IndoorCultivationfortheFuture

Shigeharu Shimamura
MIRAI,CO.,LTD
(PresentedbyChieriKubota,TheUniversityofArizona)

BackgroundinJapan
Issues:
Increasingpressuretochangethe
structureofJapaneseagriculture
andfoodproduction
Publicconcernsovernutritionand
foodsafety

Trends:
Increasinginterestinplantfactories
inJapan

Advantages:
Strongsupportfromlocaland
federalgovernments
Consumersappreciationofhigh
technologyinagriculture

HardwareandSoftwareNeeds
forIndoorCultivation

Affordablesystemsfor
variousscalesofproduction

Highqualityandnutritionalproduce
Manuals Suitableforbeginners

IndoorCultivation
VerticallyIntegratedBusinessModels
System Design &
Manufacturing

Technology
service

Production &
Consultation

Innovative
applications
Marketing, Distribution &
Service

KeyTechnologies(Hardware)
Productioncapacity(examples)
300lettuceheads/day(60m2 or650ft2 foot
print)
10,000lettuceheads/day(1200m2 or0.3
acre)

Hydroponic(NFT)system
Nutrientcirculation
EC/pHcontrol

Environmentalcontrol
Thermostatbasedtemperaturecontrol
CO2 control
Fluorescentlampsand/orLEDs

Hygiene
Aircleaning(filtering)system,labsuit
Airshowerforworkersbeforeentering
Watershowerpriortoaccessforcomplete
removalofpathogensinlargescalefacilities

TypicalProductionSchedule(Lettuce)

freshweight

Harvesting
Seeding&highdensity
production

Transplanting

(day)

Transplanting

Competitiveadvantages
Foodsafety
Traceability
Littlewaste
Standardized
quality
Yearround
availability

Lettuceproducedin
GreenRoomTM
9798%harvestable
aerialbiomass
Waste23%ofbiomass

Conventionallettucehead
6070%harvestable
aerialbiomass
Waste3040%of
biomass(outerleaves
andcentercores)

Technologies(Software)
Growingmanualsfor40differentleafycrops/herbs.

Opportunities DesigningFlavor
Flavor= f (Genotype,Environment,HumanPerception)

Applications
Hokkaido
Okinawa

Yamagata
14plant
factoriesin10
prefectures

Kyoto
Tokyo
Chiba

Kanagawa
Mie
Kochi

Shizuoka

Applications
Retail+ IndoorCultivation
Renovatingexisting
buildingsin
urban/suburban
areas
Integrationof
productionsystem
insidetheretail
stores(zero
transportation).
Urbanroadside
stand

Applications
Restaurant+ IndoorCultivation
Alargerestaurantchainwith
~200locationsinJapan
~6tonsofMizuna leavesare
producedfor100oftheir
chainrestaurantsinJapan

Applications
Restaurant+ IndoorCultivation
Alargepizzarestaurant
chainwith~59locationsin
Japan
Indoorproductionfor
romainelettucesfortheir
salads

UniqueApplications
Responsesto3/11Disasters
CollaborationwithGE
Japantobuildan
indoorcultivation
farminMiyagi,Japan.
Kidsveggiefarms
(schoolprojectsto
supportSTEM
educationandlunch
programs)in
Fukushima,Japan

UniqueApplications
ExtremeClimate+ IndoorCultivation
SouthPoleShowaStation
~3m2 minisystembuiltin
2008tosupplyfresh
vegetables
Onlineconsulting

UniqueApplications
ShoppingMall+ IndoorCultivation
LaLaPort Shopping
Mall,Kashiwanoha,
Japan
A6.6m2 (71sq ft)
fordemonstrating
productionof
lettuceandherbs

IndustryAcademiaCollaborations
PlantFactoryConsortiumfundedbyMinistryof
Agriculture,ForestryandFisheries(MAFF)
Consortiummembers
Mirai (Leader)
ChibaUniversity(Organizer)
Iwatani(CO2,Pestmanagement)
KajimaConstruction
(Architecturaldesign)
ShowaDenko(LED)
Panasonic(Fluorescentlight)
Marubeni(Marketing)
ToyoValve(Nutrientsterilization)
MAFFDemonstrationPlant

CommunityApplication
Regionalcommunitysocial
networkformicrogardeners
AcollaborationwithChibaUniversity,Panasonic,and
MitsuiFudosan(urbandeveloper)

MIRAIgardenforhome

Socialnetworkingsiteforhomegardeners
Userinformationwebsite

Kashiwanoha communitynetworkingpilotproject
Universityresearchpark
Consultingandsupplying
materials/recipes

MIRAIgarden
website/SNS

KashiwaCity
Kashiwanoha district
Community
usergroup

Shoppingmall
veggiegarden
(transplantsupply)

Economicanalysisofindoorlettuceproduction
Items

Note

Buildingsize(modular 1,300m2 (14,000 ft2)footprint (1,100m2 or12,000ft2

building)
footprint for4,536m2 productionarea)
Crop

Leafy lettuce(10,080headsperday,100gperhead)

Nutrientdeliveryand
lightingsystems

NFT
Combination ofLEDsandwhitefluorescentlamps

Otherfacilities

Officespace,packingarea,storage, coldstorage(200m2)

Otherequipment

Cooling/heating,seedlingproductionsystems, irrigationtanks
andinjectionsystems,climatecontrolleretc.

Equipment/facilitylife Productionsystemsfor7years;15yearsforotherequipment;
20yearsforthebuilding

Balanceestimate
Items

Income/Expense

Note

Annualgrosssales

~$4.1M(331MYen)

~$5.68/lb (10%productloss)

Annualcosts(total)

~$3.4 M(274MYen)

~$4.70/lb

Investment return

6th year
1lb =0.45kg

Capitalcosts:7.4millionUSdollars(590MYen)
Items

Costs

Note

Building

180M Yen(31%)

Newconstruction

Construction

110MYen(19%)

Utility setup

Equipmentand
facilities

300MYen(51%)

NFTsystems, irrigationsystems,lighting
systems,others

Annualoperationcosts:3.4millionUSdollars(274MYen)
Items

Costs

Note

Salaries and
wages

71.3MYen(26%)

Twofulltimeworkers+hourly laborers(210
h/day,$10/h)

Materials

15.4MYen(6%)

Packingmaterials,seeds,lightbulbs,
fertilizers,chemicals,etc.

Utilities

72.6MYen(26%)

369MW/monthpower use+wateruse

Transportation
andshipping

6.0MYen(2%)

Other costs

49.2 MYen(18%)

Depreciation

59.2MYen(22%)

Facility/equipment maintenance,consulting

VFChallenges OurExperiences
Itisallabouthavingtherightkindofpeople
withexperienceandtrainingintheproduction
operation
Justlikesuccessfulwineriesandsakemakersneedexcellent
viticulturistsandsakemasters

Indoorcultivationwillneverbethesameas
industrialfactorymanufacturingandneedsa
nonlinearapproachbyunderstandingthe
natureofbiologyandagriculturalbusiness

Questions?