Signify helps Agtira to bring locally grown cucumber to Sweden

Signify (Euronext: LIGHT), the world leader in lighting, and Agtira, a Swedish producer specializing in urban farming, are announcing the construction of a new greenhouse in the Swedish municipality Haninge, not far from Stockholm. The complex will initially cover 3000 m² and be equipped with Philips GreenPower LED toplighting compact and GreenPower LED interlighting. The produce, grown just steps away from a supermarket, will reach consumers in an exceptionally fresh state, reducing food waste and transportation emissions. This new greenhouse follows two earlier collaborations between the two companies, with facilities in Harnosand, Birsta and Östersund already installed and running successfully.

Year-round and sustainable

At the moment, about 70% of vegetables consumed in Sweden are still imported, because for a long time it was simply impossible to grow many crops due to the limited amount of daylight. The arrival of LED lighting and customized light recipes have changed all this. Agtira and Signify have already taken advantage of that, with four greenhouse complexes where mainly cucumbers, but also tomatoes and herbs are grown. Dumitru Mititelu, Agtira’s COO, explains: “For much of the year, there are only a few hours of light per day here, and even then, you can't really call it sunshine. Thanks to Philips Horticulture lighting, we still have enough micromoles in the greenhouse to grow cucumbers. I don't know of any other LED supplier that offers products with such high PAR and is also so good at working out the most appropriate light recipes with you."

In addition to the general desire for local products, sustainability is also a top priority for Agtira and its customers. “Growing in or near supermarkets means less transportation using fossil fuels. And if the harvested vegetables end up on the shelf the same day, it also increases the quality and nutritional value, which can give the product a different taste, which is a priority for us, and the shelf life is much longer, which reduces food waste”, Dumitru added.

Innovative farming as a Service model with tailored solutions

Agtira's Farming as a Service (FaaS) model means that the company builds and operates larger, custom-built greenhouse complexes for supermarkets and wholesalers that want to offer consumers fresh vegetables on a daily basis throughout the year. The Haninge greenhouse, for instance, is located directly behind a supermarket chain ICA Maxi, ensuring that the cucumbers can go from harvest to shelf in record time. Dumitru explains: “Signify also played a significant part in this. When you have a greenhouse inside an existing building, you haven't got any form of natural light, and you have a completely different symbiosis between lighting and ventilation. We really had to work together to develop a specific light recipe for this.”

Partnership

None of this would have been possible without the opportunity offered by Philips GreenPower LED lighting to be able to produce food year-round, without high energy costs, in a challenging cultivation environment such as Sweden. Dumitru: “Make no mistake: what we are doing is really not that easy here in Sweden! But with Signify, we succeeded.” Udo van Slooten, Business Leader of Philips Horticulture Solutions, therefore takes pride in this collaboration: “We always welcome these kinds of initiatives because they give new fresh alternatives to local markets. The fact that we can contribute to this as a lighting supplier is of course wonderful.”

Watch Agtira’s story below:

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