스크랩 THE VERTICAL FARM THEORY

[까치]

THE VERTICAL FARM THEORY
by Gordon James Graff                                                   
Submitted for Terri Meyer-Boake                                 
University of Waterloo
School of Architecture
June 25th, 2007
2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1.0 ? Introduction
2.0 ? Concept Logic
3.0 ? Evolution of Agriculture
4.0 ? Vertical Farm Design Considerations

4.1 ? Building Design
4.2 ? Growing Medium
4.3 ? Energy System 
5.0 ? Precedents and Foundation

6.0 ? Points of Detraction
7.0 ? Conclusion
8.0 ? Bibliography APPENDIX
A.1 ? Competition Design Proposal A.2 ? Cost Analysis of a Vertical Farm

The Vertical Farming Theory
By Gordon James Graff
3
“The power of population is so superior to the power of the earth to produce subsistence for
man, that premature death must in some shape or other visit the human race.”
Thomas Malthus, 1789
These words of warning were penned by the English demographer Thomas Malthus in his
infamous dissertation An Essay on the Principle of Population, wherein he outlined his theory of
the quantitative development of the human population. He rationalized that the geometric growth
(eg. 2, 4, 8, 16, etc.) of the human population would eventually surpass the linear growth (eg. 1,
2, 3, 4, etc.) of agricultural production, leading to a disastrous famine and population crash.24
Nearly two hundred years later, M. King Hubbard devised the Peak Oil theory, in which he
forecasted the point when global oil reserves would be outstripped by demand, leading to a
potentially massive economic depression due to almost universal dependence on oil
consumption. Additionally, because of the saturation of oil-dependant technology in modern
agricultural practices, the Peak Oil scenario would expectedly lead to a widespread global famine
due to the economic limitations of food production.
These dire predictions are the ominous voices of a population that is slowly becoming aware of its
tenuous relationship to earth’s natural bounty. And with the emergence of the theory of humaninduced
global climate change at the dawn of the 21st century, there is a growing realization that
we must severely restructure our interactions with the natural world in order to avoid destroying
the source of our collective health and livelihood.
Among the many sectors of human activity effecting the natural environment, none have
impacted the health of the earth’s ecosystems as severely as agriculture. Agricultural activity has
grown correspondingly to population growth, and advances in agricultural practices have
accommodated the excessive population expansions experienced over the past 200 years11.
Vast tracts of forests and other ecological processes vital to the preservation of human health
have been destroyed to create more farmland for human consumption. In response to this, the
initiative to severely densify agricultural production and reduce its fossil-fuel dependence has
become a major point of discussion.
Among the few propositions offered to accomplish this lofty goal, the concept of the vertical farm
is perhaps the most noteworthy to emerge at present date. It offers the promise of a severely
reduced ecological footprint for arguably the most damaging human activity to the planet, as well
as presenting an active measure to counter the onslaught of global climate change.
4
2.0 - Concept Logic
The concept of vertical farming consists of the practice of agricultural production inside high-rise
buildings. The premise is derived from the desire to maximize agricultural production per area
unit of land, effectively making agriculture ‘denser’ in order to reduce the land requirements
necessary for food production. While the idea of growing food in tall buildings may seem like an
improbable proposition, the concept has many compelling arguments.
Perhaps the most poignant argument supporting the concept of vertical farming is the unique
solution it offers to combat the looming crisis of global climate change. Currently, the accepted
strategies proposed by initiatives like The Kyoto Protocol and An Inconvenient Truth simply focus
on the reduction of CO2 production and energy consumption ? moves which only alter the speed
at which climate change occurs. The vertical farming
concept goes beyond this reductionist strategy by
providing the opportunity to actually reverse global
climate change simply by utilizing the processes of the
natural world. Specifically, the concept allows massive
increases in land efficiency through the densification of
our agricultural production, and subsequently would
allow significant portions of the world’s farmland to be
reforested. This reforestation would create carbon
sinks that could sequester CO2 to help stabilize global
weather patterns, while simultaneously cleaning air
pollution, preventing desertification, soil erosion and
flooding, and improving the biodiversity of the natural
environment.3
At the ‘reduction’ end of the climate change response, vertical farms offer an agricultural practice
that virtually eliminates the use of fossil fuels in agricultural production. The fossil fuels used in
the operation of conventional agricultural machinery would not be necessary for the vertical farm,
and no petroleum-derived pesticides or fertilizers will be required with the hydroponic growing
process. Furthermore, the vertical farm would virtually eliminate the need to transport agricultural
products from long distances into the heart of urban areas ? as it enables an extremely wide
variety of produce to be grown year-round right at the source of market consumption.
