US: Former Mushroom Kit Specialist Celebrates Expansion
Back to the Roots announced a Spring 2026 expansion with Target, extending its organic gardening line across more than 1,800 Target stores and online. The partnership, now in its ninth year, has grown from a single mushroom kit to a full aisle featuring over 80 heirloom seed varieties, 15 organic soils, and a range of seed‑starting kits. Target will showcase Back to the Roots as its exclusive organic seed brand, placing products in both the garden and grocery sections. The rollout emphasizes regenerative soil health and affordable, family‑friendly gardening solutions.
Coopérative U Is Expanding Its International Reach
French retailer Coopérative U entered the Democratic Republic of Congo through a partnership with Kin Marché, marking its latest overseas expansion. In Asia and Europe, retailers such as SPAR Sri Lanka opened new stores, Dagrofa Foodservice posted a 13% revenue rise...
"Vertical Farms Aren't a Silver Bullet, but There Are Cases Where They Make a Lot of Sense"
Growcer, an Ottawa‑based modular farming firm, won the 2026 Governor General's Innovation Award, highlighting its role in Canadian food resilience. The company now boasts over 120 installations in Canada and more than 1,000 worldwide, shifting market conversations from basic awareness...
"We Continue to Focus on Realistic Business Models and Industrial Applications that Already Create Demonstrable Value"
Urban Crop Solutions has been named to the FoodTech 500 ranking for 2025, confirming its position among the world’s most innovative AgriFoodTech firms. The Belgian company’s strategy centers on scalable, industrial indoor‑farming solutions with a clear B2B focus, proven technology and...
Baltimore Mushroom Farm Turns Former Office Into Specialty Fungi Operation for Top Restaurants
Falls Road Mushroom Company transformed a vacant Hampden office into a high‑tech mushroom farm, producing lion’s‑mane, king oyster and other specialty fungi. Owner Jonathan Manekin left a two‑decade real‑estate career to run the operation, using controlled‑environment tents, fans and spinning...
US (PA): Aquaponics Operation Looks to Expand
WestWinn Urban Agriculture Co., a subsidiary of The Winner Companies, launched a 25,000‑sq‑ft indoor aquaponics farm in Sharon, Pennsylvania in June 2023. The facility grows lettuce and other crops year‑round by fertilizing plants with nutrients from on‑site fish waste, operating seven...
Rwanda's Urban Farming Push: Vertical Farms and Hydroponics Tackle Land Scarcity
Rwanda’s government is combating rapid loss of farmland to urban growth with a multi‑pronged initiative that includes satellite mapping, strict zoning enforcement and fines of up to $3,000 for violations. The Kigali master plan reserves 22% of the city’s land...
Massachusetts Grower Now Controls over 50% of North America's Indoor Lettuce Market
Little Leaf Farms, a Devens, Massachusetts greenhouse grower, now commands more than half of North America’s indoor lettuce market. The company achieved this share by emphasizing disciplined operations, energy efficiency, and strong unit economics rather than chasing rapid tech expansion....
Japanese Companies Join Forces to Power Strawberry Growing
Sumitomo Corporation has formed a capital and business alliance with HarvestX, the developer of the world’s first robot that automatically pollinates strawberries. The AI‑driven robot uses 3‑D imaging to identify flowers and consistently exceeds a 90% pollination success rate, far...
UK: Margate Entrepreneur Launches Microgreens Operation Supplying Local Restaurants From Indoor Unit
Vanessa Leppard, a 33‑year‑old former food‑industry professional, launched Margate Microgreens in a repurposed indoor unit in Margate, UK. The vertical farm grows pea shoots, red radish and broccoli garnishes using LED lights and heat mats. Within its opening week the...
US (WI): Vertical Growing Finds Life Amidst Market Struggles
Vertical farming once attracted billions of dollars, yet many large indoor farms have collapsed, as highlighted by a recent New York Times report. In Wisconsin, however, Grow Space Vertical Farms, founded by Robert Carlson and his family three years ago, is thriving...
“Managing the Full Water Cycle Starts with Water Quality for the Crop and Continues with Reusing Water Whenever Possible"
Italian greenhouse specialist Vifra has expanded its climate‑control portfolio to include ultrafiltration (UF) and reverse osmosis (RO) water‑treatment systems, enabling growers to purify diverse water sources and recycle nutrient‑rich irrigation water. The company stresses that UF removes viruses, bacteria and...
US (TX): Houston Farmer Teaches Marginalized Communities to Grow and Sustain Themselves
CC Brooks, Houston’s only Black and gay hydroponic farmer, founded The Metallic Sunflower Foundation to teach hydroponic techniques to marginalized groups. Leveraging his experience running markets at Pearl Bar, he recognized the food insecurity facing the city’s trans community. Brooks...
CEA Alliance Welcomes New 2026 Members
The CEA Alliance announced eight new members for the first quarter of 2026, including its inaugural mushroom grower, Windmill Farms, and several growers of leafy greens, herbs, and microgreens. New supplier members such as Blackmore/Ellepot USA, Ceres Greenhouse Solutions, Green...
Pilot Initiative to Test Transparent Solar Films in West Africa
UK‑based NextGen Nano announced a £300 million agrivoltaics pilot in West Africa using its PolyPower™ transparent organic solar film. The project will integrate climate‑controlled greenhouse cultivation of nutrient‑dense crops such as amaranth and moringa with on‑site electricity generation to power cooling,...
"We Are Now at the Point Where We Have Multiple Promising Lines and Are Narrowing Them Down"
University of Florida researchers, backed by a $500,000 USDA‑NIFA grant, are close to delivering lettuce varieties that resist bacterial leaf spot. By tapping a rare Macedonian lettuce that naturally fights the disease, the team has generated hundreds of breeding lines...
"Time to Show Us More"
Albers Alligator, a Dutch specialist in manure storage and water‑covering solutions, has joined the greenhouse technology association AVAG during its 125th anniversary. New owners Michael van der Windt and Lennard Blijdorp, who took over in 2024, aim to raise the company’s profile...
Improving Energy Efficiency for Vertical Growers
A Korean research team built a nine‑month time‑series dataset from a real‑world vertical farm and applied machine‑learning models to optimise operations. XGBoost delivered the lowest prediction error, beating rule‑based forecasts by roughly 17‑18% and moving‑average methods by 12‑13%. The model’s...
Singapore: Growers Face Pressure From Rising Energy, Fuel Costs
The war in the Middle East has pushed fertilizer, fuel and transport costs sharply higher for Singapore farms. Vegeponics Farm warns its fertilizer stock will last only six months, with prices set to rise further if the conflict continues. Delivery...
US (NV): RHS Students Enjoy ‘Trout in the Classroom’ with Aquaponics System
Robertson High School in Nevada launched a Trout in the Classroom program, introducing 30 rainbow trout into an on‑site aquaponics system. FFA students, guided by agriculture educator Mabelle Roybal, have been raising the fish since January, handling daily feeding, temperature monitoring,...
"Polyhouse Growers and First-Time Hydroponic Entrepreneurs Make up the Bulk of Our Customer Base"
India’s protected‑cultivation sector is fueling a 15‑20% annual rise in coir substrate demand, with polyhouse growers and first‑time hydroponic entrepreneurs forming the core of Biogrow Substrates’ client base. The company reports stable raw‑material costs but notes freight volatility, driven by...
