Growponics United States | Israeli Hydroponic | Commercial Greenhouse Technology

Hydroponics Growing and the Future of Agriculture

Sam — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 16:05:43 +0000

Hydroponics is the fastest growing sector of agriculture, and it could very well dominate food production in the future. As population increases and arable land declines due to poor land management, people will turn to new technologies like hydroponics and vertical farming to create additional channels of crop production. Currently, arable land comprises only around 3 percent of the Earth’s surface, and the world population is around 6 billion people, resulting in around 1/5 hectare (2,000 square meters) of arable land per capita. By 2050, scientists estimate that the Earth’s population will increase to 9.2 billion, while land available for crop and food production will decline. To feed the increasing population, hydroponics will begin replacing traditional agriculture [source: Chamberlain].

To get a glimpse of the future of hydroponics, we need only to examine some of the early adopters of this science. In Tokyo, on the island nation of Japan, land is extremely valuable due to the surging population. To feed the citizens while preserving valuable land mass, the country has turned to hydroponic rice production. The rice is harvested in underground vaults without the use of soil. Because the environment is perfectly controlled, four cycles of harvest can be performed annually, instead of the traditional single harvest.

Hydroponics also has been used successfully in Israel, which has a dry, arid climate. A company called Organitech has been growing crops in 40-foot (12.19-meter) long shipping containers, using hydroponic systems. They grow large quantities of berries, citrus fruits and bananas, all of which couldn’t normally be grown in Israel’s climate. The hydroponics techniques produce a yield 1,000 times greater than the same sized area of land could produce annually. Best of all, the process is completely automated, controlled by robots using an assembly line-type system, such as those used in manufacturing plants. The shipping containers are then transported throughout the country [source: Organitech]

There has already been a great deal of buzz throughout the scientific community for the potential to use hydroponics in third world areas, where water supplies are limited. While the upfront capital costs of setting up hydroponics systems is currently a barrier, in the long-run, as with all technology, costs will decline, making this option much more feasible. Hydroponics has the ability to feed millions in areas of Africa and Asia, where both water and crops are scarce.

Hydroponics also will be important to the future of the space program. NASA has extensive hydroponics research plans in place, which will benefit current space exploration, as well as future, long-term colonization of Mars or the moon. As we haven’t yet found soil that can support life in space, and the logistics of transporting soil via the space shuttles seems impractical, hydroponics could be key to the future of space exploration. The benefits of hydroponics in space are two-fold: It offers the potential for a larger variety of food, and it provides a biological aspect, called a bioregenerative life support system. This simply means that as the plants grow, they will absorb carbon dioxide and stale air and provide renewed oxygen through the plant’s natural growing process. This is important for long-range habitation of both the space stations and other planets [source: Heiney].

For more information on hydroponics, getting your hands dirty in the garden and related topics, dig through the links on the next page.

TV Show: How Stuff Works
Station: TLC Network
by Bambi Turner

Click Here to read the full article at TLC Home Website

Second Recall for Fresh Express Lettuce in Two Months

Sam — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 17:52:22 +0000

On May 24, Fresh Express recalled romaine lettuce-based salads due to possible contamination with salmonella. Today, they are recalling more items because of the risk of being contaminated with E. coli. In both cases, no illnesses have been reported so far.

For each of the two recalls, the contamination was found during a random sample test conducted by the US Food and Drug Administration.

The first recall involves Fresh Express Romaine-based ready-to-eat salads with the expired Use-by Dates of May 13th through May 16th and an “S” in the product code. They were sold in the following states: Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Louisiana, Nebraska, Montana, Missouri, Iowa, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Nevada, Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Utah, Wyoming, North Dakota, and South Dakota.

A full list of the recalled products and their UPC codes can be found at the FDA website.

The most recent recall also involves romaine lettuce salad products with “S” product codes. These have a use-by date of July 8th through the 12th and were distributed in California, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Wyoming, Washington and Nevada.

For a detailed listing of recalled products, check here.

