Signify horticultural business continues to sprout, with six new farms coming

Signify is expanding its footprint in horticultural lighting, announcing that it will install tunable LED hardware and software at six European vertical farms operated by Italian grower Planet Farms, which is a research partner to the Dutch lighting giant.

Milan-based Planet Farms plans to open a 9000m² indoor vertical farm (roughly the size of 45 tennis courts) later this year north of Milan in Cavenego, Italy, where Signify is providing its GreenPower LED modules and GrowWise control software.

The combination allows Planet Farms to tune brightness and frequencies to different levels that are optimal for different crops.

“Thanks to the collaboration we’re able to grow high-quality crops all year round and that’s why we’re now expanding our collaboration,” said Luca Travaglini, co-founder and co-CEO of Planet Farms. “The GrowWise Control System helps us easily adjust light recipes and continuously enhance the taste of our crops, which is crucial for us.”

The commercial deployment follows two years of joint research by Signify and Planet Farms, which has been sampling Signify technology on a number of plants including basil and other herbs as well as lettuces and on leafy vegetables such as wasabi arugula, an ultra-peppery version of arugula (also known as rocket). Planet Farms opened a research lab in 2019. It works with a third company, Travaglini FarmTech — founded by Luca Travaglini’s father Arnaldo in 1950 — as well as with Signify.

“This next step in our collaboration shows that we can really help vertical farmers around the globe to improve the quality, yield, and taste of their produce,” said Udo van Slooten, Business Leader Horticulture lighting at Signify. “The plans to build another five farms across Europe shows that vertical farming is rapidly growing and evolving. It’s a thrilling time to be involved in vertical farming, and we’re excited to help shape its future.”

Signify declined to reveal the cost of the lighting at Cavenego.

Following Cavenego, Planet Farms plans to deploy Signify horticultural lighting technology at five farms it intends to build in Europe, including in Switzerland and the UK. It did not release a timescale.

Being in northern Italy, the Cavenego farm is in a region that has been hit by the coronavirus.

“We and our local partners are taking all necessary precautions, construction is still on schedule, Planet Farms and everybody involved is continuously monitoring the situation as the health and wellbeing of their employees and contracted parties is top priority,” a Signify spokesperson told LEDs Magazine.

The Planet Farms expansion marks the latest step forward for Signify in the important horticultural market, where customers have included Japanese 7-Eleven provider Prime Delica, French cucumber growers Jardins Réunis and Cheminant, tomato farms including France’s Le Jardin de Rabelais and Russia’s Agro-Inwest, rose growers in Holland, and others.

The horticultural market is driving many investments either directly or indirectly in lighting. Earlier this week, investors Ospraie Ag Science invested $15 million in Freight Farms, which runs LED-lit vertical farms called Greenery in shipping containers.

Cannabis is shaping up as one of the livelier horticultural lighting segments.

MARK HALPER is a contributing editor for LEDs Magazine, and an energy, technology, and business journalist ([email protected]).