BLOG | Five lessons learned during five years of Autonomous Growing
It is exactly five years ago that five international teams had the opportunity to deliver a unique achievement in Bleiswijk during the very first Autonomous Greenhouse Challenge: remotely controlling a greenhouse without entering the greenhouse. What everyone thought would take years suddenly turned out to be possible. Five successful crops were delivered, in some cases with a better cultivation result than achieved by the growers who implemented classic climate control. Fast forward to 2023. We are now five years further. Time moves fast. What happened during that time, and what did we learn about Autonomous Growing within Blue Radix? We would like to share these five lessons!
Vine Fresh Acres: ‘Higher yield, knowing your crop is in good hands’
Vine Fresh Acres in Leamington, Ontario, grows high wire cucumbers and bell peppers. In 2021 the company took its first steps in the field of Autonomous Growing. Successfully, according to head grower Pete Neufeld and grower Jake Knelsen. They are enthusiastic about the use of Blue Radix’s Crop Controller. The service saves them a lot of time and provides valuable insights. Knelsen: “It makes my job so much easier and helps me oversee it all.” Read more in the full interview.
Autonomous cultivation that’s worth investing in!
Horticoop actively invests in companies that make a positive contribution towards a sustainable future for greenhouse horticulture. The investment cooperative recently added a new company to its portfolio: Blue Radix. This market leader in autonomous cultivation works closely with growers, implementing AI-controlled growing in greenhouses. Steven van Nieuwenhuijzen, CEO at Horticoop, talks to Ronald Hoek, founder and CEO of Blue Radix, about what the two companies have to offer each other and the rest of the horticulture industry.
Blue Radix becomes newest member of AVAG
Earlier this month, Blue Radix became a member of AVAG, the industry association for the greenhouse technology sector in the Netherlands. Blue Radix is the 77th organization to join the association.
“We see in the market an increasing demand for digital services in the context of autonomous growing. Blue Radix has become a serious player in this field. This fits in well with the needs of our customers,” says Annie van de Riet, president of AVAG. Read more in the press release.
PRESS RELEASE | Partnership Priva and Blue Radix to accelerate autonomous greenhouses
During GreenTech Amsterdam, Priva and Blue Radix have signed an agreement to strengthen and expand their partnership. Together they work towards accelerating autonomous greenhouses where hardware and software are smoothly combined to accommodate tomorrow’s changes. The companies already serve a fast growing group of joint customers with data & AI driven solutions. With this agreement as its fundament, even more greenhouse growers worldwide can be assured of robust data connections, reliable services and continuous improvement of functionalities. Growers can get the most out of their data. The potential for optimized operational efficiencies and more predictable and precise control are endless.
KAS Magazine | Autonomous Growing: ‘In several places at the same time’
In Dutch KAS Magazine, COO Laurens van der Spek talks about the international growth, the latest developments and the opportunities for autonomous growing.
Interview Village Farms Fresh: Autonomous Growing
This week GreenTech published an article in which they interviewed two growers from Mexico and one from the US to talk about the developments that they believe will have the most impact in the coming years. Arie van der Giessen, Vice president and Regional Facility manager of Village Farms Fresh talks about his experience with Autonomous Growing with Crop Controller. Read his experience in this article.
Revol Greens partners with Blue Radix to add Autonomous Growing to US greenhouses
Revol Greens, the largest sustainable greenhouse lettuce grower in North America, has chosen Blue Radix to provide technology services to all of Revol’s US-based greenhouses. Blue Radix will offer artificial intelligence technology and services for Revol Green’s daily greenhouse operations including climate control, irrigation, and energy management. Revol Greens’ investment in AI will increase crop yield levels and reduce energy costs, furthering its mission to grow lettuce and greens in a more sustainable way that is better for people and the planet.
Hortibiz Daily interview | Manage more hectares with autonomous growing
Hortibiz Daily News Editor Ece Polat talked with Blue Radix CEO and Co-Founder, Ronald Hoek, about the growth of the company and his vision on the use of AI in greenhouses. [MvR1] Ronald also explains why growers choose for autonomous growing and what the main differences are between data-driven and autonomous growing.
Blue Radix and Microsoft collaborate to solve scarcity of crop expertise
Microsoft wrote an article and made a video together with Blue Radix, about solving the increasing scarcity of skilled and experienced growers. Microsoft reached out 3 years ago to Blue Radix to develop a commercial version of an AI-driven solution for autonomous growing. This solidified the partnership and helped develop what would become the commercially available Crop Controller service. Read more on how Microsoft helps Blue Radix in enabling growers and greenhouse entrepreneurs to produce healthy and safe food for the growing world population.