BASF Nunhems Opens an Automated Greenhouse to Breed Lettuce for Indoor Farms

The lettuce in a vertical farm doesn’t come from just anywhere: it needs varieties bred for dense, controlled growing. On October 16, 2026, HortiDaily reported that BASF’s vegetable seeds business, Nunhems, has completed a new automated greenhouse at its breeding station in ’s-Gravenzande, in the Dutch Westland greenhouse region.

More data, fewer seeds

The new “green automation” system extends the site’s existing capacity. It lets breeders evaluate significantly more breeding material using fewer seeds, producing larger and more robust datasets earlier in the selection process. The goal is to make faster, better-informed decisions on which lines to keep — and to bring improved lettuce varieties to growers sooner.

Focus: teen leaf lettuce for high-tech farms

The facility targets high-tech teen leaf lettuce, young leaves harvested between baby leaf and full head size. Nunhems says the segment is growing fast as more growers adopt controlled-environment, high-density systems. The company cites its Finstar and Arcticstar varieties as examples already used in some of the most advanced indoor lettuce operations.

“The high-tech lettuce market continues to grow, and innovation remains essential to stay ahead.” — Peter Does, Product Developer at BASF | Nunhems

A lettuce hub in ’s-Gravenzande

’s-Gravenzande is Nunhems’ dedicated centre for lettuce breeding and product development. The new greenhouse has already been planted with its first crop and will soon be shown to customers and visitors. Nunhems has not disclosed the investment amount or the size of the facility.

Rocks take

Breeding is the unseen half of indoor farming: LED racks and climate control only pay off if the plants are bred for them. Automation in breeding greenhouses — measuring more plants, more often — is the same logic we apply at home with sensors on a few pots, just at seed-company scale. For home growers, the lesson is simple: when you choose lettuce for a hydroponic kit, varieties labelled for indoor or high-density growing really do behave differently.