Rotterdam-based Blue Radix, a specialist in Autonomous Growing and creates automated intelligence for daily decisions and actions in greenhouses, announced on Tuesday, May 23, that it has raised fresh funding. The amount, however, remains undisclosed.
Since its inception in 2019, Blue Radix has collaborated with farmers to maximise the value of AI-driven greenhouse technology on a worldwide scale.
The company says it will use the funds to broaden its product line and influence globally to support more farmers. They will also collaborate to promote sustainable food production and a bright future for the horticulture sector.
Investors in this round
The company’s latest investment came from Navus Ventures and Investment Cooperative Horticoop.
Horticoop is an investment incubator for the horticulture sector. It includes the cooperative’s 400 grower-members as well as Horticoop firms involved in lighting, climate, technology, and substrates for the industry.
Navus Ventures is a family office affiliated with Lely (Farming Innovators), focusing on high-tech startups and scale-ups that are driving the ongoing sustainable transformations in food and energy.
Eduard Meijer, director of Navus Ventures, says, “We see greenhouse technology as a key driver of efficient and sustainable food production. Blue Radix brings operational intelligence and energy efficiency to the greenhouse, going far beyond other data platforms to turn data into practical application.”
“With the Blue Radix team’s 10-year history in AI-driven energy management and their proven track record in crop management, we’re happy to support the company both financially and with our knowledge and network, to make a global impact on sustainable food production and energy management.”
Algorithm-based solutions for greenhouses
Founded by Ronald Hoek, Laurens van der Spek and Rudolf de Vetten, Blue Radix claims to be an AI-tech specialist and market leader in Autonomous Growing. It creates automatic intelligence for practically all daily decisions and actions in greenhouses.
According to the company, the need for nutritious and safe food is increasing with the growth of the world’s population. As a result, the greenhouse horticulture industry is also expanding globally. However, due to the lack of skilled growers, this scaling is not possible.
This is where Blue Radix steps in.
The company provides AI-powered services that help farmers with a digital brain for their greenhouse. It claims that growers can manage four times more hectares as well as improve yield and reduce the usage of resources.
Blue Radix’s Crop Controller
In 2021, Crop Controller was introduced to the market by Blue Radix with an aim to automate and execute the grower’s particular crop strategy without the need for human intervention.
Crop Controller can be used by every greenhouse with a climate computer and an internet connection. The goal of Blue Radix is to help farmers utilise their greenhouse data to its fullest potential and improve their outcomes through the use of real-world AI.
How autonomous growing with Crop Controller works
Ronald Hoek says, “Since the market introduction of Crop Controller, we’ve been working intensively with many leading greenhouse companies globally to prove its value. Growers see significant improvements in yield and quality, while they can manage many more hectares and reduce costs.”
COO Laurens van der Spek, adds, “We believe that growers should be able to use their knowledge and experience in the most efficient way, without having to share data with others. Crop Controller helps them to achieve exactly that. This is crucial because growers are becoming scarcer every month.”
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