OUR HISTORY / TIMELINE
2003
Where it all began: We were Vertical Farming since 2003! Our first living wall was edible produce. The idea of saving space by growing salad in our first-generation living walls led us to larger-scale outdoor vertical farms where space was limited or in the inner city / urban areas void of plots to plant.
2007
GLTI is the first green tech company to establish a global training curriculum for contractors, architects, and other professionals.
2008
Organic Growing Indoor Techniques: Our techniques incorporate compost allowing us to grow 100% organic just like field-grown products, only with 100% control of the variables, which allows us to predict yields!
2008
Implements job training program for the homeless population in Los Angeles, California, specific to the company’s vertical farming technology.
2009
Masdar City: GLTI was the first in the world to modernize vertical agriculture and develop the “Farm of the Future” in the World’s Most Eco-Friendly City.
2009
GLTI vertical farms are featured on Good Morning America with Chris Como. The segment features a Tomato Vertical farm designed and installed by an early trial of GLTI lesson plans. Spring boarding the implementation of a full 4-year curriculum.
2010
GLTI develops a 4-year curriculum for the Discovery High School (Bronx, NY) specifically serving the under-serviced inner-city populations. Overwhelming success with attendance skyrocketing from 43% to 93%, with a staggering 100% graduation rates.
2011
Curriculum advances to “life skills” and job readiness preparing at-risk youth for "living wage jobs.” Recognized by Bronx President Diaz for programming success, graduation rates and job placement opportunities. Bronx classroom featured on CNN!
2010
Environmentally-Controlled Agriculture: We brought our vision indoors. Using our A-Frame configurations it was a matter of lighting the vertical orientation from top to bottom and controlling the temperatures and humidity. Partnering with Foodlink (Rochester, NY), we built the first organic vertical farm in the world using compost in an industrial warehouse.
2012
GLTI was featured on NBC as a “Green is Universal” special airing and highlighting the company’s education and mentoring success.
2012
Advanced Techniques: We became very successful growing produce indoors; now it was time to perfect the use of recycled materials. Our process removes the waste and reuses all of our spent vegetation and growing media so that we can reuse it for additional crop cycles. Our media never leaves the building.
Additional improvements to the system and techniques have also virtually eliminated wastewater! Overall, we developed the only true vertical farming operation in the world that uses composed media with living soil to grow NON-hydroponic produce!
2013
GLTI is featured on the TODAY show along with our education curriculum and the social and economic empowerment success.
2014 - 2016
Advanced Technology: Combining our leading organic techniques with advanced lighting led us to incorporate monitoring that allows us to calculate the exact water and organic inputs in relation to the amount of light the plant receives, leaving little room for error. Unlike hydroponic growers, we can harvest our basil many times before we have to change plants. This not only increases yields but reduces the amount of labor.
2015
LED Lighting: Frustrated with the availability of modern LEDs we developed our own specifications. Deep penetration and controlled intensity specific to the crop.
2014 - 2020
Focus has shifted to the development of a business mentor program specific to the cannabis industry. Underserved populations have been hit hardest by petty charges for marijuana. Our mentor and training program will ensure success!
2016 - 2020
1st International License
Patented tissue culture technology.
Multi-state operations.
2019
GLTCannabis enters NJ medical application pool. GLT obtains NYS hemp license: With the need to move cannabis forward as a medicine, GLT focuses on the source of clean plant stock and uses legalized hemp as a platform to develop tissue culture protocol to free cannabis of disease and viroids while rapidly multiplying plant stock.
2020 - 2021
GLTCannabis powers new brands in Portland, Maine; VertiKal Tech, LLC is born. George Irwin and New Jersey partners Phyllis Lacca and Dr. Jon Regis are successfully awarded three medical licenses: for tissue culture, cultivation and retail.
2022
VertiKal Tech, VertiKal Cultivation, VertiKal Nursery and Retail Operation, TheJoint.me, are approved for adult-use licenses: The all-New Jersey team is credited with “rewriting” the rule book for canopy space! The tissue culture lab has contracts with the state’s largest cultivators under the adult-use program.
