welvaarts, Global Marcom Manager
T: +31 (0)6 1504 3893
marjan.welvaarts@philips.com
www.philips.com/horti

GreenTech Agro LLC
Glenn Behrman, Founder & President
T: +1 (305) 505-0970
gb@greentech-agro.com
www.growtainers.com