Growing Food with Hydroponics Could Provide Lifeline in Arctic
A native corporation in Kotzebue and an innovative new Alaska company are using hydroponic farming to deliver fresh produce to communities above the Arctic Circle .
A subsidiary of Kikiktagruk Inupiat Corporation , Arctic Greens , is using hydroponics technology to grow produce inside an insulated , 40-foot shipping container equipped with glowing magenta LED lights . Arctic Greens is harvesting kale , various lettuces , basil and other greens weekly from the soil-free system and selling them at the supermarket in the community of nearly 3,300 .
“ We ’ re learning ,” Will Anderson , president of the Native Kikiktagruk Inupiat Corp ., said of the business launched last spring . “ We ’ re not a farming culture .”
The venture is the first of its kind north of the Arctic Circle . The goal is to set up similar systems in partnerships with other rural communities far from Alaska ’ s minimal road system , where vegetables are very expensive and seldom in good condition by the time they arrive at local stores . Indoor hydroponics , which uses water and nutrients to grow vertically stacked plants rooted in a binding material such as rock wool , can provide fresh produce year around .
Anchorage-based Vertical Harvest Hydroponics , which builds enclosed systems out of transformed shipping containers , partnered with Kikiktagruk . The 2-year-old company also sold the system to a farmer in the rural town of Dillingham . Kotzebue , 26 miles north of the Arctic Circle , is the regional hub for northwest Alaska villages and is built on a 3-mile-long spit . Many there live a subsistence lifestyle . The biggest selling point of the hydroponics produce is freshness .
Alaska Commercial Co . ( AC ), which has stores in nearly three dozen remote communities , is carrying Arctic Greens in the Kotzebue store . This week , the Dillingham AC store is beginning to sell produce grown in the local farm ’ s hydroponics system . The chain will bring the brand to more locations if expansion plans prove cost-effective , AC general manager Walter Pickett told The Associated Press .
Juneau EDC Planning February Innovation Summit
The Juneau Economic Development Council ( JEDC ) is accepting speaker proposals for its 2017 Innovation Summit held Feb . 15-16 , 2017 at Centennial Hall . This year ’ s theme is the “ capacity to innovate .”
Two portions of the Innovation Summit are open for speakers from Juneau and beyond : Innovation Shorts and the Entrepreneur Pitch Contest . Interested industry experts , entrepreneurs , researchers , seasoned business owners and inventors can submit their proposal at www . JEDC . org / innovation .
The JEDC is looking for up to 30 presenters for its 10-minute Innovation Shorts .
The JEDC is also seeking five Alaska entrepreneurs / innovators for the Pitch Contest . Entrepreneurs will have five minutes to pitch their business concept in front of Summit attendees and seasoned business owners . Attendees will crowdfund a cash prize for the winner ( s ) to take home at the end of the session .
For more information contact Dana Herndon at dherndon @ jedc . org .
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If you have stories of Alaskans doing innovative things who deserve recognition , please share them with us at : lee . leschper @ fireweedstrategies . com or info @ thestrivegroup . com .
Learn more at http :// verticalharvesthydroponics . com /.
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