"It can be done," was a phrase heard often on Tuesday, 9 December, during the EFMI Fresh Congress in Putten. One of the speakers, Ard van de Kreeke from Growy, presented Vertical Farming as a serious option for the fresh-produce supply chains of the future. The former organic farmer from Middelburg is now growing lettuce and herbs at his Vertical Farm in a DC in Amsterdam for 50 supermarkets under the Growy label. Growy operates according to three promises: next level tasty, next level healthy, and next level affordable. "My greatest frustration as an organic farmer was that consumers ignored my cauliflower because they thought it would be too expensive. Our lettuce is on the shelf for 1.19 euros per container."
© Izak Heijboer | HortiDaily.com
Growy currently propagates and produces lettuce and herbs. "I believe that in the future we will be able to do the same for strawberries and tomatoes, but economically it is not feasible yet," Ard explained. According to him, Vertical Farming offers a solution to many of the weak points in today's supply chains, such as heavy dependence on imports, weather-driven fluctuations in quality and output, and unpredictable harvests. There is also significant waste at the retail stage due to quality losses during transport. "Another advantage of Vertical Farming is that we have no seasonal swings. We can predict and produce with complete accuracy. My favourite day used to be 21 June, the longest day with that perfect little bit of rain at night. We now recreate the growing conditions of 21 June all year round."
Scalable concept
"We keep the chain extremely short, and we can steer flavour through light effects. You can influence flavour dramatically by adjusting the light and the nutrient profile. I can make a rocket variety that's basically inedible, it will set your mouth on fire," Ard joked to the audience. "Our products are 100 percent local, they keep longer, and they are free from pesticides. On top of that, the concept is highly scalable. On 1,000 square metres we can locally propagate and grow any assortment of lettuces and microgreens. Right now, we work with 48 cells stacked across 20 layers. Each lettuce and herb variety gets its own climate, day and night rhythm, and tailored light recipe, allowing us to precisely steer flavour, quality, and shelf life for each crop."
"Honestly, I'd love to install a Vertical Farm at every supermarket distribution centre. Next year I can build five more," Van de Kreeke challenged the retailers in the room. The national buyers initially turned him down, but through franchisees he still managed to get onto the shelves. Today Growy supplies fifty stores, and from January that number will double to one hundred stores that receive their deliveries 'through the back door'.
According to Ard, running a vertical farm in Amsterdam's so-called "LED light district" has brought plenty of resistance. "Herb buyers are not thrilled with our solution. They spend their days piecing together supply from growers in five different countries, while we can deliver exactly what they want, 365 days a year. And still, 90 percent doubt our economic viability. They say it must be too expensive and use too much energy, but we are proving that it works. Everyone is welcome to visit and look at our numbers. Our energy use is comparable to greenhouse production in the Netherlands, and we can operate with a very stable cost price, while the rest of the market only sees costs rising."
Click here for the photo report of the Fresh Congress (link in Dutch)
