japan opens the super sprout factory, an artificially-lit type plant factory

hiroshima-based murakami farm co. — the largest producer of sprouts in japan — has announced the establishment of its 10th production factory. dubbed the super sprout factory and located in hokum city, yamanashi prefecture, the completion of this structure makes it the largest, fully artificially lit type plant factory in japan and plans to expand the production capacity of broccoli super sprouts, a well-sought after product.

images by murakami farm

the super sprout factory by murakami farm co. is the world’s most advanced plant factory introducing a central control system that enables centralized management and monitoring of the cultivation equipment and environment. once it reaches its full capacity, the production capacity of broccoli super sprouts will be tripled. this high-ingredient vegetable, which is basically a three-day-old broccoli plant, has higher concentrations of sulforaphane, an active compound that my benefit cancer, cholesterol, diabetes, skin damage, autism, and more.

as consumers become more health conscious, various research results on sulforaphane have attracted attention, and shipments have increased more than seven times in the last 10 years (comparing 2010 and 2020). in some cases, the production volume could not keep up with the increasing demand, and there was an urgent need to expand the production bases. the super sprout factory will significantly expand the production capacity of this product and establish a system that can fully meet the demands of the customers. in addition, employees of the facility will be actively hired from the local area to contribute to the creation of local employment.

project info:

name: super sprout factory

company: murakami farm
location: 3394-415 ogasahara, akeno-cho, hokuto-shi, yamanashi
site area: approx. 9,470 m2
building area: approx. 4,600 m2
total floor area: approx. 9,480 m2 (2 basement floors, 1 floor above ground)
product: broccoli super sprout
production capacity:
– first phase: cultivation equipment 264 units / annual production 35 million packs
– second phase: 528 cultivation equipment / 70 million packs per year
investment scale: 3.5 billion yen