High-tech companies such as Sharp, Panasonic, Fujitsu, and Toshiba are rapidly expanding into agricultural and horticultural products, using their technical expertise.
Japanese agriculture and horticulture has been facing extremely keen competition from abroad for years. This is why the Japanese government has developed incentives enabling tech firms to invest in agriculture and horticulture. It has worked wonders. The use of technology has made agricultural and horticultural production much more efficient and profitable.
Abandoned factory buildings have been transformed into ultra-modern, indoor agricultural and horticultural factories by the above-mentioned electronics giants. This cuts both ways, as agriculture and horticulture have been given a new lease on life and electronics firms have found new product lines and new sales markets.
It is not only Japan, however, that sees heavy investments by electronics companies in agriculture and horticulture. In Finland Fujitsu and vegetable and herb grower Robbe’s Little Garden Ltd. use electronics to make vertical planting beds as efficient and effective as possible. One thing they do is use LED technology, LED lighting, greenhouse automation technology and automated production solutions. By implementing all these technologies they can perfectly regulate the indoor climate and are not dependent on weather conditions outside. This in turn leads to an optimum production yield.
In Dubai too an electronics giant has stepped into horticulture. Japanese strawberries are grown in the Dubai desert, thanks to partner Sharp. Its technologies, such as LED lighting, plasma cluster technology and cutting-edge a best-possible product is created and Sharp has found itself a whole new product portfolio.
These are just a few examples of the use of electronics in agriculture and horticulture. Electronics companies are always searching for new sales markets and are always on the lookout to expand their portfolios. Agriculture and horticulture are a prime example, offering the electronic interconnect industry numerous interesting challenges. Food providers will benefit from this cooperation worldwide. And the employees in the electronic interconnect industry can be really proud of this.
