Shownotes
Welcome, listeners! Join me in this bonus episode as I share some exciting updates and a sneak peek into what's coming up for Season 11 of the Vertical Farming Podcast.
As we wrap up Season 10, I want to take a moment to recap some of the incredible conversations we've had with industry leaders like Felipe Hernandez of Hexagrow, Victor Kolkatar of Velis Farming, and many more. Each guest brought unique insights into the world of vertical farming, from urban aeroponics to the innovative use of microgreens. If you missed any episodes, this is your chance to catch up on the highlights and get inspired by the amazing work happening in our field.
This is also a chance for me to express my gratitude for your support through the seasons thus far. Your support means the world to me, and I’m eager to hear your thoughts on the show.
Over the next few weeks, I’ll be setting up interviews with listeners to get your feedback and learn more about what you enjoy and what we can improve. If you’re interested in chatting, shoot me an email at [email protected] with the subject line "Let's Chat."
Stay tuned for more great conversations and thank you for being part of this journey!
Thanks to Our Sponsors
CEA Summit East - https://indoor.ag/cea-summit-east-2025/
Indoor AgCon - https://indoor.ag/
Key Takeaways
01:00 Recap of Season Ten Guests
08:52 Roster of Confirmed Guests for Season Eleven
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Mentioned in this episode:
2025 Precision Ag Report by iGrowNews
Indoor AgCon 2025
CEA Summit East 2024
2025 Precision Ag Report by iGrowNews
Transcripts
$680 million poured into precision ag last year.
Speaker:Autonomous weeding robots dominated, and John Deere made 2 acquisitions in 3
Speaker:months. A food company, not an equipment maker, bought a
Speaker:robotics startup to protect its own supply chain. The deals are
Speaker:accelerating, the money is moving, and the winners are already separating from the
Speaker:pack. If you're investing, building, or buying in this space,
Speaker:you need the full picture before your competitors get it. The 2025
Speaker:Precision Agriculture Intelligence Report from iGrow News is now
Speaker:available. Get your copy today at igrownews.com/precision.
Speaker:Welcome to the Vertical Farming Podcast, weekly conversations with
Speaker:fascinating CEOs, founders, and agtech visionaries.
Speaker:Join us every week as we dive deep into the world of vertical
Speaker:farming with your host, Harry Duran.
Speaker:Hey, Harry here for a solo episode, something different for a
Speaker:change. I've got so many updates to share with you about what's coming up for
Speaker:Season 11 now that we've wrapped up Season 10. I wanted to do a quick
Speaker:recap for you and also an invite for a new
Speaker:special project that I'm cooking up. which I can't wait to share with you.
Speaker:Lastly, I'll be teasing out the roster of confirmed
Speaker:guests for season 11, so stay tuned for that. But before we jump
Speaker:into my update this week, a few words from the amazing partners that
Speaker:support this show. Don't miss the premier event of the year for everyone involved in
Speaker:greenhouse operations, controlled environment agriculture, and vertical farming.
Speaker:Indoor AgCon, now in its 12th year, heads to its new
Speaker:location at the Westgate Las Vegas from March 11th to 12th,
Speaker:2025. Join grower operators, investors, startups, tech leaders,
Speaker:academics, government officials, food service retail suppliers, and more
Speaker:from across the USA and over 30 other countries. Explore an
Speaker:expanded expo floor filled with the latest product resources and business
Speaker:solutions, and gain insights from top industry experts, including CEOs,
Speaker:growers, and investors at this full-scale educational conference.
Speaker:Plus, take advantage of invaluable networking opportunities. The team at Indoor
Speaker:AgCon has been generous enough to provide Vertical Farming Podcast listeners
Speaker:with an additional 20% off of the full access conference passes.
Speaker:Just use promo code VFP at checkout. Visit
Speaker:indoor.ag and be part of the largest CEA industry gathering in Las
Speaker:Vegas in 2025. Mark your calendars for the CEA Summit East
Speaker:in Danville, Virginia from October 1st to 2nd, 2024.
