It’s no secret anymore that our world population is growing faster than our ability to feed it, and that vertical farming is a huge opportunity to solve this problem.
In the next 30 years, we will need to feed 10 billion people with less water and less arable land. And all of this while tackling climate change. Due to industrial development and urbanization, we are losing arable lands and rainforests every day. In 2015, scientists reported that the Earth had lost a third of its arable lands over the previous 40 years. With fewer resources available, successfully feeding the world will require more innovative and reliable ways to grow safe food.
Fortunately, agriculture is the world’s oldest and most adaptable industry. If we take a look back at some of humankind’s earliest cultivation practices, we might get some ideas for how to reshape the future of our food system and make it more sustainable.
So, let’s take a look below on what vertical farming is exactly and how it works!
What is Vertical Farming?
Vertical farming is an agricultural practice of producing food on vertical surfaces, similar shelves in a grocery store. In fact, it is a completely new & sustainable business model. Instead of farming vegetables and other foods on a single level, such as in a field or a greenhouse, this method produces foods in vertically stacked layers commonly integrated into other structures like skyscrapers, shipping containers or repurposed warehouses.
Growing vertically allows for conservation in space, resulting in a higher crop yield per square foot of land used. This means that farmers can produce a great deal more food on the same amount of land. Ultimately, growing food indoors and the use of green innovations, provides the ability to control the environmental conditions for plants to succeed and optimize for the highest yield.
Yet, vertical farming is so much more than just stacking plants and hoping for the best. The practice requires artificial control of temperature, light, and humidity to succeed. If a delicate balance is not maintained, it’s possible to lose an entire crop the way a traditional might in the event of a drought or flood.
For example, Europe’s biggest vertical farm is being developed outside Copenhagen in Denmark by Danish start-up Nordic Harvest. It is a warehouse-like 75,000-square-foot facility where plants are grown in 14 stacked layers, according to Free Think. When it’s fully completed, Nordic Harvest says its vertical farm will supply 1,000 tonnes of food a year.
How Vertical Farming Works
Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA)
Vertical farming is very different compared to traditional farming. Whereas conventional farmers are sowing their fields and hope for the best conditions for crops to grow, a vertical farming system involves the cultivation of crops in controlled environments, where every parameter affecting their growth is closely monitored and tailored to their needs. This type of farming is called Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) and allows farmers to control for almost any component, such as lighting, CO2, airflow, air humidity, pH levels, water, and many more. Thouh, this can only be achieved with the right vertical farming equipment.
Use of modern technologies
In order to measure all these components and decide whether it is needed to adjust, vertical farming involves the use of modern technologies like sensors and cameras that collect millions of data, which are stored at a data warehouse. All these data allow vertical farming farms to run artificial intelligences and machine learning models, that are able to decide precisely whether an individual crop needs to be harvested or if some components need to be adjusted for it to grow faster. All these technologies enable vertical farming to maximize yields, while, at the same time, minimize production costs and save valuable natural resources.
Vertical layout of farms
Finally, something that is truly unique to vertical farming is the use of its vertical layout. Unlike traditional agriculture, in vertical farming, crops are planted in vertical tubes and are stacked on top of each other using vertical racks.
Growing plants vertically gives farmers the ability to grow more crops in a smaller area, enabling them to maximize the available space and increase yield per square foot of land.
As an alternative to soil-based growing methods normally found in horizontal farming, vertical farms employ hydroponic, aquaponic, and aeroponic techniques. Plants are provided with physical support by growing media such as clay pellets, perlite, coconut coir, rockwool, and oasis cubes. An efficient system of pipes, tubes, and pumps delivers water and nutrients directly to the roots of the plants. Moreover, this system also captures excess water and recirculates it again to the plants, making it a perfect example for the circular economy.
Pros and Cons of Vertical Farming
Benefits of Vertical Farming
1. Ensuring future food supply
By 2050, there will be 10 billion people living on our planet. By then, around 70% of the world population is expected to live in urban areas, and the growing population will lead to an increased demand for food. The efficient use of vertical farming will play a significant role in preparing for such a challenge.
