Over 330 million people in the United States are fed by our efficient, productive agricultural system. But the system has been changing as entrepreneurs figure out how to make it better.
"Vertical farming" breaks traditional farming methods by going vertical (up) instead of horizontal (across the flat ground). These "farms" are located in city buildings where compact plants grow in high stacks of trays or in vertical towers.
City stores and customers have access to produce that's much fresher than regular produce often coming from hundreds or thousands of miles away. A supply chain that long drains 45% of the produce's nutritional value.
Water usage is an issue: global agriculture uses 70% of the world's fresh water. But vertical farms need much less, up to 95% less water than farms growing produce in the ground. That's a significant difference.
But vertical farming doesn't solve every problem. Trade-offs must be figured in if they are to survive.
(cont'd tomorrow)
from Inc.
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