For vertical farming, the sky is the limit
With climate change, urbanization and other threats endangering farmland across the globe, innovations that grow food in cities and other limited spaces are vital to food security. Vertical farming, which grows crops in stacked layers, is a promising option that allows farmers to grow crops in nontraditional spaces, such as vacant warehouses.
Vertical farming provides greater control of climate and nutrition conditions than outdoor or greenhouse facilities. Yet, because of limited funding opportunities there are few researchers adapting crops to make them economical and sustainable in these production systems.
Our Precision Indoor Plants (PIP) consortium is funding SKY HIGH: Vertical Farming, a revolution in plant production to explore favorable conditions for crop nutrients, taste, appearance and shelf life in order to optimize vertical farms. The researchers are also focusing on how crops can be developed to thrive in indoor environments, including how to accelerate the development of crop varieties.
Why this research is important
Crops grown in vertical farming environments have various advantages over those produced through conventional farming:
Growers benefit:
- Gain new methods to accelerate the development of crop varieties
- Learn protocols for growing plants in indoor systems
- Produce greater amounts of crops while taking up less land
Environment benefits:
- Reduced food waste
- Reduced use of most resources to produce certain crops
- Reduced net loss of resources due to low quality produce
Consumers benefit:
- Access to high-quality, nutritious produce
- Longer lettuce shelf-life and less leaf discoloration
- Shorter supply chain