Jan 04, 2021 07:00:00

What is good about a 'vertical farm' that manages crops with AI and grows them indoors?

Plant factories that use hydroponics to stably supply vegetables by controlling light, temperature, and room temperature are operating all over the world,

including Japan . Nate Story, co-founder of Plenty , which develops vertical farms, talks about the advantages of ' vertical farms ' that can effectively utilize the small space even in such a plant factory.

2-Acre Vertical Farm Run By AI And Robots Out-Produces 720-Acre Flat Farm
https://www.intelligentliving.co/vertical-farm-out-produces-flat-farm/

On Plenty's vertical farm, hydroponic plants hang in rows from the ceiling. The environment such as water, light, and temperature that affects crops is controlled by AI, and crops can be produced stably all year round. In addition, AI continues to learn the environment suitable for crop growth by recognizing the growth of crops, and due to proper environmental control by AI, Plenty is 1 acre (about 4046.9 square meters) compared to general farms. You can produce 400 times more crops per hit.

Another advantage of vertical farms is that they can be produced anywhere. Since common farming methods require a large amount of land to produce crops, crops are produced far away from urban areas. As a result, millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide are emitted annually to transport crops to urban areas. Vertical farms can be built on small lands, so producing crops in urban areas can reduce transportation costs and carbon dioxide emissions. In addition, Plenty's vertical farm in San Francisco is operating on 100% renewable energy.

In addition, unpredictable disasters such as epidemics of new coronavirus infections and

large-scale mountain fires make it difficult to produce crops on general farms, but on vertical farms, crops are produced by drones and robots. Because it is managed, Stories says it can continue to provide a stable supply of crops.

In addition, vertical farms can produce crops with 1% of the water volume of common farming methods, so they can be produced even in areas suffering from water shortages and areas where stable water supply is difficult. For this reason, 'vertical farms will more than double the world's food production today,' Story said.

You can see how Plenty's vertical farm is actually in operation in the following movie.

Plenty --Tigris Farm --YouTube