Vast tracts of forest cleared for farming
? 2002 Primal Pictures
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Another significant argument
supporting the concept of vertical
farming is its capability to
accommodate the food
requirements for the rapidly
rising human population. To fully
appreciate the magnitude of this
developing problem, two issues
must be addressed. First, the
world’s population is expected to
grow to over 9 billion by 20504. Second, 80% of the world’s arable farmland is already in use -
meaning there isn’t enough land available on earth to produce food, by way of conventional
agricultural practices, to feed the expected three billion additional humans3, 4. Therefore, unless
we can find a way to restrict population growth, we must develop a new agricultural practice that
dramatically increases the land efficiency of food production in order to avoid a massive global
famine and population crash.
Yet another important point to consider is the migratory shift of the human population from rural
areas into urban centres. A United Nations report on human population patterns identified 2007
as the year when the percentage of the human population living in urban areas reached 50%, a
quadrupling of the percentage of urban dwellers since 1950, with the number projected to rise to
60% by 203013. This percentage rise, coupled with the mounting population numbers, means
urban centres will become much larger and denser in the coming years. Vertical Farms built
inside urban areas offer the ability for these growing cities to become dramatically more selfsufficient
with their food requirements; a move that would alleviate the congestion of city streets
and highways due to food import!s.
A final point to consider is the massive amount of chemical and biological pollution conventional
farming practices impose on the natural environment, which would be completely eliminated with
the introduction of vertical farms. No biologically harmful chemicals are necessary for the
operation of the vertical farm, and all wastes can be easily and safely converted into usable
products inside the farm, either to be recycled back into the farm’s production system or offered
to consumers as saleable commodities (ie. compost).
3.0 - The Evolution of Agriculture
A graph showing the exponential growth of the human population
6
The emergence of agriculture is arguably the most important event in the evolution of human
civilization, as it triggered the long line of economic, political, and technological developments that
have led to our present condition. Therefore, in order to fully understand the factors which have
generated the vertical farm concept, it is important to examine the historical progression of human
agriculture.
The story of agriculture begins with the end of the last major
ice age, approximately 11,000 years ago. The earth’s
climate shifted toward the temperature and seasonal
variations we experience today, including the formation of a
sustained dry season that encouraged the flourishing of
annual plants that leave dormant seeds or tubers to develop
for the succeeding season. The first plants to be
domesticated were edible seeds, such as wheat, barley,
peas, lentils, chickpeas, and flax due to their ability to be
stored, as well as their ease and speed of growth9, 10. The
emergence of annual plants gave humans the ability to
manipulate the lifecycle of edible vegetation and would
eventually sanction the shift away from the nomadic huntergather
existence toward one fixed in settled villages
supported by the newly domesticated agriculture produce.
Remarkably, evidence from the ‘Fertile Crescent’ area of
ancient Mesopotamia suggests that this change of lifestyle
occurred in just a few short centuries10.
One of the most interesting aspects of the development of
agriculture is that it occurred spontaneously in a number of
geographically distant populations, independent from one
another, over the few short millennia succeeding the last
major climate shift. When set against the 200,000 year age
span of the human species, this extremely rapid emergence at the dawn of a global warming
cycle suggests that climate change was in fact the primary cause of the development of human
agriculture9.
Evolution of the deforestation of North
America, largely due to the increase in
agricultural production
7
As humans began to develop agricultural
production, the resultant ecosystem alterations
commonly associated with emergent farming
started to surface. For example, the
deforestation of land in Ancient Greece to
accommodate agricultural production caused soil
erosion that eventually resulted in the
problematic silting of ports4,12. Similarly,
civilizations started to experience other
significant environmental effects of sustained
agricultural practices, such as the depletion of
minerals in the soil and soil salination9.
The Columbian Exchange (or Grand Exchange) at the end of the 15th century ushered in a new
period of agricultural activity that saw widespread exchange of plants, animals, foods, goods, and
ideas between the previously isolated Eastern and Western hemispheres9. While this emergence
in global trade is also credited with allowing the transfer of diseases that depopulated many
countries, the effects of the circulation of livestock and crops greatly improved the diversity of
food production around the world, and in the long run accommodated large increases in world
population.
