First licensing deal for vertical farming infrastructure

The 10 year, £4.5m licensing deal, marks an evolution in vertical growing technologies. The system offers a huge leap forward in automation, efficiency, increased variety-specific control, and growing condition customisation, along with improved hygiene and safety standards. It can monitor nutrient levels, growth rate and light needs, making real time, predictive adjustments based on the ideal conditions for the variety being grown.

Vertical Future’s partner in the licensing deal is Groundworks, a UK-based development company with a clear purpose: to enable businesses with change-the-world ideas to change the world. This is the first planned project of many, with Groundworks supporting Vertical Future with various services, from support with construction through to project management and operations. Using their combined expertise, this project has the potential to redefine the future of food.

The launch will help lead the way for how food is best grown in available urban and rural spaces whilst also reducing CO₂ emissions, food miles, being pesticide-free and generating less food waste.

CEO and Founder of Vertical Future, Jamie Burrows said: "Licensing deals ensure we can share our advanced hardware and software technologies and bring the benefits of vertical farming to urban and rural sites across the world in order to service an increasing need for sustainable food."

Vertical Future’s production system is one of the most advanced in the world - and with over 35 pipeline projects across four continents currently under discussion, the launch and licensing of this automated system and software is just the first step in Vertical Future’s journey to create a healthier future for all.

Hardware technology innovations

Until now, most vertical and hydroponic farms have been labour-intensive, relying on human interaction to both seed and harvest crops. Vertical Future’s new system automates every process and, with this reduced human element, minimises the risk of contamination from pathogens and bacteria.

The system’s 172% increase in output per m2 is achieved through numerous patent-pending innovations that focus on combining space optimal engineering solutions with automation, supported by a continuous flow of data to optimise systems and growing conditions. This is all contained within an ultra clean environment that uses renewable sources of energy for power.

The new system also allows growers to quickly flip between growing hydroponically, with root systems immersed in water, and aeroponically, with root systems suspended in air and sprayed with moisture and nutrients.

While traditional systems allow a limited light spectrum, which doesn’t alter through the growing process, Vertical Future’s system offers complete control of the entire growing spectrum and changes through the growth phase, ensuring crops benefit from the light conditions ideal for their specific variety during each period of growth.

Software technology innovations

Vertical Future’s systems are supported by an advanced data-driven Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform, DIANA (named after Wonder Woman). The software automatically monitors and adjusts the plant’s growing conditions to optimise crop productivity, without the need for human interaction. With over 300 different crop profiles in the system at present, it can monitor nutrient levels, growth rate and light needs, interacting with a complex network of over 5,000 individual sensors for this Groundworks site alone, making real time, predictive adjustments based on the ideal conditions for the variety being grown.

Additional features offered by DIANA include a ‘Plant R&D Library’ and a ‘Chef’s corner’ - both of which allow users to benefit from data insights generated across Vertical Future’s farm network.