Connecting: The summit has been set up to connect all those interested in protected cropping and associated industries. To reach across sectors to build an overarching forum that can move these industries forward. Sharing: This summit is an opportunity to share the knowledge, opportunities and progress across sectors, and provide a mechanism for implementing sector-wide improvements. Expanding: To explore opportunities and potential barriers through providing a mechanism for cross-industry support for new or value add applications for New Zealand benefit. 

Background

In 2019, the New Zealand Institute of Plant and Food Research Ltd (PFR) initiated the Direction Hua Ki Te Ao Horticultural production goes urban (HGU), focusing on advancing urban fruit production in controlled environments amid climate challenges and urban growth. Growing the Futures Indoors Summit (Hamilton, May 2023), a collaboration between PFR and Callaghan, united stakeholders in Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA), exploring current and future CEA prospects. Where CEA represented everything from hoop houses to fully indoor, such as vertical farming. The Indoor Growing Collective emerged post-summit, aiming to connect across sectors and strategise industry advancement. The Covered Crops Innovation Day at the NZPPI Conference 2024, in partnership with VegetablesNZ, was an opportunity to continue connections across spotlighted energy efficiency tools for glasshouse decarbonisation.  For more information see Covered Cropping Decarbonisation Pathway | EECA 

The indoor growing community wanted to maintain momentum and identified that protected cropping in all forms are important production systems for the future of New Zealand. Therefore, a second Growing the Futures Indoors Summit 2025 has been organised. 

Scope

To provide a forum to connect people, transfer knowledge and create opportunities to support a thriving protected cropping and associated technology industry.