[Report] Pesticide-Free Eco-Friendly Cultivation Method... Strawberries Hanging in Clusters in Just 40 Days

World's Largest Vertical Plant Factory in Closed Okcheon Tunnel
Visiting NextOn's First Facility
600m Length, 6678㎡ Area
Automatic Control of Light, Temperature, and Humidity

Choi Jae-bin, CEO of Nexton, is smiling brightly inside the plant factory created using the interior of the Okcheon Tunnel in Chungbuk.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daeseop] The first business site of 'NextOn' in Cheongseong-myeon, Okcheon-gun, Chungbuk. When the firmly closed tunnel door opened, an air shower booth appeared. After completing disinfection and other procedures in the enclosed air shower space, one could approach inside the tunnel. Inside the tunnel, a new world unfolded. The facility, equipped with advanced convergence technology, was filled with strawberries and vegetables grown using pesticide-free eco-friendly cultivation methods.

Choi Jaebin, CEO of NextOn, said, "It is the world's largest plant factory as a single business site," and added, "It is a vertical indoor farm with the highest-level technology that can control everything in the smart farm sector." This plant factory was created by leasing the closed Okcheon Tunnel, which was part of the old section of the Gyeongbu Expressway.

The tunnel is 600 meters long. Eco-friendly food products are growing in a space of 6,678㎡. According to CEO Choi, this area corresponds to 1,157,025㎡ when viewed as a cultivation environment based on facility agriculture standards such as vinyl greenhouses. Compared to general cultivation sites, even with the same area, the stacked structure design allows for much higher production.

Inside the tunnel, planted strawberry seedlings stand out. There are about 50,000 plants. They are scheduled to be shipped starting in November. Further inside the tunnel, vegetables are growing. There are more than 80 kinds of vegetables and herbs, including lettuce.

Kim Jungwook, Head of Marketing at NextOn, said, "Generally, it takes about 60 to 90 days for strawberries to grow from seedlings and planting to flowering and fruiting in open fields, but in our plant factory, it takes about 40 days," adding, "We are also mass-producing premium salad vegetables and supplying them to food companies."

In plant factories, how to supply and control the environment for light, temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide necessary for photosynthesis, and nutrients is crucial. NextOn has the technology to properly control and create these conditions and a mass production system. For strawberries, technology is needed to grow flowers and enable natural pollination.

Ocheon Tunnel Entrance (Photo by NextOn)

CEO Choi emphasized, "Bees think it is night no matter how bright it is when they enter indoors. Our technology creates an environment like daytime and a flight path that allows bees to go only to the flowers." While lettuce is usually grown four times a year, NextOn's plant factory can produce it 17 times annually.

At the end of the tunnel, there was a door. When opened, vegetable shipping work was in full swing. Most of the production workers at this plant factory are local residents. CEO Choi said, "About 50 local residents aged 65 or older work as production staff at the Okcheon first business site. We have completed interviews to hire about 40 more people in time for the strawberry harvest season in November."

NextOn is an agricultural corporation established in 2017. It possesses core technology for smart farm operation, such as energy-saving air conditioning technology (temperature and humidity control). It also developed its own LED light optimal for crop growth. Over 4 billion KRW in R&D costs and more than 10 billion KRW in facility funds were invested to build the world's largest plant factory.

NextOn is a graduate company of the Youth Startup Academy operated by the Small and Medium Business Corporation. The corporation evaluated NextOn's technology and business potential and decided to support 3 billion KRW in startup funds. This fund will be used to expand the business through the introduction of new facilities.

NextOn has also attracted more than 5 billion KRW in investment from investment companies, recognizing its excellent technology. In addition to the plant factory made using the Okcheon Tunnel, it is promoting the construction of smart farms in other regions. It plans to establish a total of six plant factories in various locations including Seoul, Taebaek in Gangwon, and Andong in Gyeongbuk. In Seoul, it plans to create an 'urban smart farm' at Nambu Terminal in Seocho-dong.

CEO Choi said, "Our goal is to achieve sales of 4 billion KRW this year and 20 billion KRW next year."