This week AVF spoke with Trond Hundstuen, Technical Manager of Greenfarmer.

“I want to be called a technical solution solver and try to combine different technologies to find the best solution for our clients.”

Who is Greenfarmer?

We are a Norwegian company with operations in Norway, Sweden and Finland. We work closely with research environments and state authorities in the Nordics. We deliver:

• Specially built drones for agriculture and forestry
• Solar panels and solar trackers
• Farm wind turbines
• Solutions for vertical agriculture

And are developing water (re)capture systems.

The services we deliver are in line with several of the UN’s sustainability goals.

We started with drone technology and continue to work with universities and researchers to bring artificial intelligence (AI) solutions to farmers including solutions for developing vertical agriculture.

What is your expertise, and who is it for?

Our expertise is that we work as consultants on a project basis so we can provide the best solutions to clients. We work with traditional farmers who are not necessarily using their land for traditional farming but still own a lot of abandoned buildings that can be transitioned to vertical farming. We mainly focus on the restoration of these abandoned industrial buildings and barns but can also deliver total solutions for new buildings (constructions, storage, growing systems solutions and monitoring).

We provide a sustainable and profitable solution for farmers. Greenfarmer looks to build bespoke solutions at the best price. As a consulting company we only partner with carefully selected providers, from anywhere in the world, to provide the best solutions in terms of infrastructure and technology to deliver develop a vertical farm.

Although the length of the project from initial consultation to the final delivery of a working vertical farm can vary, it normally takes 2-4 months from the initial consultation to the vertical farm to be up and running.

Vertical farming is becoming a popular and important approach in the Nordic countries where the desire to produce local food and more self-sufficiency has increased, especially with the rise in energy prices and the experience of traditional countries no longer being able to produce and export food to the Nordic countries with same reliability as the past.

In Norway, Sweden and Finland people are moving away from rural areas and into cities. Transitioning traditional farms to a smarter, AI driven vertical farming approach helps support rural agricultural communities and invites people to stay or come and look after these new enterprises.

Greenfarmer can see how their expertise can be valuable in African countries, where Trond has already been involved in a Horizon Europe project, and other warm weather countries where a smart solution to food production would land well.

What is unique about your product and approach?

Greenfarmer offers a combination of renewable self-produced power and indoor vertical agriculture. This means the best solution is environmentally friendly and economical.

Vertical farms typically use hydroponic or aeroponic systems, both of which use considerably less water than traditional farming methods. This method reduces waste water and helps conserve water resources.

We are unique because our expertise allows us to find the best way to combine possible solutions to deliver the best bespoke solution for our clients and producers. We are not restricted to one solution but take pride in finding the right solution and partners for each farmer to deliver reliability and economic predictability. With modern greenhouses and vertical farms, farmers can grow crops all year round. Farmers can see the cost benefits of reusing old barns for additional income

What is the potential of Greenfarmer going forward?

Greenfarmer is built on relationships that build relationships. Our strength is in connecting with producers who already have the best solutions – so the key for us is to partner with people in the sector who are offering the best solutions. That way we can combine the best solutions to offer our clients. Partnering is the best way to ensure that we can always work with the most cutting edge solutions on the market.

As our number of consultants grows, so will Greenfarmer.

And what would you say your goals are in the future?

To build a brand that is called Greenfarmer vegetables where we could look at produce that we could sell directly to the grocery stores and restaurants at lower prices. This could be a good solution to compete a little bit with the bigger players in the market for groceries or vegetables.

Worldwide – We would also be interested in a larger project in Africa and other countries in the world that needs help with food production and where our expertise in renewables, water recapture and food growing could be best deployed.

Greenfarmer would be a reliable delivery service and support to local operators and businesses in the African continent. We can also be a supplier of vertical agriculture farming equipment and support.

What are you looking for in the VF space – which kind of collaborators?

We work with a range of suppliers and value personal service and knowing our partners well. At times our technical expertise can lead to us adding value to their products by making suggested changes to create the best technical solution for the end user.

We would also be interested in a larger project, perhaps a Horizon project, involving several European countries combining companies, researchers, universities, producers and providers to move the sector forward and position solutions correctly.

Reach out to Greenfarmer: Email post@greenfarmer.no