Although in most cases, the products are expired and likely already consumed or tossed, consumers or retailers with any remaining expired product should discard it. Anyone with questions may call the Fresh Express Consumer Response Center at (800) 242-5472, Monday – Friday, 5 a.m. – 8 p.m., Pacific Time.

by Denise Reynolds RD on 2010-07-16

Full Article @ eMaxHeath.com

New Outbreak of e. coli; Field-grown Lettuce is the Culprit

Sam — Sat, 08 May 2010 17:23:36 +0000

Tulsa, OK – (http://www.growponicsamericas.com), May 8, 2010 – Growponics Americas, a company that operates hydro-organic greenhouses around the world, including the USA, notes with interest a current outbreak of E. coli in 3 US states. Growponics America’s unique growing system produces leafy greens, i.e. lettuces and herbs, in sealed hydro-organic greenhouses that produce leafy greens without the use of herbicides and pesticides, and are totally free of E. coli and other pathogens. The best news is that the greenhouses of Growponics Americas can be erected in every state in the USA, and can supply leafy greens to stores, institutions, restaurants, and hotels the same day it is harvested to ensure freshness and healthy food to its customers. The best news is that Growponics Americas is a franchise company, with full support to the franchisee, to insure healthy, hydro-organic leafy greens to the market at the same price as field-grown leafy greens, which, over and over, are the source of E. coli outbreaks.

Multiple news sources report an outbreak of E. coli O145 that has sickened over 60 people in three states, and appears to be due to contaminated romaine lettuce from Freshway Foods. Sidney, Ohio-based Freshway is recalling lettuce products that were distributed to wholesale, food service, and salad bar outlets. The FDA press release lists all recalled items, which are branded under the Freshway and Imperial Sysco names.

The outbreak of E. coli O145 has been clustered around colleges in three towns; students at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Ohio State University in Columbus, and Daemen College in Buffalo, NY have all fallen ill.

“E. coli O145 is not that common,” said safe food advocate and attorney Bill Marler. “Food service distribution of a product contaminated with E. coli O145 is the missing link that health investigators have been looking for. Unfortunately, this is not the first time that lettuce distribution through campus food service has made students ill. In 2008, students in the Pacific Northwest were sickened under very similar circumstances, and some of those victims are still struggling to regain their health.”

E. coli outbreaks in leafy green vegetables have been on the rise. The Center for Science the public interest reports that between 1990 and 1998, fully 25 percent of all E. coli outbreaks were due to leafy greens.

Consumer resource: Family Health Guide about E. coli (PDF)

Media resource: Outbreak Database of previous outbreaks in leafy greens

Federal investigators continue to look for the original source of contaminated lettuce sold by the Ohio company, and linked to the outbreak of E. coli 0145 that has sickened at least 60 people in Columbus, Michigan and New York.

Freshway Foods issued a recall of products containing romaine lettuce yesterday, which are distributed in 23 states east of the Mississippi River. The recall does not apply to bagged or unpackaged lettuce sold in grocery stores, according to the company, which sells a variety of pre-cut fruits and vegetables and salad mixes. The suspect lettuce is that which is sold to in-store and institutional salad bars.

Officials from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration wouldn’t name any specific farms under investigation yesterday. Previous investigation of outbreaks involving leafy greens “lead us to believe that the point of contamination is at the farm,” spokesman Ira Allen said.

Devon Beer, vice president of Freshway Foods, said he thinks the investigation is focused on a growing region in Yuma, AZ.

Growponics Americas

Greenhouse At Night 3

Sam — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 00:07:24 +0000

Growponics Fields Lettuce 11

Sam — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 00:05:57 +0000

Growponics Strawberries Greenhouse

Sam — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 00:03:03 +0000

Growponics Cucumber Grown Vertically

Sam — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 00:00:36 +0000

Growponics HighTech Floating Bed Technology

Sam — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 23:58:11 +0000

Growponics Under Development 2

Sam — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 23:56:36 +0000

Growponics Greenhouse Under Development

Sam — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 23:55:11 +0000