The concept of indoor farming is not new. What is new is the urgent need to scale up this technology to accommodate the increasing population which according to certain demographic trends could go up to 3 billion by the year 2050! An entirely new approach to indoor farming must be invented, employing cutting edge technologies. The Vertical Farm must be efficient (cheap to construct and safe to operate). Vertical farms, many stories high, will be situated in the heart of the world's urban centers. If successfully implemented, they offer the promise of urban renewal, sustainable production of a safe and varied food supply (year-round crop production), and the eventual repair of ecosystems that have been sacrificed for horizontal farming.
Some of the advantages of vertical farming include:
year-round crop production;
no weather-related crop failures due to droughts, floods, pests;
all VF food is grown organically: no herbicides, pesticides, or fertilizers;
VF returns farmland to nature, restoring ecosystem functions and services;
VF converts black and gray water into potable water by collecting the water of
evapotranspiration;
VF adds energy back to the grid via methane generation from composting non-edible parts of plants and animals;
VF dramatically reduces fossil fuel use (no tractors, plows, shipping.);
VF converts abandoned urban properties into food production centers...
The above building is a concept called the Pyramid Farm by Eric Ellingsen.
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