Vertical farming company Smartkas has lost its case against equipment supplier Artechno Growsystems at a court in The Hague, the Netherlands, while Artechno’s counter claim has been granted (see original HortNews story here).
As a result, Smartkas has been ordered to pay €400,000 in outstanding invoices (plus interest) and legal costs of almost €30,000. The claim followed a failed vertical farming venture in Amsterdam from 2021, with Smartkas claiming the climate-control chambers supplied by Artechno were delivered late and did not work properly. As a result, Smartkas demanded a refund of more than €7.3 million plus damages.
The court ruled that there was no evidence for these claims and that the delivery and installation were carried out according to the agreement. It also ruled against Smartkas’ allegation of defects in the delivered system and claims it had been misled when signing additional agreements.
According to VerticalFarm Daily, Artechno had claimed that Smartkas had made similar claims about other suppliers. “It seems to be a structural practice of the company, and the court has now put an end to it,” Artechno commented.
As HortNews previously reported, in 2023 Smartkas joined forces with BerryWorld to develop a 12-story indoor farm for berry production in Essex, but the UK company was declared bankrupt in February 2024, with the largest creditor to Smartkas UK being parent company Smartkas B.V.
