Space Farms Georgia

This interview details the Spots Project, an indoor farming project based in Georgia. The interview is with Tusya Garibashvili.

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What is the origin story of Space Farms?‍

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Space Farms was started by Tusya Garibashvili, who was intrigued by the idea of transforming traditional farming practices in Georgia. Her vision for a new generation of high-tech farming in Georgia involved growing crops indoors in urban areas, a concept relatively new to the country.

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She and her friend began with a small cultivation area of 15 m2 where they grew various microgreens, which were delivered to restaurants and other catering organizations.

Tusya's innovative concept about Vertical Farming inside the hotel caught the attention of Temur Ugulava, the founder of Adjara Group, who became a key supporter and collaborator.

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This partnership allowed for the creation of the first indoor farm space in Georgia, which was situated inside the Stamba Hotel, a former Soviet printing press building.

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What are some of the biggest challenges facing Space Farms in the future? ‍

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Some of the challenges faced by SpaceFarms include introducing the concept of vertical farming and indoor cultivation to a country with little agricultural production and high reliance on imported produce and population that are traditional farming followers.

We also had to experiment with different crops to set the right growing parameters and struggle to supply fresh greens for the entire building of Stamba Hotel, which was the first indoor farm space in Georgia​

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Vertical Farming in general faces challenges such as high startup costs, energy use, and the need for continuous innovation to remain competitive.

Additionally, Space Farms is constantly looking for new crop varieties to grow in farm, and we are putting significant effort into enabling grape cultivation indoors, which might present its own set of challenges

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What is unique about Space Farms compared to competitors?

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Space Farms is unique in its environmentally friendly approach, which includes considerably reducing carbon footprint, resulting in very little waste, and using 75% less water than traditional farming. It uses advanced technologies to fully control the environment (light intensity, nutrient intake, humidity, carbon dioxide emissions, and temperature) for optimal plant growth.

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It also utilizes cloud-based sustainable farming software that provides intelligent analytics and improves indoor farming practices daily. Space Farms is also unique in its location, as it is the first indoor farm space in Georgia, located within an urban setting (inside a hotel) which is not commonly seen in traditional farming. It offers a unique product range, including leafy greens that are sold with their roots intact and accompanied by special instructions​

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My team and I are also working on a new project called "Spots", which involves the creation of modular farm spots that can produce crops year-round. This project is particularly beneficial to the HORECA and Supermarket industry, allowing restaurants ,cafes and Supermarkets to grow their own greens, which are then maintained in Georgia. The system is designed to fit any space.

The year 2023 has proven to be significant for SpaceFarms and Spots, the company making considerable progress in its Spots project. The project's  has raised funding from GITA and USAID Agriculture project for Spots, which can produce 20-60 kg of crops monthly irrespective of the season, use only 2sqrm of space, Spots has been successfully installed in several locations, lika a Lolita, Ska Salad bar and etc. in Tbilisi  and we are plans to make it available in markets soon.

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How do you measure the impact of your company so far? (Revenue, Employees, Customer Quantity, Production Volume) etc? 

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Spacefarms farm production monthly up to 700 kg of leafy greens and up to 50 kg microgreens.

Spots production is up to 25 kg monthly greens. From 2 sq.m

Inside farm works 3 employee ( 5 day in week)  and 2 employee weekend.

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What have you learned that you wish you knew when you started the company? 

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In my indoor vertical farming startup, every experience has been a valuable learning opportunity. While there is nothing I would change, each step has contributed to my knowledge and growth. Believing in the project, embracing mistakes, continuous learning, and building a strong network have all played significant roles in my journey.

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How can people connect with you or learn more about Space Farms?

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The official website of Space Farms would be a good place to start. There, people can learn more about the company, its projects, and its vision. People also contact via email contact@spaceframs.ge

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Instagram for updates and more information:

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For the Spots Project, follow @SpotsbySpacefarms

To stay connected with our farm, check out @spacefarms.ge

For consulting services, you can follow @tusyagaribashvili

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