Vertical Farming

What is Vertical Farming?

Vertical farming is a practice of indoor farming where crops are vertically stacked and grown under artificial conditions. Vertical farming includes special technology used for lighting and climate control. One of the many reasons this practice could be utilised more in developing nations is because of its improvements in productivity as well as its little need for soil and water.

A special way of controlled evaporation for plans means that these farms can use 95% less water than traditional farming. This is a ground-breaking factor when considering that around 50 to 70 percent of human consumed water goes into farming. Therefore, while producing more crops in developing countries, we can also leave so much more healthy water for the dehydrated. Not all vertical farms requires soil, instead the farms can use aeroponics or hydroponic systems which provide all the same nutrients to plants just through a spray of water. The method is ideal for providing consumers with the highest quality fresh food. Shown below is a graphic that outlines a prediction for the future of vertical farming around the world.

Source - Maximize Market Research. Shows the Vertical Market Farming by region, past and predicted.

Countries all around the world are already taking part in creating vertical farms. As it rises, vertical farming is estimated to be valued at 5.80 billion USD by 2022. Developing countries are also taking part, however it needs to be much more encouraged for these farms to be able to accommodate a growing population. Developing countries continue to urbanise at a growing rate. For example, Africa is expected to have more than 70% of its population living in cities by 2025. Vertical farming is one of the many solutions that also work for urban areas. Indoor farming can save up to 99% more space than traditional farms. This means that even in urban areas where the climate and other factors may not even be ideal for outdoor farming, can create vertical farms that supply a large amount and a variety of local produce to consumers. Vertical farming can generally produce hundreds of times more food than traditional farming. An example is the CEO of Vertical Farm Plenty, stating that their farms can produce 350 times more crops per acre than traditional farming.

As the population rises, it becomes harder to transport and produce food to overpopulated areas. Vertical farming is a solution that may fit the criteria required to feed a developing nation.

The Pros and Cons of Vertical Farming

This is a list of the pros and cons of Vertical Farming. For more information, check here.

Pros of Vertical Farming

Stable crop yields as well as being for all year long
Outside conditions will not disrupt crops
Pest protection
Grow all sorts of plants without worrying about the location
Saves much more water
Fewer crop imports
Better plant health
Energy generation through compost
Can often be completely organic

Cons of Vertical Farming

Experts are needed to set up vertical farming systems
High upfront and operating costs
High labor cost
If set up wrong could lead to an outbreak of pests
Official permissions are often required
Pollination issues
Technology malfunctions can cause catastrophic issues
Large amounts of maintenance required

Final thoughts on Vertical Farming

Vertical farming utilises less space than regular farming and allows for any type of plant to be grown all year round whilst saving water. However, for developing countries, the idea of implementing vertical farms is just not realistic. Although a lot of countries with water shortages would benefit from the option of farming more with less water, these such countries would likely not be able to uphold all of these new expensive farms as it is much more complicated than a regular acre of dirt and takes lots of time, money, and effort to set up which these countries wouldn't have the infrastructure for.