- Vertical farms are being forced to recalibrate as funds dry up |
- AeroFarms files for bankruptcy in latest blow to industry |
Summary: A recent article on indoor farming by Amelia Pollard (“Venture Capital’s AI-Run Lettuce Farms Start to Go Bust“) was published on June 16 in Bloomberg. The focus of the article is on the recent rash of bankruptcies of indoor farms including AeroFarms and Kalera. As noted at the beginning of the article: “The pitch for vertical farming had all the promise of a modern venture capital dream: a new way to grow crops that would use robots and artificial intelligence to conserve water, combat food insecurity and save the environment. But after firms poured billions of dollars into these startups, pushing valuations into the stratosphere, the industry is now facing a harsh new reality: funding is drying up, profits remain elusive, and creditors are circling.
Dr. Eric W Stein, Executive Director of the Center of Excellence for Indoor Agriculture and contributor, talks about the financial feasibility and profitability of indoor farms and controlled environment agriculture (see below).
The full article can be found at: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-06-16/venture-capital-s-ai-run-lettuce-farms-are-starting-to-go-bust#xj4y7vzkg
