PlantLab is using data collection and LED lighting to grow edible crops.

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Netherlands-based company PlantLab is taking vertical farming to the next level, utilizing high tech solutions to grow food indoors. PlantLab uses a combination of camera-operated cultivation, LED lighting and data collection to grow vegetables and flowers in their “Plant Production Units”.

The Plant Production Units give the user complete control over the growing environment, including temperature, light, CO2, humidity and irrigation. PlantLab claims that their units, after in-depth consultation with the client, can be fabricated almost anywhere.

Maximizing space and optimizing growing conditions, PlantLab’s concept could provide a high-tech solution to the growing food supply demand. As the global population continues to grow at an exponential rate and the availability of arable land for farming diminishes, alternate growing methods with low environmental impact, are a much-needed commodity.

PlantLab is still in early stages of development and although a great model for sustainable food production, LED lighting is still quite expensive, something I discovered during my own vertical farming research. Ideally as more LED lighting is developed for the consumer market, affordable options will become readily available.