The Path a Head of Lettuce Takes Through the Icheon Farm

A bag of lettuce sitting on a supermarket shelf carries quite a journey within it. At N.THING's Icheon farm, CUBE.ICHEON, that journey begins with a seed and ends in a box. Today, let's follow a single head of lettuce on a walk through the farm.

First, the nursery building

The Icheon farm was built by joining container modules together: 28 cultivation modules, 4 nursery modules, and 4 utility modules. The lettuce's first home is the nursery building.

Seeds are sown by the tray and grow into seedlings under uniform conditions in the nursery zone. The nursery building is a space dedicated to producing good seedlings. The reason the seedling stage is kept separate is that young plants and fully grown plants require different space and conditions. While they are small seedlings, they are placed densely in a compact area.

Transplanting into the cultivation building

Once the seedlings have grown, they are transplanted into the cultivation building. This step is called transplanting. The cultivation building is the space where crops are grown from transplanting until harvest.

Inside the cultivation building, the lettuce does not stay in one spot. It is moved between cultivation beds according to its growth stage, with spacing adjusted along the way. The larger the head grows, the more room it needs.

Throughout this period, light, temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide, and nutrients are all controlled. Temperature, humidity, CO₂, light intensity, and nutrient solution values are collected by the minute, and N.FARM.AI controls the LEDs, HVAC, and irrigation equipment according to the set values. The data generated in one growing cycle is used to determine the set values for the next.

Harvesting by forecast

The harvest date is not decided by eye on the day. Predictions learned from growth patterns estimate the harvest timing and expected yield in advance, and harvesting is carried out zone by zone. Knowing in advance when, what, and how much will be harvested is what makes shipping planning possible.

Packed the same day, shipped the same day

The harvested lettuce goes to the processing building. The processing building is the space for sowing, harvesting, trimming, washing, and sterilizing equipment. The lettuce is packed on the day it is harvested and shipped via cold chain.

N.THING designed the farm so that everything—from nursery tray transport to cultivation bed rotation, and from post-harvest packing to shipping—flows as a single continuous process. Repetitive tasks are handled by equipment, while people focus on judging quality and handling exceptions.

The leafy greens grown at the Icheon farm are cultivated under pesticide-free certification and GAP certification. Growing indoors, unaffected by weather or season, and delivering the same quality year-round along the same path is this farm's goal.

You can see the Icheon farm and the other farms N.THING has built on our Projects page.