Speaker:This 2-day event, co-hosted by Indoor AgCon and the Virginia Tech
Speaker:IALR Controlled Environment Agriculture Innovation Center, brings
Speaker:business and academia together to help you grow your business. Immerse yourself in a full
Speaker:lineup of research showcases, panel discussions, and keynotes featuring
Speaker:top experts, grower operators, and other thought leaders. Explore the
Speaker:latest CEA innovations from tabletop exhibitors and enjoy
Speaker:quality networking opportunities as well. Don't miss this unique opportunity to attend a
Speaker:conference at a research facility where you can get a firsthand look at cutting-edge research
Speaker:projects happening right now and explore ideas for collaboration with Virginia
Speaker:Tech and IALR researchers too. I'm grateful to the CEA Summit
Speaker:team for providing Vertical Farming Podcast listeners with an additional 20%
Speaker:off the standard passes with promo code VFP. Visit
Speaker:ceasummit.com for more details and to buy your ticket today.
Speaker:Vertical Farming Podcast, welcome back regular listeners. This is something
Speaker:different that I don't get to do very often. It's a bonus episode and
Speaker:it's just me. And so this is a bit challenging
Speaker:sometimes because it feels like I'm just sitting in this room talking to myself, but
Speaker:I realize there's a listener, specifically you, at the other end
Speaker:of this conversation. And I just want to take a second to thank you for
Speaker:everything you've been doing to support the show. If you're back here, then likely you've
Speaker:heard one or many of the past episodes recently. And I just
Speaker:wanted to do a quick recap of everything that's been happening specifically with Season
Speaker:10. And just for folks that are brand new, to share some of
Speaker:the past guests in case you missed them. We kicked off Season 10 with Felipe
Speaker:Hernandez of Hexagrow, and we talked about the rise of
Speaker:urban aeroponics. That was followed by Viktor Kloczar.
Speaker:He's the co-founder of Veles Farming, and they're doing amazing things
Speaker:in Slovakia with saffron, of all things. Such an
Speaker:exotic crop. We then had a conversation with an indoor farming OG,
Speaker:Joe Schwartz of AM Hydro. That was a really insightful
Speaker:view of just how much this industry has grown, which
Speaker:has been really fascinating to get his perspective. Daniel Plant on episode
Speaker:125 talked about his unconventional path from the armed forces
Speaker:into becoming an agtech consultant. We then got
Speaker:deep into the world of microgreens with Alex Babich on episode 126,
Speaker:and then we spoke to Freight Farm's new CEO Rick Van
Speaker:Zura, who I had a chance to say hi to and shake hands with at
Speaker:Indoor AgTech Chicago. Following up on another connection I made
Speaker:at Indoor AgCon, I spoke to Katherine Soule.
Speaker:She runs Teens for Food Justice, and she's a powerhouse of
Speaker:knowledge in the realm of urban agriculture. And it's so
Speaker:inspiring to see what she's doing with youth in inspiring them to
Speaker:learn more about the benefits and the potential for indoor farming.
Speaker:Episode 129, I spoke to Whit Allen of SpectraGrow. We got to jam out a
Speaker:little because of all things, if you've been listening to this episode, you know that
Speaker:I love house music. That's a big passion of mine. And Whit is also a
Speaker:DJ. So that was fun. He actually had his turntable setups in the
Speaker:background as we spoke. during that conversation. 130, we
Speaker:spoke to David Flynn of Amplified Ag. David had a
Speaker:very inspiring story of his time in the military and how that really
Speaker:transformed his perspective on the potential for vertical farming
Speaker:and tackling food deserts. 131, we spoke to Kaylee South of Virginia
Speaker:Tech, and she shared her passion for indoor farming and how it's
Speaker:inspiring the next generation of plant scientists. 132, we spoke to
Speaker:Shlomi Rozell, who resides in Israel, and he spoke about his
Speaker:start in the kibbutz fields to the success they're having with
Speaker:Growtech, and what a pioneer they've been in this space. They've been doing this for
Speaker:quite some time and flying under the radar, and it's been nice to see
Speaker:them get some exposure now. I had a chance to connect with Shlomi
Speaker:at Indoor AgTech Chicago. This is again why I love going to these conferences.
