NGS Presents the Agriculture of Tomorrow: The Rotational System
A few years ago, several farmers from Huelva, Spain’s most important strawberry-producing province, contacted New Growing System seeking solutions. With our company’s help, these producers transitioned from traditional soil-based strawberry cultivation to NGS-berry—the commercial name for our berry product line—which helped them optimize production and maximize profits. However, the challenge was now different. Producers felt the need to innovate because they had reached their production limit in international markets relative to competitors from developing countries that employ a large amount of labor. This is how the idea for the development of our rotational system was planted.
Based on these premises, New Growing System began working on a system that had to be effective and efficient, ergonomic in terms of planting and harvesting, and, even more importantly, increase production in existing facilities. After testing several initial concepts, we came up with the idea of using two trays, one upper and one lower, that would rotate. Three years of development and testing allowed us to integrate numerous innovations into the rotational system, one of which is a solar tracker whose function is to optimize solar radiation across all strawberry trays, which tilt depending on the sun’s position to properly capture the sun’s rays.
As a farmer and investor, you are likely wondering about costs and payback periods. We are too, which is why throughout this process one of our premises was to guarantee simple installation and maintenance of the system, which had to offer excellent performance in terms of crop yields. Compared to a traditional hydroponic system for strawberries, the rotational NGS-berry doubles production, while compared to traditional soil-based strawberry cultivation, the production increase ranges between 70–80% because, in addition to all the advantages of hydroponics, rows for heavy machinery movement (e.g., tractors) are no longer necessary. Despite this excellent performance, our desire to innovate does not stop there, which is why we are currently testing an automated harvesting process together with one of our partners. This robotic system works day and night every day of the year, increasing options for farmers and investors. Simply unmatched.
Regarding harvesting practices, the rotational system offers the same advantages as traditional hydroponics in terms of ergonomics, meaning that both planting and harvesting processes can be carried out more easily and therefore more efficiently. We have constant interaction with large strawberry producers who have acquired our rotational NGS-berry system in Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, and the USA, and they all tell us how satisfied they are with the product, both in terms of profitability and the improvement of working conditions, food safety, and hygiene. Based on our experience marketing these products, our goal is to continue growing in these markets, but also to open new possibilities in other destinations such as Korea, Japan, Russia, France, and Australia.
