Driscoll's, the leading U.S. berries brand, and indoor vertical farming company Plenty Unlimited Inc. today announced a joint development agreement to grow Driscoll's proprietary premium strawberries year-round on Plenty's indoor vertical farms.
Driscoll's 100 years of farming heritage and its focus on providing Only the Finest Berries™ are the perfect complement to Plenty's industry-leading sustainable indoor growing technology and commitment to growing the tastiest produce.
Together, the two companies will work to bring tasty strawberry varieties to market, exploiting the benefits of a controlled growing environment while creating the opportunity to expand berries into regions that have historically been difficult to serve.
"It is clear that Plenty's vision and ability to pioneer the potential of technology for indoor agriculture makes them a leader in this space," said J. Miles Reiter, Driscoll's President and CEO. "As one of the few berry companies with a dedicated global research and development program, we believe our proprietary, flavor-focused berries combined with Plenty's technology leadership will create a competitive advantage in the marketplace as we expand to more effectively cater to the future consumer."
Plenty will incorporate Driscoll's proprietary genetics and berries expertise into its advanced indoor farming technology, using its plant science expertise. Through this controlled environment, Plenty is able to consistently deliver great flavors from Driscoll's varieties while optimizing consistency and size.
The in-house environment will eliminate the unpredictability of Mother Nature, enabling both companies to meet the future needs of consumers worldwide, including geographical locations not suited to strawberry growing.
Plenty's innovative and sustainable agricultural production delivers year-round produce that tastes like it was harvested fresh from the garden. Using data analytics, machine learning and custom lighting, Plenty is able to perform analysis at an unprecedented rate, leveraging the more than 200 years of crop data the platform generates each year.
This advanced agribusiness platform has allowed Plenty to show a yield improvement of more than 700% in leafy greens over the past 24 months, while maintaining its unique flavour and quality. Plenty's South San Francisco farm produces leafy greens using 100% renewable energy, being powered by a combination of wind and solar energy.
"For more than 100 years, Driscoll's has been innovating in pursuit of the tastiest berries," said Nate Storey, co-founder and Chief Science Officer of Plenty. "As they embrace the emergence of indoor agriculture, we are proud that they have chosen Plenty as their collaborator to develop flavorful berries grown indoors in a clean, controlled environment. We are aligned in our mission to bring the most delicious food to our consumers while reducing our environmental impact. Our goal is to bring fresh, tasty, locally grown berries to consumers around the world.
Driscoll's strawberries will initially be grown and developed on Plenty's Laramie farm in Wyoming, the largest privately owned vertical research and development centre in the world.
The two companies were put in contact through John Hartnett of SVG Ventures, which focuses on agriculture and technology. He helped facilitate the discussions as both companies were looking for ways to grow the tastiest strawberries.
"The future of food and agriculture through innovation is accelerated when leaders like Driscoll's and Plenty come together to transform the growing process in ways that benefit consumers," said John Hartnett, founder and CEO of SVG Ventures & THRIVE. "We are pleased that our open innovation partnership with Driscoll's has played an important role in this opportunity."
Source: Plenty