Speaker:And then I also spoke and shook hands with episode 133's
Speaker:guest, Matt Lohr. He's the Secretary of Agriculture for
Speaker:Virginia. And Virginia, as you may have heard on this show, is making a big
Speaker:push into the indoor agtech space. They actually picked a day in
Speaker:March last year as Indoor Farming Day. Episode 134, we spoke to Rick
Speaker:Langille of Harvest Today. Rick has a lot of experience as
Speaker:an entrepreneur, and after a successful exit from his previous company,
Speaker:he decided he needs to get back on the horse again and build another company
Speaker:from the ground up. And he's had a lot of success with Harvest Today.
Speaker:On episode 135, I spoke to Edwin McClure. He is the CEO and founder
Speaker:of Bio520 USA. You may recognize the name
Speaker:as Bio 520 has been the platinum sponsor for
Speaker:Season 10. I couldn't say enough great things
Speaker:about the work Edwin and his team are doing. You may have seen them at
Speaker:Indoor AgCon as well. They were working with Suzanne as a sponsor there,
Speaker:and it's a really inspiring story of how Edwin connected with the
Speaker:original founders in Japan for Bio 520's
Speaker:nutrient solution and the great feedback and results
Speaker:clients have been getting as a result of using Bio520. So I'm
Speaker:always appreciative for all the partners and sponsors of this show, and I was
Speaker:really glad to tell Edwin's story. We got a peek into what's happening in Taiwan
Speaker:with Jesper Hansen. He's the CCO of Yes Health
Speaker:Group, and he talks about his experience working with the original
Speaker:founder of Yes Health. Jesper is actually married to the founder's
Speaker:daughter, and so it's been a family affair And again, Yes
Speaker:Health is one of those companies that you may not have heard about, but they're
Speaker:doing really good things. They've got an innovative partnership
Speaker:model where they take a seat on the board of directors with companies they
Speaker:partner with, which ensures a strong path to success.
Speaker:137, we spoke to Max Knight and Eric Roth of Rooted Robotics,
Speaker:and we learned how they're transforming small-scale farming with their solutions.
Speaker:I connected with Kendra Armstrong, episode 138, of Crop Convergence. And
Speaker:that was really helpful for me to get a deeper dive into how
Speaker:Kendra used her experience in plant breeding and found her passion in creating
Speaker:decision-making tools for farmers. Episode 139, I spoke to
Speaker:Stefan Hey, who I connected with originally in Vertifarm
Speaker:last year in Germany. So it's crazy, all these connections that are
Speaker:coming to fruition, and you never know what's going to happen. And
Speaker:it's why I make it a point to get to at least 2 or 3
Speaker:of these conferences a year. Stéphane talked about the experiences and the successes
Speaker:that they're having growing strawberries indoors and a lot of
Speaker:the great results their partners have been having. And then last
Speaker:episode, a great conversation with Chris Corkery of Hundred Acre.
Speaker:Chris's frankness and passion for his
Speaker:latest endeavor with Hundred Acre really shines through in this conversation, and I couldn't
Speaker:think of a better way to wrap up Season 10 because it just shows the
Speaker:enthusiasm And the resilience that's needed if farmers are going
Speaker:to succeed in this market. And I just love the fact that that conversation pulled
Speaker:no punches. As a New Yorker, Chris really told it like it is.
