Vertical Farming: Modernizing Agriculture

After recently writing an impromptu essay about vertical farming, I decided it would be a good idea to express my opinion through a blog. For a brief introduction, vertical farming is a modern form of agriculture where crops are grown in stacks and are monitored by technological processes. They are fed with hydroponic nutrition systems and can be set up anywhere, allowing for cultivation of crops throughout the year. 

The most prominent argument against the integration of vertical farming into the agriculture sector is the cost. Sometimes vertical farms can cost up to 10 times the price of greenhouses at up to $2,600 per square meter. Additionally, because technology is used to maintain vertical farms, electricity has to constantly be running, adding to its costs. Artificial light sources, humidity control, ventilation, and air conditioning are all required to sustain vertical farms. Because vertical farming is so expensive, crops that are grown through vertical farming are also expensive, making foods more out-of-reach for the average consumer, spreading its implications to not just the stakeholders, but the market as well. 

A topic that I am more ambivalent towards is the safety complications for vertical farms. Because this is such a new process, there is not significant evidence that crops grown through vertical farming are nutritionally sufficient. However, there are benefits to the system in that because vertical farms are sealed off from the outside environment, there is no need for use of pesticides or herbicides. 

I guess what most people would consider to be the deciding factor in their opinions on vertical farming would be the taste of the food. A huge benefit to vertical farms is that because they can be built around large population areas, travel distance of foods is greatly reduced, giving food a fresher taste. This also contributes to lesser CO2 emissions due to no or low requirements of transportation.

My largest defense for the integration of vertical farming relates to concerns regarding unregulated population growth. Currently, a large percentage of our land is being used for agriculture, but as our population is growing at such a fast rate, we will soon run out of land to use for traditional farming. Regardless of how expensive vertical farming may be, it is a solution to feeding all those in the future when they cannot rely on traditional agricultural practices. 

Additionally, powering vertical farming units can be easily remedied by incorporating infrastructure involving renewable energy to power it. According to a study conducted by the University of Arizona, wind and solar energy can be used to power vertical farms. However, implementing renewable energy sources does take up more space and cost more money. 

As for its benefits for the environment, vertical farming can make a huge impact when renewable energy sources are used to power it and energy waste is being recycled. Efficient vertical farming can emit up to 70 percent less carbon dioxide compared to traditional farming. They also use 95% less land, and can use 80 to 90 percent less water. More importantly, vertical farming is known to significantly reduce the amount of food waste as crop failure becomes more unlikely in a sealed and monitored environment. Because of this, food losses are reduced by up to 99%, decreasing the associated emissions by up to 70%. 

Although vertical farming is still considered a rather new breakthrough, I believe that it has the power to revolutionize and modernize the agriculture sector. Incorporating technology into vertical farming has the possibility to dramatically reduce carbon emissions and waste in a world that is struggling to feed its growing population. Even though costs may be driven up, an investment into vertical farming will prove to provide numerous benefits and accessibility. Powering farms with renewable sources will increase efficiency and decrease costs, making vertical farming even more appealing to our future. 

Works Cited

“How Different Types of Agriculture Impact CO2 Emissions.” Www.greenforges.com, http://www.greenforges.com/blog/how-different-types-of-agriculture-impact-co2-emissions#:~:text=Based%20on%20the%20results%20from.

Howells, Richard. “SAP BrandVoice: Vertical Farming: Sustainable Food Never Tasted so Good.” Forbes, http://www.forbes.com/sites/sap/2021/05/05/vertical-farming-sustainability-never-tasted-so-good/?sh=6b4fd9dd488a. Accessed 14 May 2023.

Kelly-Jones, William. “Farming Sustainably: Using Renewable Energy to Power Hydroponic Farming.” Repository.arizona.edu, 1 Dec. 2020, repository.arizona.edu/handle/10150/649341#:~:text=As%20demonstrated%20in%20this%20paper. Accessed 14 May 2023.