A new update has been released regarding the handling of Future Crops' bankruptcy. However, the report still doesn't mention the cause of the company's collapse, which dates back to January 2023. The court-appointed trustee did note that he had "confronted the management with his preliminary findings from the legality investigation." In his latest public report, published on October 31, he states that he is currently waiting for the management's response.
Cause
Normally, the reasons behind a bankruptcy become clear within a reasonable period of time, but that hasn't been the case for Future Crops, which is unusual.
While the official reports on the bankruptcy make no reference to its cause, a clue did appear during an equipment auction in 2023. In the online auction announcement, it was noted that "the sharp rise in energy costs has made it difficult for vertical farms in the European Union and the United States to compete with traditional growers." The same message added: "It is unknown whether high energy costs or the scale of the investment were the main reasons behind the bankruptcy of Future Crops." That still appears to be the case.
For other vertical farms that went bankrupt around the same time, or shortly after, soaring energy prices often played a significant role.
