Supported by controlled environment agriculture specialists, Light Science Technologies, the TRIP field trials aim to improve sustainability when growing potatoes, with 5.8 million environmental data records collected during the 2024 potato growing season.

The TRIP (Transformative Reduced Input in Potatoes) project is a 3-year research program to develop methods of growing potatoes with fewer inputs of inorganic nutrients, fungicides, herbicides, insecticides and energy.

The aim is to identify scalable farming techniques and reduce resulting emissions of greenhouse gases, including CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) and N2O (Nitrous Oxide).

Using Light Science Technologies' innovative sensorGROW system, the TRIP project has gathered 5.8 million total environmental records (air temp, light, CO2, pressure, humidity and N2O). These measurements can provide valuable insights into possible correlations and covariances to wider environmental conditions.

"With over 300 million tonnes produced globally each year, the TRIP project is set to drive major innovations that will enhance the sustainability of potato production. With millions of data records under analysis, the TRIP team are making significant progress in their mission to help shape the future of food" says Craig Price, Operations Director of Light Science Technologies.

The sensorGROW system allows growers to collect real-time data on light, temperature, humidity, CO2 levels and pressure, empowering them to make more informed decisions to optimise yields.

As a supporter of the TRIP project, Light Science Technologies previously enhanced their sensorGROW system to measure N2O emission from the soil.

A total of 55 sensorGROW devices have been deployed across three farm sites in the UK, delivering 3,240 hours of in-field testing per sensor in 2024 alone.

Now in its final year, TRIP have made additional developments with a self-powered gateway to enable live-streaming of collected data via 4G roaming.

"For the first time this season, we are live streaming data via our outdoor gateway platform. This means the comprehensive view of environmental measurements that our sensors can provide can be reviewed in real-time for more timely analysis" adds Craig.

The TRIP project is being delivered by a consortium of organisations, including Dyson Farming Research, Emerald Research, Bangor University, James Hutton Institute as well as Light Science Technologies.

Founded in 2019, Light Science Technologies specialises in producing advanced lighting systems that deliver the perfect ‘recipe' of light for crops grown under glass. Their lighting solutions are used within commercial greenhouses, polytunnels, vertical farming and for medical plants.

"Using our innovative sensors, we have helped push research forward with real-time data driven results on crop growing emissions. We can't wait to share the final findings when the project concludes later this year!" concludes Craig.

More information about the TRIP trials can be found at https://www.triptrials.co.uk/

More information about Light Science Technologies can be found at https://lightsciencetech.com/