Basil Flavor

Modification of Basil Flavor Via Adjustment of Light Environment

Kevin Martin, Ph.D.
NIU Associate Professor of Engineering Technology and Faculty Associate in the NIU Institute for the Study of the Environment, Sustainability and Energy

In 2020, NIU Associate Professor Kevin Martin and Keith Cadwallader, Professor of Food Chemistry at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, received an Illinois Innovation Network (IIN) grant to study how light quality in vertical farming influences product quality, specifically flavor. Beginning in early 2021, Martin will be growing microbasil in a vertical farming system, which is part of the BEEEAM Lab in NIU’s Still Gym. Once grown, the basil will be shipped to Urbana-Champaign for detailed flavor analysis.

The vertical farming system was built in fall of 2019 as an NIU Engineering Technology Senior Design project, under the direction of Martin and colleagues. The vertical farming system consists of four independent growing cells that can be configured for either soil or hydroponic growing systems. The custom LED lighting system allows the researchers to independently control eight different light spectra (colors) in order to investigate the impact of light on growth rate, flavor and other characteristics. The lab uses NIU developed software built using an inexpensive, commercially available technology platform that makes it conducive to being be scaled for commercial use.

Vertical farming is a growing field, with the potential to address food deserts, supply fresh local greens year round, repurpose empty buildings and reinvigorate local economies. It allows food to be grown close to cities in any climate, lowering transportation costs and emissions, and it uses up to 90 percent less water and far less land than traditional growing methods.

However, at this point, researchers do not yet understand the impact of light spectra on produce quality and flavor. This study will address that limitation, helping researchers and practitioners understand how to control the growing environment to create consistent nutritional and flavor profiles appropriate for commercial distribution.