As practices and methods in farming are evolving, there’s one new method in particular that employs advanced technologies to be more efficient and sustainable.
It’s what Gilwoo Lee and Casey Call did with their startup company, Zordi, which specializes in producing autonomous greenhouses. Their greenhouse platforms use a combination of robotic machines and artificial intelligence that manage crops.
Founded in 2020, Zordi aims to address the looming problem of climate change. It has established two autonomous greenhouses equipped with these technologies, aiming to reduce labor costs by 80 percent and make greenhouse farming scalable and more cost-efficient.
While greenhouse farming is a sustainable method of growing fresh produce, it comes with challenges. “Greenhouse farming demands significant labor and expertise to direct complex crop care decisions,” according to Gilwoo Lee, Zordi’s founder, and CEO.
The company’s flagship products are Japanese and Korean varieties of strawberry, which the company describes as being two to three times sweeter than average berries. A central data-driven AI system dubbed “AutoGrow” tracks the progress of each plant and closely monitors its developments.
Conditions within the greenhouse, such as temperature and humidity, are also controlled autonomously, ensuring plants grow efficiently. Dedicated harvesting robots pick the ripe fruits through careful selection and without direct human contact to maintain freshness until packaging.
The robots can also adapt to different greenhouse types, from low-cost hoop houses to larger glass greenhouses.
Lee reasoned that the chosen strawberries require particular growing climates and delicate nature when harvested. “I think controlled environment agriculture or greenhouses, for us, is an ideal way to feed the world with sustainably grown local fresh produce,” she added.
The company’s strawberries have been sold in New York and New Jersey stores and commended by retail partners. Having recently secured 20 million US dollars in funding from Khosla Ventures, which has also supported other companies specializing in agriculture and clean technology, Zordi seeks to expand its offerings to include different types of crops.
More information about the company is available at https://www.zordi.com/.
