Vertical Future

16/05/2025

🌱 Great to be part of the Barclays UK Corporate Connections x Unreasonable Impact Sustainability Showcase this week at Barclays UK HQ in Canary Wharf!

Our Founder & CEO, Jamie Burrows, delivered a presentation on how Vertical Future is shaping the future of sustainable food systems, while Grant Macdonald and Svetlana Frantuz from our Commercial team connected with corporate leaders driving climate innovation.

A big thank you to Barclays Eagle Labs and Unreasonable Impact for the opportunity to showcase alongside other inspiring scale-ups tackling global environmental challenges.

15/05/2025

🚀 From the US Air Force to the forefront of agtech innovation — our Founder & CEO, Jamie Burrows, recently joined Oliver Bonallack at “Rebel Meets: CLIMATE EDITION” to share the story behind Vertical Future.

In his first speaking event focused on his personal journey, Jamie reflects on the early days — working "seven nights a week" in a rundown Deptford warehouse — to raising £37 million and building one of the leading vertical farming technology companies globally. 🌱

He also explores the role of vertical farming in the broader climate conversation — highlighting why it’s not a “one-stop-shop solution,” but a critical component of a larger strategy to address climate change and resource scarcity.

🎥 Watch the full episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8vgg2kostI

A big thank you to Oliver Bonallack for the great conversation, Ash Phillips, Founder of Rebellious Co, and everyone involved in making this a fantastic experience!

06/05/2025

🌱 We're thrilled to share that Vertical Future has a fresh new look!

Our rebrand marks an exciting step forward — one that better reflects our values, our growth, and the direction of the CEA (Controlled-Environment-Agriculture) industry.

It’s still us, just a little more aligned with who we are today and the future we’re working towards.

We’re proud of how far we’ve come - and equally excited for what’s ahead!

Check out the new site here ➡️ https://www.verticalfuture.com/

Let us know what you think!

24/03/2025

🚀 Exciting News from Vertical Future! 🚀

We are absolutely thrilled to be named on Forward Fooding’s FoodTech500 again this year! 🌍🏆

We ranked #33 out of 500 overall and #1 CEA company (inclusive of growers and tech providers) for the second year running! It was a hugely diverse and innovative list with over 1,420 entries from 70+ countries, having raised funding in excess of $8.6B to date among the 500 finalists!

This recognition is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our team, who are relentlessly driving innovation in the agri-foodtech space. At Vertical Future, we’re focused on transforming food production through sustainable, smart vertical farming systems that help build a resilient, more sustainable future for agriculture.

Thank you to the amazing community at Forward Fooding and to all of our partners, collaborators, and supporters who believe in the power of innovation to solve global food challenges. We’re excited to continue this journey and work towards a more sustainable food system for all.

Huge thanks also to Google Cloud for hosting this year's unveiling ceremony at the Google HQ in Kings Cross!

The future of food is bright, and we’re just getting started! 🌱✨

11/03/2025

We’re excited to announce that Winnie Swann, one of our Plant Scientists, has secured a spot at the Next Generation Scientists 2025 event at the University of Birmingham between 4-7th August, organised by The New Phytologist Foundation! 🎉

Winnie will present groundbreaking work from our strawberry project, showcasing innovative research in collaboration with our partners, including the National Institute of Agricultural Botany (NIAB - pictured here at their headquarters!).

We’re very proud of Winnie’s achievement and look forward to her continued impact on sustainable agriculture. 🌱

Congrats, Winnie! 👏

More info here: https://www.newphytologist.org/nextgenevents/2025

04/03/2025

We’re thrilled to announce that Jamie Burrows, Founder & CEO of Vertical Future, will participate in a fireside chat hosted by the excellent Oliver Bonallack at the next Rebel Meetup by Rebellious Co (Climate Edition)!

Jamie looks forward to sharing his insights and experiences as a founder driving change in sustainable food production.

📅 Date: Wednesday, March 26, 2025
🕓 Time: 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM GMT
📍 Location: The Mills, Fabrica, 36-40 York Way, Kings Cross, London, N1 9AB

Join us for a casual evening of networking, learning, and sharing ideas with like-minded professionals and founders from across the sustainability ecosystem. No formal agenda or dress code — just a great opportunity to connect and spark new conversations!

We look forward to seeing you there and hearing about your own sustainability journey. 🌱💡

More info here: https://www.meetup.com/london-meetups/events/306359338/

04/03/2025

As Vertical Future’s UK Space Agency IBF-funded project nears the end of phase 2, we are excited to share that we have developed a range of innovative technologies and data management strategies designed to support autonomous agriculture, enhancing efficiencies both in space and here on Earth. 🌍🚀

Our international collaboration with partners in Australia and the USA has been pivotal in advancing our approach at an impressive pace. The next step? In-flight testing, and we can’t wait to see what’s ahead!

It’s thrilling to be part of this pioneering journey as we continue to bridge space exploration with sustainable agricultural practices. 🌱

We boost UK prosperity, understand the Universe, and protect our planet and outer space.

04/03/2025

The future of CEA is getting a lot of attention this year, and for good reason. 🌱

As the world continues to explore both glasshouse growing and vertical farming, here are a few key points to consider going forward:

- There's a clear demand gap in CEA, even for niche crops with small market shares. 🌍

- However, CEA's success depends heavily on geography—there’s no one-size-fits-all solution.

- Learning from past failures is critical for both new and established players.

- Tech is essential, but the true value lies in developing growing algorithms with data, patience, and time.

- Expertise from traditional growers is invaluable as we move forward.

- Vertical farms have a long way to go before reaching saturation or competitive market share, but progress is being made.

- Food prices are rising and will continue to do so across all socioeconomic groups.

- Scale is crucial, even if it involves setbacks along the way.

- Water issues need urgent attention, as they’re just as vital as food security.

CEA holds potential beyond food—there's a huge opportunity for cross-sector benefits.

To make real progress, we need time, ambition, and collaboration. Let’s accelerate our actions and create a better future for generations to come. 🌍

03/02/2025

🚀 Exciting News! 🚀

We’re thrilled to announce that Jamie Burrows, our Founder & CEO, has been invited to speak at the Unicorn Summit 2025 in Lisbon, Portugal!

🗓️ June 29–30 & July 1–2, 2025
📍 Lisbon, Portugal

Jamie will join other inspiring entrepreneurs and academics to discuss growth, innovation, and the future of sustainable technologies. He’ll dive into controlled-environment agriculture (CEA), its wide-ranging use cases and our services here at Vertical Future — powered by our cutting-edge technologies and incredible multi-disciplinary team. 🌱

🔗 www.unicornsummit.net

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