S5E57: Broadening the Farm: Providing Holistic Solutions & Innovation within the Vertical Farming Industry with Netled Oy’s Niko Kivioja

Episode Summary

CEO of Netled, Niko Kivioja spent the first part of his career in controlled environment agriculture (CEA) as a grower and has spent the last decade in high-tech closed-environment and vertical farming technology development. Today, Harry and Niko discuss how the vertical farming industry is growing and what opportunities exist for competitors within the industry to share technological advances to benefit all companies. Niko shares some exciting new projects and partnerships, including one with a Calgary-based wholesale supplier to bring Netled’s Vera vertical farming technology to the North American market.

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Key Takeaways

04:27 – Harry welcomes CEO of Netled, Niko Kivioja, to talk about the proprietary Vera vertical farming platform he’s been managing and the research that goes into shifting focus to new produce such as strawberries

14:34 – Providing holistic solutions and building a world-class vertical farming team

18:33 – Advancements and specialization of technology in vertical farming and sharing resources so all companies in the industry benefit

23:01 – Niko talks about the latest initiative between Netled and Calgary-based Rambridge Wholesale Supply to bring Vera vertical farming technology to the North American market

33:15 – What excites Niko most about future innovations in the vertical farming industry

35:54 – Niko shares a major production project he’s currently working on

38:55 – Power consumption at a vertical farm

41:06 – Raising awareness and educating the masses on vertical farming

45:18 – What keeps Niko motivated

48:35 – Harry thanks Niko for joining the show and lets listeners know where they can learn more about Netled

Tweetable Quotes

“I see that, to actually make a difference in this field when there is a lot of new commerce to the business, you have to offer broader offerings than just the farm and just the details of that farm.” (14:19) (Niko)

“That’s the problem for all technology companies. The technology is only as good as the people making it.” (16:45 (Niko)

“It’s always difficult when you risk sharing information with your competitors. Then again, when there is a limited amount of talent, that would benefit the entire industry to actually make a successful method so that all the interests of different companies can be met.” (21:58) (Niko)

“Since the early days of vertical farming, there were challenges of getting financially feasible technology for actual commercial production.” (28:10) (Niko)

“We’re working probably in the most important field right now in solving these food-related issues.” (46:15) (Niko)