In the succeeding centuries, the emergence of mechanization and other scientific innovations
would enable much greater yields of agricultural production. The development of more efficient
farming techniques, primarily in
Europe, would enable higher yields of produce per land area unit, and subsequently human
population levels started to rise. This led to technologically based initiatives like the Green
Revolution of the 1960s that introduced advanced farming techniques, such as the development
of fertilizers, pesticides, and new high-yield crops that significantly increased food production.
After the Green Revolution technology was introduced around the world, global food production
doubled to meet the needs of an exponentially rising population11. However, the negative
environmental effects of some of these techniques, as well as the heavy dependence on fossil
fuels for pesticides, fertilizers, and machinery, focused the debate concerning globalization and
agricultural ideologies.
Presently, the two sides of the ideological argument are still butting heads. The development of
national and international transportation networks, in conjunction with the aforementioned
technological and scientific advancements (such as genetically modified produce), have enabled
the developed nations of the world to maximize their available food production. Alternatively, the
A graph showing the increased efficiency of agricultural
production at the introduction of industrial farming
8
organic farming movement is quickly becoming the
major trend in agriculture, with more producers each
year switching from industrial to ‘organic’ cultivation
methods.
However, as the world’s population is expected to rise
40% by 2050, many agriculture experts claim that with
our current farming techniques there simply isn’t
enough land available on earth to feed the expected
population rise with our current farming techniques11.
Therefore, if human population levels continue to rise
as predicted, maximizing agricultural output per land
area will become the next major step in the evolution of
agriculture.
4.0 - Vertical Farm Design Considerations
4.1 - Building Design
While there are many different strategies for creating densified urban agriculture, ‘vertical’ farms
are, by definition, housed in buildings with multiple vertically stacked floors. However, within the
requirement of a stacked physical structure there are few specific requirements for the vertical
farm. As such, proposals of new construction or renovation of an existing building, with virtually
any structural material or shape, are theoretically possible. However, the inherent initiatives of
maximizing space efficiency and reducing building cost (for economic viability) do inform the
designs of vertical farm proposals. Complex building designs run the risk of being regarded as
fanciful propositions compared to
the simple building requirements of the vertical farms. The simplicity of the rectilinear tower
typology makes it ideal for a vertical farm design since it is the cheapest tower typology in terms
of construction cost, and the most efficient in terms of usable floor area. Additionally, the
rectilinear spaces work in agreement with the rectilinear standard of industrial equipment and
components.
9
The cylindrical tower is another preval‎!ent typology
explored for the vertical farm. Among the many
advantages it offers is the distinction of having the largest interior volume in relation to its exterior
surface area for any extruded shape. This is beneficial to the cost-effectiveness of the design
since high costs are associated with external wall systems, and control over the interior
environment of the building area would increase due to less surface area of permeable exterior
surfaces. Moreover, the circular floor plan of the cylindrical design accommodates the central
placement (and delivery) of resources and monitoring stations. The illustrated example shows
how a circular floorplate would enable the rotation of the growing area to maximize the sunlight
absorption of the produce, and similarly a watering beam to irrigate the entire growing area.
Nevertheless, there are drawbacks to the cylindrical typology. The higher costs associated with
non-rectilinear floorplate construction, awkward orientation of the available growing area on a
circular floorplate, and reduction in growing area as compared to on a rectilinear floorplate all
render this a design of luxury, and as such it is less able to fulfill the requirements of the vertical
farm.
Another essential element for a vertical farm is that it is housed in a structure that is effectively
enclosed to protect the produce from harmful air-borne agents, and create an artificially optimal
growing environment for produce under any external weather condition. Depending on the type
of flora and fauna to be grown, it may also be required to make each floor of the building air-tight
to enable control over the flow of particles emitted by some produce that could negatively affect
the health of others1. In connection to this, it may be required to create a high amount of control
over the internal environment within the building to accommodate optimal lighting and growing
temperature differences between different produce1.
4.2 - Growing Medium
The usage of hydroponic crop production as the growing medium for the produce is a
fundamental component of the vertical farm concept. Hydroponics is a massive technological
advancement from geoponic (soil-based) agriculture, and one that solves the most pressing
problems associated with existing agricultural production.
