Plenty Unlimited has launched the Plenty Richmond Farm, the world’s first AI-powered vertical farm to grow strawberries at scale indoors. Located in Richmond, Virginia, this farm can produce over four million pounds of strawberries annually in a space of under 40,000 square feet.
The farm features 30-foot-tall towers for cultivation, focusing on Driscoll strawberry varieties, combining Plenty’s technology with Driscoll’s advanced genetics. The first harvest is expected in early 2025.
The Plenty Richmond Farm uses technology to control the growing environment, unlike traditional outdoor farming, where weather and soil are unpredictable. AI helps maintain the right temperature, light, and moisture levels for the strawberries, using artificial lighting that mimics sunlight.
This precise control is key to ensuring the strawberries grow faster and healthier. The AI tracks over 10 million data points daily from 12 grow rooms, making adjustments to light, water, and temperature as needed, or automatically making changes itself.
Strawberries aren’t the first crop grown at Plenty’s vertical farms. Their flagship farm in Compton, California, grows over 250 acres worth of lettuce within a single city block. Plenty’s modular growing system is flexible, allowing them to farm a variety of crops, including lettuce and now strawberries. The 30-foot-tall towers at the Virginia farm improve nutrient delivery, airflow, and lighting for optimal strawberry growth.
Plenty CEO Arama Kukutai says the Richmond farm is the result of 200 research trials over six years to perfect year-round indoor strawberry growth with consistent peak-season flavor. Partnering with Driscoll’s, they aim to deliver premium-quality strawberries year-round. Plenty’s farms use 97% less land and up to 90% less water than traditional farming. The first AI-grown strawberries will be available in early 2025.
