The world’s biggest lighting company has been selling equipment to the horticultural industry for decades, building up its business outfitting greenhouses to grow plants like tomatoes, lettuce and roses. Lately, demand for a new crop has exploded onto the scene: Pot.
A cannabis boom that began a few years ago in the lead up to legalization in Canada, Uruguay and some U.S. states is now fueling sales of equipment like so-called grow lights. The changes in legislation and surge in consumption have led farmers to seek out more controlled and energy-efficient cultivation in hothouses.
“Where it’s legal, we participate,” said Eric Rondolat, chief executive officer of Signify NV, a spinoff of Amsterdam-based Royal Philips NV. “Worldwide we see an evolution in the thinking of cannabis production.”
Read more at bloomberg.com