Cryptocurrency and farming aren't two things that are typically paired together, but that's exactly what Abbotsford's Affinor Growers has accomplished with its new partnership with BlockLab.
Affinor, which operates four-level towers for growing strawberries in Abbotsford, wanted a more efficient way to help heat its strawberries, so it partnered with Eastern Canada's BlockLab to utilize the Hestia Bitcoin mining furnace technology.
This unique system harnesses the heat generated by the computer networks during Bitcoin mining and redirects it to keep crops at a sustainable temperature while reducing the need for additional costly heating sources.
To offset the often significant amounts of energy needed to mine Bitcoin, BlockLab will power the mining process through a combination of Affinor's existing solar infrastructure and Tesla Powerwall batteries.
Affinor CEO Nick Brusatore explained that this partnership should encourage additional companies to explore what might otherwise be considered unorthodox pairings with other industries to find creative and effective alternatives to common issues.
"We are very excited to explore this opportunity at our Abbotsford greenhouse facility to showcase the synergy between cryptocurrency mining and indoor agriculture, further demonstrating how two unrelated industries can collaborate to maximize resources and reduce environmental impact," Brusatore said.
As part of this deal, Affinor received 300,000 BlockLab stock options that are exercisable for five years at a price point of five cents per share.