Speaker:So that's a quick recap. Thank you for listening to that. I just want to
Speaker:make it a point to share episodes. I do everything I can to share
Speaker:what's happening in this space, and I don't want you to miss any of these
Speaker:in case you've only been peeking in here and there to listen to some of
Speaker:those. So if any of those piqued your interest, please make sure you check those
Speaker:out. The other thing that's been top of mind for me is to learn more
Speaker:about you, the listener. This is a small but dedicated group of
Speaker:listeners that tune in week in and week out to hear these
Speaker:conversations, and I want to actually hear more from you. So
Speaker:what I'm going to be doing over the next couple of weeks is setting up
Speaker:interviews with my listeners. So if that's something you'd be interested
Speaker:in chatting with me about, you can start by sending me an email,
Speaker:[email protected], with the subject line Let's
Speaker:chat. As many of you know, I'm passionate about growing
Speaker:visibility and awareness for indoor farming. And obviously
Speaker:with the work we're doing with SEPA on iGrow, we're definitely doing a lot to
Speaker:make that a reality. But I also understand that if I
Speaker:don't have a clear picture of who my listener is
Speaker:at the other end of this conversation, then we're really
Speaker:limiting the success we can have with the show. What's important is
Speaker:that I'm not trying to do everything I can to make more people
Speaker:want the podcast. That's, that's something that's out of my control. What I
Speaker:want to do is make a podcast more people want. And if I'm being honest,
Speaker:then I know that there are things about this show that I can improve. But
Speaker:the only way to do that is to get your feedback. So if you are
Speaker:interested in having that conversation and you are a regular listener, I'd love to have
Speaker:that chat with you. And as a special thank you, and if you're up for
Speaker:it, I'd love to give you some credit on a future episode as well. Thanks
Speaker:for listening. And again, thank you for everything you do to support the show. I
Speaker:wanted to share some upcoming interviews we have for season 11.
Speaker:We're going to be partnering with the Indoor AgCon team. You may have heard some
Speaker:of the promos already, but shout out to Suzanne and
Speaker:Brian and that entire team. We're excited to give them a push for the upcoming
Speaker:CEA Summit in Virginia in October, as well
Speaker:as the Indoor AgCon conference coming up in Las Vegas in
Speaker:March. So stay tuned. Next week, we've got great
Speaker:conversations that I can't wait to share with you. We've got Scott Massey
Speaker:returning for a second round of the rebranded
Speaker:Anew, which was formerly GroPod. Amazing, amazing things. He's
Speaker:so smart and so innovative in terms of what
Speaker:they're doing with the appliance space, and I'm excited to share
Speaker:some of those updates with you. We've got Joseph Kamek joining us from
Speaker:FormBox Foods. Janelle Abdi from
Speaker:GAIA.AI, Elmer Mar from Neat Leaf, Direct
Speaker:Carbon's Matthias Carls, and Mark Geminani of
Speaker:TAG Facilities. We also have a return visit from Juan Gabriel
Speaker:Sucar of Verde Compacto. They've been a bit quiet for the past couple
Speaker:years, and it's for good reason. They've recently raised a new round, and they're
Speaker:doing some great things in Mexico on the container farming side, so I can't
Speaker:wait to share that story with you. So many episodes, a lot more
Speaker:CEOs and founders queued up that have not yet been confirmed.
Speaker:As always, we show no signs of slowing down with what's happening in this industry.
Speaker:So as far as conferences, I'm looking to see if I can make it out
Speaker:to the CEA Summit in Virginia in October. So if you will be attending,
Speaker:please let me know and stay tuned for new updates
Speaker:coming out of our exciting partnership with SEPR and the iGrow News team. I
Speaker:appreciate you all. Have a wonderful week. $680 million
Speaker:poured into precision ag last year. Autonomous weeding robots
Speaker:dominated, and John Deere made 2 acquisitions in 3 months. A
Speaker:food company, not an equipment maker, bought a robotics startup to protect
Speaker:its own supply chain. The deals are accelerating, the money is moving,
Speaker:and the winners are already separating from the pack. If you're investing,
Speaker:building, or buying in this space, you need the full picture before your
Speaker:competitors get it. The 2025 Precision Agriculture
Speaker:Intelligence Report from iGrow News is now available.
Speaker:Get your copy today at
Speaker:igrownews.com/precision.
