| February 15, 2023
| October 27, 2024
2/15/23– Envonics an emerging AgTech Platform Company, announced that they have received notification from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase 1 grant to help advance their company’s research efforts to develop a smart platform with real time readings for Controlled Environment farmers.
Envonics has developed the Envonics Vertical Environment (eVE), a comprehensive platform for nutrient and environment management and automation in controlled environment agriculture (CEA). ENVONICS® proprietary solution unlocks plant performance by revealing and leveraging real-time individual nutrient levels to maximize efficiency, quality, and yield for CEA farms.
eVE comprises integrated hardware- and software-based solutions to provide growers a complete view of their operation: nutrient, air, and light with real time readings. As part of this solution, in this Phase I SBIR, Envonics will develop the Nutrient Management System (NMS), to provide CEA farmers with real-time information about the nutrients in the growth solution of their crops, helping them manage and optimize their nutrient solution with a decision support system powered by machine learning (ML). eVE offers farms many advantages such as water use efficiency, seasonal and geographic independence, and higher yields.
The proposed project also has potential broader societal impacts, such as benefiting the health and welfare of Americans. As indoor farming with hydroponics enables the year-round production of food in non-arable regions and urban areas, it can help expand access to fresh foods.
The National Science Foundation is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 “to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense…” NSF is vital because we support basic research and people to create knowledge that transforms the future.
8/3/23– Envonics is proud to announce the addition of Carlos Hayden a Master Grower and the Primary Investigator for NSF. Carlos’ brings over a decade of experience with growing crops in various settings and specializes in Controlled Environment Agriculture. Carlos offers expertise in farming consumable crops in greenhouse, indoor and outdoor environments.
Carlos has a Master’s in Business Administration with expertise in CEA farming, genetics, extraction, and R&D. Carlos is specialized in organic and conventional vertical farming systems for native soil, soilless and hydroponic farming systems. Carlos has experience with building start-ups, IPO’s and advising existing agri-businesses. He has developed genetics, cultivation programs for large and small craft farms across the U.S. and has created supply chain distribution models for produce farmers.
1/2/24– The University of Florida has executed an agreement to trial Envonics eVE system at their Gainesville research facility. Dr Paul Fischer will lead researcher’s as they execute a series of trials to prove the viability of the mechanized unit that produces real-time readings of crop nutrient levels.
The objective of experimentation at University of Florida (UF) will be to compare Envonics sensor readings with laboratory analytical measurement of nutrient levels in typical scenarios for hydroponic growing systems.
