SMARTKAS is an agtech enterprise based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.  We refer to ourselves as a technology company who provides food security, as opposed to an agricultural company that dabbles with technology. 

However, we are not a technology vendor. We use technology to enhance our growing process, increase the yield of our smart farms, reduce expenses and improve the sustainability of our business. But we don’t sell our technology or our innovative solutions.

According to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, “food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life”. For a person or a country to be food secure, the following criteria need to be met: availability, access, utilization and stability of food.

Global food security is threatened by a number of factors including climate change, population growth, overuse of pesticides and geopolitical considerations. SMARTKAS believes only innovative solutions will ensure the world is able to provide food for 10 billion people by 2050. We provide food security as a service.

SMARTKAS operates smart farms across Europe and is on an ambitious growth plan to expand to other strategic locations. Our flagship strawberry and lettuce smart farm is located at our head office in Amsterdam’s Fokker Logistics Park, the Netherlands. With ten hydroponic layers sat on a base layer of 6,000 sq. m. it is the world’s largest, fully automated indoor farm.

In Harlow, United Kingdom we operate the country’s largest and highest yielding vertical farm. The smart strawberry farm features 12 layers sat on a base layer of 2,250 sq. m., providing a growing space of 27,000 sq. m. (300,000 sq. ft.).

In 2022, SMARTKAS signed an MoU with the municipality of São João del-Rei to build and operate smart greenhouses on 65-hectares of land.

SMARTKAS also has a dedicated robotic vision and AI lab as well as the the CEE Headquarters, located in Budapest, Hungary.

We will be sharing details about where you can buy our delicious tasting fruit and vegetables in the coming weeks.

Our smart farms are fully closed environments to maintain the highest health and safety standards, which means we cannot allow the general public inside. For more details about how our farms operate and what they look like inside, follow us on our social media channels.

SMARTKAS has ambitious plans to expand its global footprint and is always looking for enthusiastic new team members. Our exciting job opportunities are listed on the careers section of this website.

A SMARTKAS smart farm can come in all shapes and sizes. Once we have identified a great location for a smart farm, we perform feasibility and economic studies, as well as geopolitical analysis.

This gives us a score for every single country and their regions. This is what we refer to as technology sophistication level. These range from manually run optimized greenhouses to fully automated indoor vertical farms. The common thread is that we always use the latest technology available.

Hydroponic farming is a blanket term for growing plants without soil. Fruit and vegetables are planted in inert growing material and supplied with a nutrient-rich solution to foster rapid growth with stronger and superior quality yields. At SMARTKAS, we combine hydroponic farming with technology to create the ideal growing environment for our plants. While our vertical layers of Nutrient Filled Trays (NFTs) feed our plants, AI and robotics manage all other aspects of the growth process.

We are proudly pesticide and genetically modified-free. Our hydroponic growing systems operate in a fully closed environment, which means we don't need to use pesticides. Our plants are fed with the best organic nutrient mix.

Generally speaking, to be certified organic a product must be grown in soil. This does, however, vary from country to country. For example, in the US, produce grown hydroponically can be labeled organic but not in the Netherlands. Given all of our products are grown hydroponically, they cannot be certified organic. However, all of our produce is 100 percent pesticide-free and chemical-free.

Rather than looking at smart farming as a competitor to traditional farming, it should be considered complementary. Traditional farming is currently unable to meet growing demands. To feed the growing population while at the same time respecting the environment, we need to work together to ensure we no longer face food shortages in the future.

SMARTKAS produce is entirely GMO- and pesticide-free. Our unique varieties are carefully selected to create aroma rich and better tasting produce without the need to genetically modify the crops. No soil remnants, no washing, and absolutely no contamination through human touch are involved in the growing process.

In addition to cultivating leafy greens, microgreens and lettuce, SMARTKAS smart farms can grow up to 50 different varieties of fruit, vegetables and herbs.

Our Netherlands smart farm grows six varieties of lettuce (Oak Red, Caravel, Lalique, Batavia Green, Crispy Green and Crystal Green) and will later introduce strawberries. In the UK, we have partnered with a local breeder to grow its bestselling strawberry variety hydroponically for the first time.

SMARTKAS growing systems are sustainable for a number of reasons. We always use renewable sources of energy such as wind and solar power and our hydroponic systems recirculate 95 percent of the water used to grow the crops.

We are truly water positive, as the water and CO2 management systems at our vertical farms can generate the missing 5 to 10 percent of water through atmospheric water generation. This means we also minimize waste.

SMARTKAS farms are always operated locally, and therefore there is no need for our produce to be shipped to faraway destinations, cutting down CO2 emissions.

One of our founding principles at SMARTKAS is not to compete with local, small-holder farmers, but to collaborate to find the most sustainable ways of growing fruit and vegetables. We carefully consider the unique conditions in each area we choose to operate in. This means, for example, that we never grow varieties already grown by traditional farmers in a given area.