Can commercial produce be grown indoors with solid state, low-power lighting? That's what a Canadian company called TerraSphere Systems is hoping to accomplish.
TerraSphere has developed lighting carousels for greenhouse commercial growth of fruits and vegetables. Aside from using 40 percent less power than fluorescent lights, the light-emitting-diode devices are waterproof (avoiding short-circuits from misting the plants), produce more exact frequencies to optimize growth, produce less heat, and allow for more dense growth of the plants. The LEDs are just 1/16th of an inch thick, and the company says it can grow 50 to 60 pounds of spinach per square foot annually, compared to just 11.5 pounds for a traditional greenhouse.
TerraShere wants to use green technology to revolutionize the growth of greens, bringing fresh, local produce to everyone.
Right now the devices can be used for germinating plants, but the company is working on systems to work through the entire life cycle.
It is working with the Squamish Nation in Vancouver, which wants to grow organic produce and will get the first "high-tech greenhouse." The Squamish Nation is an investor in TerraSphere. Organic grocer Choices Markets has agreed to sell the produce. The first crop that will be produced is spinach.