Three New Controlled Environment Trends to Look Out For
Controlled environment agriculture (CEA) development and interest are growing rapidly, as the pandemic brought with it concerns of food security.
In light of this growth, Light Science and Technologies posted a list of CEA trends to expect in the coming years. Here are three of them.
Strawberries Grown Indoors
As vertical farming technology expands, so too does its crop portfolio. Growers are now looking to grow varieties of strawberries indoors.
This would make the fruit available all year round and mitigate any pests or weeds that challenge the growth of the crop.
Strawberries provide a challenge to growers because they are temperature sensitive, making growing them outside the standard. With new technology on the horizon, strawberries may become the next crop vertical farmers find success.
Automation
Labor is a big concern prior as well, since the pandemic. Automation may be the solution to this issue.
Automation technology is still relatively expensive, but with technology prices dropping as parts become cheaper to produce and demand increases, this may become a viable option for many vertical farm operations. Automation may also bring higher-skilled labor or even new jobs entirely.
Alternative Crops
CEA’s increased interest may open the market up to new alternative crops.
Greenhouses have been growing tomatoes, lettuce, and other greens for quite some time. However, some growers are interested in growing more novel crops such as seaweed, mushrooms, spirula, and even mealworms. Each of these crops may become additional or alternative sources of nutrients for the public.
To learn about three more CEA Trends, click here.
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