Seed Valley (Wageningen, Netherlands) is home to some of the world's largest seed conglomerates. The pun refers to Silicon Valley. Unlike the busy headquarters of Google and Uber, this Valley is green, quiet, and filled with small "pilot" farms and greenhouses. You can't get there by train – nor do Ubers. Where California is all about software and semicon, Wageningen is all about developing high-quality fruit and vegetable seeds that allow growers to produce more food in less space.
Last week, industry, researchers, and other interested parties gathered at Seed Valley for the Sky High Day. Within the research program of the same name funded by NWO, scientists from the universities involved (Wageningen University & Research (WUR), TU Eindhoven, TU Utrecht, TU Delft, and the University of Amsterdam) work together with light specialists, growers, horticultural technology companies, architects, and food suppliers, among others. The goal? To make vertical agriculture cheaper and more energy efficient.
In his opening speech, program leader and WUR professor Leo Marcelis set the tone for the rest of the day: "If we want to continue to survive on this planet, we need a new vision of food production." He emphasized that traditional agriculture faces increasing challenges: land, water, and good soil quality are becoming increasingly scarce.
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