Sakata Seed America Stakes Claim in Vertical Farming Potential

Posted by Brian Sparks|May 26, 2021

Sakata Seed America and OnePointOne have announced a collaboration in the acceleration of vertical farming. Together, the two entities will share intelligence and analysis focused on maximizing plant outputs while minimizing environmental impact.

The large-scale research program is located at OnePointOne’s facility in San Jose, CA. A 25-foot vertical structure uses LED lights to supplant the sun, a nutrient-rich mist to replace the soils, and a clean-room environment, akin to a computer lab, as the production field. OnePointOne’s system consists of advanced aeroponics and a fleet of robotic growers to perform most of the day-to-day production functions, from planting to watering to harvesting. Sakata’s wide array of state-of-the-art genetics coupled with OnePointOne’s industry-leading, proprietary tech promises to drive further innovations and discovery.

“We are taking the controlled-environment agriculture (CEA) arena very seriously, and by working with OnePointOne on product research and development, we aim to push the segment’s development in a real-world vertical production environment,” says Dave Armstrong, President/CEO of Sakata. “Working together directly and fully sharing information enables both sides to capture data that might otherwise take years to generate.”

“Working with OnePointOne gives us the opportunity to test many of our varieties in a true vertical system and highly precise indoor environment,” adds Tracy Lee, Sakata’s Controlled Environment Agriculture Lead. “The performance data we’ll collect will help us continue to refine our varieties and fine-tune our breeding programs for the CEA space.”