Nate Storey, Plenty: Significantly higher yields from indoor farming

Nate Storey, co-founder & CSO, Plenty:​ As technologies such as LEDs and computing power get cheaper and more efficient, indoor farming will produce significantly higher yields. In 2020, Plenty was able to increase yield by 700%, and we anticipate that type of progress will continue and possibly double or triple. In addition, we’ll see new crops enter the mix for indoor farms and the costs of production will continue to decrease. Over time, indoor farming will allow us to bring back food varieties and species we haven’t seen in a long time. ​

In order to stay profitable, the field will move toward more heavily commoditized crops such as corn, rice and soybeans and let market disruptors - such as vertical and indoor farming - focus on horticultural crops including fruits, vegetables and flowers. ​

We'll also start to see an increase of vertical farms inside grocery stores, and over time these farms will prove to be a critical supplement to produce shelves. 2021 will yield more relationships between retailers and indoor farms, offering long term dividends​

Pic credit (left-hand image): Spencer Lowell.