Question

CROP GROWING SKYSCRAPERS

By the year 2050, nearly 80% of the Earth’s population will live in urban centres. Applying the most conservative estimates to current demographic trends, the human population will increase by about three billion people by then. An estimated 109 hectares of new land (about 20% larger than Brazil) will be needed to grow enough food to feed them, if traditional farming methods continue as they are practised today.

At present, throughout the world, over 80% of the land that is suitable for raising crops is in use. Historically, some 15% of that has been laid waste by poor management practices. What can be done to ensure enough food for the world’s population to live on ?

The concept of indoor farming is not new, since hothouse production of tomatoes and other produce has been in vogue for some time. What is new is the urgent need to scale up this technology to accommodate another three billion people. Many believe an entirely new approach to indoor farming is required, employing cutting-edge technologies. One such proposal is for the ‘Vertical Farm’. The concept is of multi-storey buildings in which food crops are grown in environmentally controlled conditions. Situated in the heart of urban centres, they would drastically reduce the amount of transportation required to bring food to consumers. Vertical farms would need to be efficient, cheap to construct and safe to operate. If successfully implemented, proponents claim, vertical farms offer the promise of urban renewal, sustainable production of a safe and varied food supply (through year-round production of all crops), and the eventual repair of ecosystems that have been sacrificed for horizontal farming.

It took humans 10,000 years to learn how to grow most of the crops we now take for granted. Along the way, we despoiled most of the land we worked, often turning verdant, natural eco-zones into semi-arid deserts. Within that same time frame, we evolved into an urban species, in which 60% of the human population now lives vertically in cities. This means that, for the majority, we humans have shelter from the elements, yet we subject our food-bearing plants to the rigours of the great outdoors and can do no more than hope for a good weather year. However, more often than not now, due to a rapidly changing climate, that is not what happens. Massive floods, long droughts, hurricanes and severe monsoons take their toll each year, destroying millions of tons of valuable crops.

The supporters of vertical farming claim many potential advantages for the system. For instance, crops would be produced all year round, as they would be kept in artificially controlled, optimum growing conditions.

There would be no weather-related crop failures due to droughts, floods or pests. All the food could be grown organically, eliminating the need for herbicides, pesticides and fertilisers.

The system would greatly reduce the incidence of many infectious diseases that are acquired at the agricultural interface.

Although the system would consume energy, it would return energy to the grid via methane generation from composting non-edible parts of plants. It would also dramatically reduce fossil fuel use, by cutting out the need for tractors, ploughs and shipping.

A major drawback of vertical farming, however, is that the plants would require artificial light. Without it, those plants nearest the windows would be exposed to more sunlight and grow more quickly, reducing the efficiency of the system. Single-storey greenhouses have the benefit of natural overhead light; even so, many still need artificial lighting.

A multi-storey facility with no natural overhead light would require far more. Generating enough light could be prohibitively expensive, unless cheap, renewable energy is available, and this appears to be rather a future aspiration than a likelihood for the near future.

One variation on vertical farming that has been developed is to grow plants in stacked trays that move on rails. Moving the trays allows the plants to get enough sunlight. This system is already in operation, and works well within a single-storey greenhouse with light reaching it from above: it Is not certain, however, that it can be made to work without that overhead natural light.

Vertical farming is an attempt to address the undoubted problems that we face in producing enough food for a growing population. At the moment, though, more needs to be done to reduce the detrimental impact it would have on the environment, particularly as regards the use of energy. While it is possible that much of our food will be grown in skyscrapers in future, most experts currently believe it is far more likely that we will simply use the space available on urban rooftops.

1. The contribution of traditional farming method is expected to *

2. Cutting-edge technologies in executing new idea like ‘vertical farm’ is necessary as......

3. Factors like efficiency, economical and high level of safety in regards to operation should be......

4. As the crops get exposed to the adversity of the weather,.........

5.  The vertical farming method.........

Answer 1

1.As the population is increasing day by day new land is needed to feed the increased population . Almost 109 hectares of land is needed to feed the increased population which is 20 % more than brazil. This is if we continue to use the traditional farming techniques . The contribution of traditional farming techniques is expected to rise and is needed if we don't develop new and ef]efficient farming techniques .

2.They are necessary because of the changing climate conditions . Every year we are witnessing environmental disasters such as hurricanes , floods , droughts leading to crop failure . Because of new technologies like vertical farming crops can be farmed more organically without the use of pesticides and other chemicals .More optimal farming can be done because it requires less space and crops can be grown in a controlled environment. It will reduce the effect of climate change of crops and also increase the efficiency of the farming sector .

3.The factors like safety ,efficiency and economical safety should be our first priority . This is because of hte drastically changing environment system we need a sustainable approach towards farming which can make the system more efficient and safe . Vertical farming methods need to be cheap and efficient . As if the method is successful it will drastically decrease the different types of financial and human cost associated with the agricultural sector .

4.As we know when crops are exposed to adverse weather conditions it leads to crop failure which further decreases the food productivity . This has led to food scarcity and hunger problems in many developing nations. These adverse environmental conditions are affecting our cropping patterns and our agriculture sector is in immense stress .

5. The vertical farming method is the need of the hour as the changing weather pattern is affecting our agriculture drastically. It helps in producing the crops efficiently It requires less resources and helps to reduce the carbon footprint . It also increases the efficiency and system works optimally .