I recently had the chance to Zoom with Paul Lightfoot, president and founder of BrightFarms. His company is expanding at a rapid rate, recently topping more than 2,000 stores that carry BrightFarms products. But Paul isn’t just focused on his own growing operation. He also wears a number of other hats, as we talk about in the video below, related to CEA food safety and even sitting on a committee that advises Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue.

We talked about a variety of topics that will come together in my November Inside Grower cover story on the CEA industry as a whole. You’ll likely see a few more videos come your way, too, as I try to hone my video hosting skills (my apologies for being a little rough around the edges—practice makes perfect!). I want to thank Paul for being my guinea pig for this video, and for sharing his very valuable insights into the industry.

I’d love to hear your thoughts about how the pandemic has shaped or changed our CEA industry, too. Drop me a line at jpolanz@ballpublishing.com to let me know what you think!

I saw recently greenhouse tomato-grower Houweling’s Tomatoes was looking at expansion, so I reached out to Casey Houweling, who shared some of the details. They are moving forward on a facility in Jamestown, North Dakota, (where it snowed two feet a couple of days ago) that is situated next to a coal-fired power plant.

“We built a facility five years ago in Utah on a power plant,” he says, explaining the location. “So that kind of tweaked the interest in the North Dakota, specifically Jamestown, facility power plant to do something similar. That’s been in the works for the last couple of years.”

 
Casey Houweling in the Mona, Utah, greenhouse.

They were originally looking in Bismarck, but shifted to Jamestown, where they will pull energy from the coal-fired power plant and CO2 from the ethanol plant next to the power plant that uses waste heat from the power plant. He expected the savings in energy to surpass the expense of situating in a colder climate. “With those kind of synergies there, that’s what makes this project look pretty attractive,” he added.

The facility is planned for 30 acres with the goal of breaking ground next spring after the last frost and a completion date of around the end of August and the first harvest approximately nine weeks later. The crops will depend on market analysis, but he expects it to be primarily tomatoes and some cucumbers to service primarily local retailers and some food service in the Dakotas.

This new facility will be the company’s fourth, along with the Mona, Utah, greenhouse; Camarillo, California and Delta, British Columbia, Canada. We’ll keep up with the Houwelings to check progress as the facilities begin construction next year.

The demand for CEA-specific varieties is growing, and more evidence of that is Sakata Seed America’s announcement Friday that it has formed a Controlled Environment Agriculture Department. The new department will focus on both greenhouse produce production and vertical farming. According to Justin Davis, Sakata’s director of sales and marketing, the department will bolster the company’s leadership role in developing varieties for CEA. “We have been focused on this segment for a number of years, especially in the leafy greens category,” he says in a release announcing the division. “The timing is ideal for Sakata to create this group to hone our efforts on CEA in order to bring more products to the market for Indoor Ag.”

The company has tapped Tracy Lee, an 11-year veteran of Sakata, as head of the new department. At Sakata, she has played active roles in product development for multiple categories, as well as handling the home garden and farm market vegetable seed sales.

“I think there is tremendous growth opportunity in serving the Controlled Environment Agriculture segment, and I’m very pleased that Sakata is continuing its leadership in the market. This is something that I’m passionate about and have been active in for the past several years,” she said in the release.

Tracy has a BA and Master of Science in Horticulture from Clemson University, where her field of study focused on sustainable vegetable production. Prior to her work at Sakata, she helped product management, marketing and sales positions at vegetable and flower seed companies for an additional 10 years.

Imagine 1,000 acres. It’s the equivalent of 43.5 million square feet and totals approximately 907 football fields. That’s also the size of an Agriculture Technology Campus in Hampton County, South Carolina, just announced last week. The campus is a joint venture between Mastronardi, Clear Water Farms, LiDestri Food and Drink and GEM Opportunity Zone Fund. The combined $314 million investment is expected to create more than 1,500 jobs over the next five years.

So what is it? It will include greenhouses for locally grown tomatoes, leafy greens, blueberries and other produce, as well as a 150,000 sq. ft. distribution center and a co-packing facility. The site is located at the Southern Carolina Industrial Campus within an Opportunity Zone, a program that encourages economic development and job creation in economically distressed communities.

“Clear Water Farms values their strong relationship with Mastronardi and the Sunset brands,” says Clear Water Farms CEO Jim Campbell in a media release. “We are excited to bring locally grown, pesticide free leafy greens like lettuce, arugula and basil to over 50 million Americans throughout the Southeast. Now, with this Agriculture Technology Campus, we are excited to bring the art of growing, co-packing and distribution together and make South Carolina a leader in Controlled Environment Agriculture.”

The goal is for the campus to begin operations in 2022 with full operation expected by 2025. CLICK HERE to read the full announcement from the South Carolina Department of Commerce.

PanAmerican Seed recently announced a new tomato variety that not only will be of interest to end consumers for its versatility, but of interest to growers and gardeners because of its disease resistance. The Tomato Marzito features high resistance to leaf mold, Fusarium, nematodes and tobacco mosaic virus.

The new tomato can be used in a multitude of ways, from eating off the vine and incorporating into a fresh dish or salsa to cooking in a sauce. The elongated shape is reminiscent of a small Roma tomato, and the fruit has a firm texture and sweet, rich flavor.

Growers looking for another way to sanitize have a new option: BioSafe Systems’ SaniDate All Purpose Disinfectant. The product is now labeled to kill human coronavirus, including SARS-CoV-2.

According to the company, the three-in-one solution can save time by cleaning, disinfecting and deodorizing hard surfaces in one step with one product. Along with human coronavirus, SaniDate All Purpose Disinfectant works against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus and Salmonella enterica. It also eliminates mold and mildew and mitigates its growth and spread.

What’s an IMF guide? It’s not the International Monetary Fund (a real thing) or the Impossible Missions Force from "Mission Impossible" (not a real thing). It’s much more beneficial for you: it’s the Insecticide, Miticide and Fungicide Guide for 2021.

It’s an updated guide on how to prevent and manage pest and disease issues. Packed with stories from industry and university experts, it also lists options for solutions based on the problem (pest or disease).

CLICK HERE to see the full guide.