2. Increased efficiencies in food production
By the use of modern technologies such as Artificial Intelligences, vertical farming allows for huge improvements in effiencies of food production. Vertical farming makes it possible to harvest 15 times a year, instead of being limited to harvesting only 2 times a year as conventional farming is. It also allows to produce more crops from the same square footage of growing area, meaning that less land will be needed for agriculture.
3. Year-round & secure food supply
Crops in a field can be adversely affected by natural calamities such as torrential rains, cyclones, flooding or severe droughts—events which are becoming increasingly common as a result of climate change. Indoor vertical farms are less likely to feel the brunt of the unfavorable weather, providing greater certainty of harvest output throughout the year.
4. Less water needed for food production
Vertical farming allows us to produce crops with 70% to 95% less water than required for normal cultivation. This is achieved by employing hydroponics, aquaponics, aeroponic techniques, which capture excess water and recirculates it again to the plants.
5. Increased production of organic crops
As crops are produced in a well-controlled indoor environment without the use of chemical pesticides, vertical farming allows us to grow pesticide-free and organic crops.
4. Democratizing food production
Vertical farming can be done basically anywhere you can imagine. Of course, the best place is a “true” indoor farm, but it can also be done on facades, house walls, and balconies, making it possible for nearly everyone to produce their own food or at least buy their food more locally, supporting them in living a more sustainable lifestyle.
6. More human-friendly
Indoor vertical farming can significantly lessen the occupational hazards associated with traditional farming. Farmers are not exposed to hazards related to heavy farming equipment, diseases like malaria, poisonous chemicals and so on. As it does not disturb animals and trees inland areas, it is good for biodiversity as well. In fact, vertical farming usually has benefits for most stakeholders involved, which makes it a good example for the stakeholder theory.
7. Eliminates negative environmental impacts
Finally, vertical farming prevents the further deforestation of rainforests and important ecosystems. Since no pesticides or other dangerous chemicals are used, there is no hazardous chemical runoff, which protects farm-adjacent communities and the local environment. In fact, vertical farming can tackle all of the three sustainability challenges at the same time, while supporting nature-based solutions for climate change by freeing up more space for rewilding purposes.
Limitations of Vertical Farming
1. No established economics
The financial feasibility of this new farming method remains uncertain. The financial situation is changing, however, as the industry matures and technologies improve.
2. No possibilities of natural pollination
Vertical farming takes place in a controlled environment without the presence of insects. As such, the pollination process needs to be done manually, which will be labor intensive and costly.
3. Higher labor costs
As high as energy costs are in vertical farming, labor costs can be even higher due to their concentration in urban centers where wages are higher, as well as the need for more skilled labor. Automation and the smart use of AI in vertical farms, however, may lead to the need for fewer workers. Manual pollination may become one of the more labor-intensive functions in vertical farms.
4. Dependency on technology
The development of better technologies can always increase efficiency and lessen costs. But the entire vertical farming is extremely dependent on various technologies for lighting, maintaining temperature, and humidity. Losing power for just a single day can prove very costly for a vertical farm. Many believe the technologies in use today are not ready for mass adoption.
How will Vertical Farming Change Agriculture?
Instead of growing crops, fruits, and vegatables on huge fields as we now them today, vertical farming will use land more efficiently and effectively. This means that less land surface will be required to grow the same amount of food (or even more). In turn, avoiding the need to burn our precious ecosystems (like rainforests) for agricultural activities. In fact, the Netherlands has already proven that vertical farming is a good solution to environmental problems related to agriculture, which is one factor why it is one of the greenest countries in the world.
Furthermore, instead of growing food on big farms and then transporting it over long distances in trucks, ships and planes, vertical farming can supply local produce from smallere vertical farms or even from neighbourhood buildings. This means less fuel is used (= less carbon emssions) and the food is fresher.
Why isn't Vertical Farming a Global Solution yet?
Cost is a big hurdle for vertical farming. Sun and rain are free. Powering LED lights, software and sophisticated growing systems isn’t.
While some facilities run on electricity from wind turbines, vertical farms running on fossil fuels may be adding to the problem of climate change rather than making it better. A perfect example for the sustainability paradox.
Buying real estate to build a vertical farm can also be expensive. Not to mention all the high-end technologies that are required to run a vertical farm.
That said, the global vertical farming market is steadily growing, says Statista, and is expected to leap from $7.5 billion in 2022 to around $25 billion by 2025.
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