Announced last month, Windset Farms has embarked on a new smart farming initiative at its Delta, British Columbia, headquarters designed to improve how crops are grown, managed and monitored in a changing climate.
This is a joint project, supported by the B.C. Centre for Agritech Innovation, and is in partnership with Simon Fraser University, Koidra Inc., Vivent Biosignals, and Wageningen University & Research in the Netherlands.
Ryan Cherry, vice president of sales and marketing at Windset Farms, says the international project is part of a broader focus on the province’s ag tech industry. This smart farming initiative at Windset Farms’ Delta facility is part of a $658,000 joint investment between the B.C. Centre for Agritech Innovation and industry partners on three specific projects.
Cherry says this investment seeks to boost food security, create good jobs, support communities and help spur growth in the controlled environment agriculture industry.
“By working with industry, academia and government, we’re developing solutions that address climate change while building a more sustainable and resilient agriculture sector for all British Columbians,” he says.
Moving From Reactive to Proactive Management
Cherry says what’s unique about this project, which officially began in spring 2025, is it incorporates sensors to monitor plant stress from Vivent Biosignals and intelligent automation from Koidra to provide a holistic look at Windset’s greenhouse tomato production. Vivent provides the biological data that Koidra’s machine learning uses to adjust the automated system.
“Vivent Biosignals allows us to ‘listen’ directly to the plants by capturing their electrical signals, which can indicate stress long before it’s visible to the human eye,” he says. “Koidra’s AI platform then helps analyze that plant-level data alongside environmental and operational information. Together, they create a decision-support system that’s plant-centric, combining biological insight with advanced analytics to guide greenhouse management.”
Cherry says this integration signals a shift in Windset’s decision-making process.
“Instead of responding once plants show visible stress or disease, the system helps flag issues early and supports more precise climate, irrigation and nutrient adjustments,” he explains. “That means healthier plants, more consistent production and better resource use driven by real-time data.”
Over the course of this project, the team hopes to learn how plants communicate stress in real time, which can then translate to better information for growers, Cherry says.
“Pest infestations and diseases are critical in greenhouse environments because they can spread quickly and affect large volumes of crops,” he says. “Early detection enables faster, more targeted responses that protect yield, reduce losses and minimize the need for more aggressive interventions later.”
Cherry says there are also broader benefits with better information. These include more efficient uses of inputs.
“By better understanding what plants need, the system supports smarter irrigation, nutrient delivery and climate control,” he says. “While specific savings will emerge from the trial data, the long-term expectation is reduced waste and improved sustainable growing practices.”
Scalability and the Future of Specialty Crops
While the project currently focuses on greenhouse-grown tomatoes, Cherry says the hope is that the insights from this trial would have broader applications in the specialty crop industry.
“While this project is focused on a specific production system, the project aims to make the underlying technology highly adaptable,” he says. “A proof-of-concept here opens the door to broader applications across the agri-food sector.”
Cherry says the research team has currently focused on validating performance improvements, including plant health, consistency, early detection accuracy and production efficiency versus quantifiable metrics or yield goals. He adds that the research team hopes to have products, services and processes ready for market within 24 months.
“What’s exciting is that this early work lays the foundation for long-term adoption across the sector,” he says.
Cherry explains this will also help provide more reliable year-round access to fresh produce for consumers and retailers.
“It helps stabilize supply, reduces vulnerability to disruptions and supports food security by strengthening domestic production,” he says. “Over time, that consistency benefits both retailers and shoppers.”
Building a Skilled Agri-Tech Workforce
Windset Farms’ smart farming trial is part of a larger New Smart Farming project, which includes robotic weeding technology development at the University of the Fraser Valley and drought-resilient training at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. Cherry says this project will also boost opportunities for those working in the ag tech space.
“Beyond the technology itself, the entire New Smart Farming project, through B.C. Centre for Agritech Innovation, announced it is investing heavily in training and upskilling, noting that more than 353 people are expected to receive advanced training in agri-tech, innovation and business,” he says. “This will bring highly qualified personnel into the sector to support the industry well beyond this single project.”
The investment is also a commitment to resilient, consistent food production, Cherry says.
“By integrating advanced technologies into greenhouse operations, we’re strengthening Canada’s ability to produce fresh food locally year-round while reducing reliance on imports,” he says. “It’s about building a more secure, climate-resilient agricultural system.”
It’s also a signal that smart farming is more than a buzzword, Cherry says. The project is proof that it is foundational to specialty crop production, especially CEA production.
“The integration of AI, plant-based sensing and automation represents a fundamental shift in how growers manage risk, resources and productivity,” he says.
