Indoor Ag Looking to Expand Beyond Just Leafy Greens

This is Tim Hammerich of the Ag Information Network with your Farm of the Future Report.

We reported yesterday about how the indoor farming sector has found success growing leafy greens. But what is the next frontier for this industry? Jeff McKinnon, senior vice president of TruLeaf Sustainable Agriculture, an indoor farming company, says they’re exploring other crops and possibilities beyond producing just food.

McKinnon… “We grow leafy greens right now so spinach, arugula, spring mix, pea shoots, things like that. You know, that’s always been our focus, and I think we’ve done a very good job with it and that’s why it’s worked for us. But I do think there’s a need to grow other crops. What those crops are is still a big question mark. You know, a lot of people are chasing strawberries. You know we look at it and say there’s other applications that we can do. Things like producing crops potentially for extracts, for fragrances, or cosmetics, or nutraceuticals or you know, whatever, but I do think there’s more crops to be grown for human consumption in a vertical farm. And that’s not to say, you know, I don’t and we don’t think that vertical farming is the solution. We don’t think it’s the be all, end all. We think it has a role to play and that’s where I think, you know, there’s always going to be field-grown product. There’s always going to be greenhouse-product. I think now you’re going to see vertical farm-product or you are seeing it and really the integration of those three silos is going to be really interesting in the next few years."

Learn more at truleaf.ca.