Vertical farming promises a balance between demand and supply

The global population has attained a burst. With the rising number of people, there is an increased competition for land space to stay on, and to nurture resources for mankind’s sustenance. Just like every other, the Agriculture and Food market faces the challenge of decreasing availability of terrestrial space for the set-up of farms and its subsidiaries. In fact, when the demand for feed for the growing population is rising, the area for farming the produce is reducing as a sacrifice for shelter.

Space-saving architectures of buildings include multistoried structures. When we humans sensed the low availability of space, we started to convert individual apartments to flats over flats. So, now that agricultural land is on a decline, what do we do?

Yes, we stack up layers! To obtain high crop yields in the less space available to conventional agriculture, farms are rather constructed indoors as vertically inclined and integrated structures. This kind of farming is referred to as vertical farming and is looked up as a solution to feed the population despite the lack of space caused by urbanization. 

Can vertical farming take the place of conventional methods?

 

The vertical farming market is seen as capable of generating produce all-round the year through the controlled environments that are maintained. This can be much more fruitful than the traditional sow and reap cycles. What’s more?

·        There is no possibility of the pesticides or herbicides used to seep into nature and take a toll on our health

·        It saves water. Vertical farmers have devised ways to recycle water by fish farming. The water from the plants are directed to fish tanks and the waste from fish is used to nourish the crops.

·        Not just water, every other nutrient required can be supplied only in the required amounts.

·        Moreover, no heavy machinery is required to maintain the plants. So, costs are cut-down and the resources that go into their manufacture are saved.

·        Profitability is raised. The crops are less prone to extremities of climatic conditions. Artificially stimulated conditions can further optimize their growth

·        And most importantly, vertical farms save space! 

So, is vertical farming an ideal solution?

 

While vertical farms do guarantee a more sustainable solution, market research reports don’t unanimously see it as an ideal solution. After all, every new method has its pros and cons. The downsides to vertical farming include

•         High-cost involvement

                1.      To find an appropriate indoor setting in today’s urban environment is costly  
                2.      The costs of constantly maintaining an artificial environment can be prohibitive

•       Not all traditional crops are suited for vertical farming. This includes staples like wheat and potato

•       It is difficult to find an area for production that also has a good market for your crop. The high-cost involvement doesn’t allow a lot of investment in transport and logistics.

Since the positives of vertical farming are many, through extensive research, solutions can be devised for the existing challenges. This will highly increase the efficiency and productivity of the agriculture and food market.