REG - Light Science Tech. - Award of Grant Funding

Light Science Technologies HoldingsAnnouncement

21/09/2023 07:00

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RNS Number : 1312N  Light Science Tech. Holdings PLC  21 September 2023

 

Light Science Technologies Holdings plc

("LSTH", the "Company" or the "Group")

 

Award of Grant Funding

 

Funded by DEFRA & UKRI, targeting reduced environmental damage from potato
production

 

Light Science Technologies Holdings plc (AIM: LST), the controlled environment
agriculture ("CEA") technology and contract electronics manufacturing ("CEM")
group, announces that it is participating in a 36-month £1.74m
collaboration, funded by The Department for Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs ("Defra") and the UK Research and Innovation ("UKRI") Transforming
Food Production Challenge. LSTH will receive a grant of £209,506 over the
36-month programme.

 

The project, Transformative Reduced Input Potatoes ("TRIP"), consortium
includes a range of commercial potato growers across England - from
Lincolnshire to Cornwall - and includes farms owned and managed by Dyson
Farming Ltd ("Dyson Farming"). It will test out a range of regenerative
cultivation methods that could reduce the environmental damage caused by
producing potatoes.

 

As part of the collaboration the Company will add Nitrous Oxide sensing
capabilities to its existing SensorGROW product and supply sensors to various
growing sites, phased to be delivered in Q2 2024.

Over the 36-month period TRIP will investigate new breeds of disease resistant
potato, new nutrient treatments for use on leaves instead of soil, reduced
tillage methods including use of mulches as a growing medium and new methods
to monitor greenhouse gas emissions from farmers' fields.

 

Dyson Farming, The James Hutton Institute, Emerald Research, The Sarvari
Research Trust and scientists from Bangor University's School of Environmental
and Natural Science and Biocomposites Centre will all collaborate with LSTH on
the project.

 

Dr Christine Jones, Dyson Farming, commented: "Many farmers are seeking ways
of producing their crops more sustainably but the particular requirements for
growing a potato crop can make it a challenge to incorporate potatoes into a
sustainable rotation. Outcomes from the TRIP project can be expected to offer
growers a range of methods to reduce inputs to, and impact from, potato crops.
Collaboration between the TRIP partners provides an exciting opportunity to
bring together different areas of development and to turn science into
practice for potato growers."

 

Simon Deacon, Chief Executive Officer of LSTH, commented: "We are delighted to
be involved in such a strong consortium and grateful for the support of UKRI
and Defra. This will be an exciting opportunity to take SensorGROW from indoor
to outdoor growing, while enabling the Company to forge new relationships
within the research, policy, and commercial growing pools."

 

For additional information please contact:

 

 

 Light Science Technologies Holdings plc                    www.lightsciencetechnologiesholdings.com

                                                          (http://www.lightsciencetechnologiesholdings.com/)

 Simon Deacon, Chief Executive Officer                      via Walbrook PR

 Jim Snooks, Chief Financial Officer

 Andrew Hempsall, Chief Operating Officer

 Strand Hanson Limited (Nominated & Financial Adviser)      Tel: +44 (0) 20 7409 3494
 Ritchie Balmer / James Harris / Rob Patrick

 Oberon Capital (Broker)
 Mike Seabrook / Nick Lovering                              Tel: +44 (0) 203 179 5300

 Walbrook PR Ltd (Media & Investor Relations)               Tel: +44 (0)20 7933 8780 or lst@walbrookpr.com (mailto:lst@walbrookpr.com)

 Nick Rome / Paul McManus

 

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of
the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014, as it forms part of UK domestic
law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, as amended.

 

About Light Science Technologies Holdings plc
(www.lightsciencetechnologiesholdings.com
(http://www.lightsciencetechnologiesholdings.com) )

Light Science Technologies Holdings plc is the holding company of the Group's
controlled environment agriculture ("CEA") division, comprising Light Science
Technologies Ltd ("Light Science Technologies") and Tomtech (UK) Limited
("Tomtech"), alongside its contract electronics manufacturing ("CEM")
division, UK Circuits and Electronics Solutions Limited ("UK Circuits").

 

Controlled Environment Agriculture

Light Science Technologies was founded in 2019 and is the Company's grow
lights and sensor technology business, providing bespoke recipes and
technologies tailored to customers' needs - with key targets including indoor,
vertical, glasshouses, polytunnels and medicinal farming markets. The
all-in-one CEA solution will include analysing customers' crop growing
requirements to provide bespoke, low-energy and sustainable equipment.
Tomtech, which was acquired in September 2023, further broadened the Group's
portfolio with its control systems usable across multiple crops in glasshouses
and other horticultural environments. Additionally, it generates long-term
recurring revenues via maintenance, servicing, and software contracts.

 

Market drivers include food and water shortages in many parts of the world;
growing global population; UK and other government policy encouraging
sustainable and efficient growth methods; increased scrutiny of the effect of
food production on climate change and the continuing transition away from
processed foods.

 

sensorGROW

sensorGROW was launched in June 2022 and its technology will enable farmers to
monitor the following key air zone growing factors in real-time: carbon
dioxide levels, humidity, light, oxygen - and in the future: air speed, plant
disease, soil, temperature and water pH levels. By monitoring these key
growing factors, farmers can save money through better management of
resources: water, nutrients, fertilisers and energy - while increasing yields
and producing healthier crops.

 

nurturGROW

nurturGROW is a sustainable grow lighting product range, offering an
innovative, high-performance and cost-effective solution for indoor farming,
covering greenhouses, vertical farming, polytunnels and medicinal plants.

 

Created with four core component parts, the nurturGROW range is made of high
quality, durable materials to give growers the ideal balance between strength
and optimal performance, minimising the amount of materials needed to
drastically cut down on waste and reduce carbon footprint.

 

Tomtech

Tomtech was established in 1986 as a sole trader and incorporated as Tomtech
(UK) Limited in 2011. Since then, it has become a UK leader in control systems
for commercial greenhouses and polytunnels. Since launching its first product
over 35 years ago, it has been at the forefront of the sector, providing
innovative and effective products and solutions.

 

It now provides comprehensive solutions to customers helping them create,
monitor and maintain an optimised cultivating environment within glasshouses
and other horticultural spaces. Its sensors monitor temperature, humidity,
light, carbon dioxide, pH, nutrients and more - whilst its intelligent systems
help control irrigation, fertigation, dosing, ventilation, light and more.

 

Its highly adaptive systems are used throughout the UK and Ireland to optimise
growing conditions for multiple types of crops grown within commercial
greenhouses and other horticultural environments.

 

Contract Electronics Manufacturing

UK Circuits is the Company's CEM focussed division, profit making with strong
revenues. The Group designs, procures, and manufactures high-quality CEM
products, specialising in Printed Circuit Boards, which are used in a range of
sectors including audio, automotive, electronics, gas detection, lighting,
pest control, telecommunications and, more recently, the CEA market.

 

 

 

 

 

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