Signify used to be known as Philips Lighting - what is the purpose of the new brand and how did it come about?
At one point Philips decided to focus its activities on healthcare and branched out in a number of different industries in which there was a need for an expert in lighting. That is when Signify came about, namely in 2018, and I believe it was a good decision as we now have everything focused on lighting under the roof of one independent company. Nevertheless, in the horticulture space, which is a key one, we still sell under the Philips Lighting brand, since the name has very strong roots in that industry and in the Netherlands specifically, where horticulture is a landmark.
What is the role of lighting for growing plants and the areas you are focusing your innovations on?
Lighting is crucial for the rapidly growing industry of controlled environment agriculture. What is important to realize is that the lighting in a greenhouse or a vertical farm is essential for photosynthesis and for crop growth. Changing lighting can influence the crop in many different ways, including in terms of its appearance. So, for instance, you can grow a plant that normally grows purple more efficiently, which means that it will be grown as green and then you can change the lighting in the end so it can obtain its purple color. This is an example of what lighting can do in the process of growing plants.
We are very excited about the opportunity in this space for Signify, and to this end have recently acquired Fluence to expand our offering. We have been working in the areas of vegetables and fruit, flowers and berry plants, as well as cannabis which was an up-and-coming space where Fluence could help us realize our ambitions.
How do you choose the right combination of lighting? Is machine learning or AI involved?
In the last decade, there have been many investigations into what color combinations are most important. We see that the red color is often the most essential for the growth of a crop, whereas the blue color is more relevant for its morphology, or the look and feel of a plant. So, we try to optimize these combinations to obtain the best result, but it is dependent on the crop at hand. What we try to do is to find the right light recipe for a crop by doing numerous research and trials. LED lighting really allows us to do that.
How much have you been affected by supply shortages, notably in relation to raw materials?
Raw materials are important, and we have seen huge fluctuations in being able to obtain them, especially during the pandemic. A large part of our supply chain is scattered all over the world, so we have had some difficulties in that regard. But we are in a good position now, and have been able to deliver on our products, including in Europe and North America where we have seen a rise in demand.
When it comes to indoor agriculture, do you see more potential in horizontal or vertical farming?
I do not believe it is an ‘or’, but an ‘and’ question. Both are important and should go hand in hand. Vertical farming is not going to take over horizontal farming. If you grow lettuce in an outdoor environment, to produce 1 kg of lettuce you need 200 liters of water, which is not acceptable in some dry areas, such as California. So, the alternative in such a case is growing vertically. I believe that people increasingly want to buy local. You see a lot of new greenhouses being built in the East Coast because of the transportation problem, plus the greater efficiency in terms of water. But, overall, I would say that the choice of technology is to be made on a case-by-case basis.
How would you picture the smart farm of the future?
We need to optimize the technology, but also the genetics of crops so that they can be perfectly grown in an indoor farm. We bring our expertise as a lighting company, but work hand in hand with breeders and other experts so that we can have a holistic view of growing. We also see that optimizing the technology in an indoor farm increases profitability in various ways – e.g. people are willing to pay more for locally grown food which is of better quality, as is the case with indoor grown food. But in the end a lot of consumers are focused on price, so that is to be borne in mind. Still, year after year, technology is improving, and data is being used more efficiently. With recent developments, we see that data plays a more important role in decision making, as part of our data-driven lighting solutions, we are bringing innovative new decision-support tools. For instance, new tooling is being developed based on our Tomato Growth Model's proven success and effectiveness. This analyzes data to provide smart lighting advice and forecasts of potential yield to manage labor planning.
