Mind the (hungry) gap
Mind the (hungry) gap
Today is the spring equinox. Now (9:58 p.m), is the precise moment the sun's rays are shining directly on the equator.
While most of us relish the turn of the season, now is a tough time for farmers. It marks the start of the hungry gap - a time when fresh British produce is thin on the ground. Stores of winter produce are running dry and the new season's crops are not yet ready to harvest. While there is little money coming in from selling produce, it’s a time of great expense. Farmers need to buy seeds and hire labour to sow and tend them.
You’d be forgiven for not noticing these troubles. If you don’t keep an eye on your produce’s providence, you’d have a hard time spotting the difference. Supermarkets don’t miss a beat, switching from local UK to imported produce when the supply dries up. But this comes at a cost. Air freight emits more greenhouse gases per food mile than any other mode of transport and lengthy supply chains are inefficient, contributing to the astronomically high rates of food waste within the system.
Our vertical farming technology provides a low carbon, sustainable solution to this problem. It allows farmers to grow and sell produce all year round using aeroponics and LED lighting. The systems use 95% less water than traditional agriculture and 30% less than industry standard hydroponics. Our stacks of growbeds are fully automatable and controlled with our farm management system Ostara, meaning they’re easy to operate and run.
If you’re interested in finding out more about how our technology could benefit your farm, you can get in touch here: info@lettusgrow.com