Urban + Vertical Farming
The Ellen McArthur Foundation found that 45% of perishable vegetables grown in Europe are wasted before they reach the table, much of this is due to long and inefficient supply chains.
A simple way to cut a lot of waste out of the system is to move the farm. The roofs of buildings and even the walls can use soil-less, hydroponic systems to grow food right on the consumer’s doorstep. Hydroponic systems feed nutrients straight to the roots, using up to 10 times less water than traditional means.
Systems such as Aero Farms, stack multiple trays of veggies, yielding up to 100 times more per square meter than traditional farms.
Other companies such as Freight Farms up-cycle shipping containers delivering a plug and play fully working urban farm all controlled from your smart phone.
The new wave of urban farming can be seen as a new vertical green belt feeding the populous while also bringing natureto the city center.
Greenhouse
Today, greenhouses cover 50,000 acres of the once barren and arid Tabernas desert, adding $1.5 billion annually to the economy of Almeria.
Food + Real Estate Trends
Agrihoods: single-family, multifamily, or mixed-use communities built with a working farm as a focus
Food-centric residential developments: single-family or multifamily developments built around community gardens or restaurants, with a strong food identity
Next generation urban markets: food halls that are employing innovative food sourcing concepts to encourage food entrepreneurship, grow community, and support other components of mixed-use developments
Food-centered retail and mixed-use development: Mixed-use and retail projects with restaurants and food stores as central development components
Food hubs and culinary incubators: Regional processing and distribution centers that give food-based entrepreneurs access to commercial kitchen space, connect them to retail and institutional customers, or both
Innovations and innovators: policies, approaches, and investors that are promoting sustainability, healthy food access, and economic development