A new portable turnkey farming system made in Ontario could contribute to improving food security, solving supply chain disruptions, and conserving water resources. Last month, ZipGrow, a Cornwall-based global provider of vertical farming systems, unveiled its latest innovation: the ZipPod.
“The ZipPod fills a niche between big vertical farms and the backyard garden, ideal for the far north or desert conditions or a parking lot in Toronto. It fills a niche that has been lacking until now,” says Eric Lang, president, and co-founder of ZipGrow.
Launched at the International Plowing Match held in Kemptville this past September, the ZipPod is essentially a truck shipping container that compacts anywhere from two to four acres of farmland into a 3,800 cubic foot hydroponic farm. At its launch, the ZipPod garnered a lot of attention, with hundreds of farmers and families wandering its aisles and sampling the produce growing along the walls and down the center of the container. The ZipPod is a turnkey operation that can be delivered ready for immediate use anywhere in the world.
“The day it arrives, the ZipPod is ready to go, and you can get in and start growing. It is a full R22-insulated setup that is snow load rated and engineering and building code rated, so you can drop it either far up north where it’s minus 40C to minus 45C, or far south where it’s plus 40C to plus 45C, or in a parking lot in Toronto,” says Lang.
“We’re fortunate to have a number of leading-edge agtech companies in Cornwall, and they’re spurring more. It’s an absolute growth sector for us,” says Bob Peters, manager of economic development with the City of Cornwall.
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