A cylindrical vertical farm proposal
? 2006 Chris Jacobs
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For instance, soil-based agriculture extracts most
of the nutrients and minerals required for plant
growth directly from the soil culture it inhabits. In
traditional, high-yield farms this extraction of
nutrients occurs largely without a reciprocal nutrient
refurbishment of the soil, and thus requires artificial
fertilizers to supplement the soil for the next
growing cycle. This continual ‘stripping’ of the soil,
and dependence on artificial fertilizers, often leads
to soil erosion and contributes to the degradation of
soil quality23. Hydroponics, in contrast, avoids this
common predicament by forgoing the use of soil
entirely in favour of water as the growing medium.
As soil is not required, soil-borne diseases are
completely eliminated as a threat to produce. Additionally, the opportunity for weeds to flourish in
soil-based agriculture is removed as a hindrance in hydroponic culture. Because of these two
preceding points, the use of pesticides is completely unnecessary in the hydroponic growing
process.
One of the most important characteristics of the hydroponic system to the vertical farm concept is
its ability to be stacked vertically (see diagram) with minimal difficulty for most types of crops.
This stacking massively reduces the space required for the agricultural production process,
enabling the high land-use efficiency desired in the vertical farm concept.
The simplicity and efficiency of hydroponic systems is another great improvement over traditional
geoponic farming. Water usage in a typical hydroponic system is approximately 1/20th of that
required for traditional outdoor irrigated soil-grown crops due to their closed-loop design, which
enables water in the system to be recycled perpetually. This reduction in water usage
significantly decreases the ecological footprint of hydroponic systems as compared to geoponics
by lowering the amount of resources extracted and, after processing, expelled as waste23.
4.3 - Energy System
The most discussed and variable component of vertical farms is the method of providing a
suitable source of energy for the growth of produce. There are two basic options - utilizing
passive solar energy or energy from artificial lighting. Both of these options have their
advantages and drawbacks. For direct solar energy, the obvious benefits of having a free and
A simple ‘stacked’ hydroponic system
? 2007 NFT
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unlimited power source would make it the obvious choice to grow produce. However, when
agricultural production is stacked vertically, all floors below the top level receive virtually no direct
light. Furthermore, while the quantity of land area can be artificially replicated though the process
of stacking floors, the amount of solar radiation that contacts the footprint of the building cannot,
and as such is insufficient for the extreme density of agricultural production proposed in the
vertical farm.
The other option, using artificial lighting for
radiant energy, has its own inherent
complications. The benefit of being able to
easily satisfy the energy requirements for plant
growth, with the ability to extend and modify its
delivery to maximize efficiency, is countered by
the high energy requirements associated with
that system. Considering the rising cost of
energy, the energy required to power the
multitude of artificial lights would render the
concept an economic improbability. However,
with the increasing ability to generate
renewable energy on-site through photovoltaic
panels and wind turbines, the prospect of using
artificial lighting to grow produce becomes the most plausible option available for the vertical farm
concept. In addition, the biological wastes produced from the farm operations would enable a
continuous supply of bio-fuel to power the farm’s various processes. Nevertheless, the method of
delivering radiation energy for plant growth will be subject to much debate, and undoubtedly
improved through the technological advancements of renewable energy generation, as well as
passive options, such as the development of fibre optics for sunlight redistribution1.
5.0 - Precedents and Formation
Even though the vertical farm concept itself is a new proposition, it is composed of two familiar
typologies that can be examined as precedents; namely, the process of densification through
vertical ‘high-rise’ construction and the practice of indoor agricultural production. Both of these
ideas have developed in conceptual seclusion over the preceding centuries, and are currently two
consistently endorsed typologies cited to accommodate the global demographic changes
expected in the succeeding century.
A prototype for a vertical-axis wind turbine that will greatly
improve building integrated wind power generation
? 2007 TMA
12
The practice of increasing land efficiency by building vertically has always been a basic principle
of urban construction. The eventual emergence of the skyscraper represents the pinnacle of this
tendency for density and land use efficiency, as buildings reached astonishing footprint-to-floor
area ratios. For instance, the Sears Tower rests on a 1.2 acre footprint, yet offers over 87 acres
of useable floorspace within the building. An even greater land use densification could be seen in
each of the former World Trade Center Towers, which constituted an area one hundred times
greater area then their footprints.
This basic stacking principle, as it relates to the vertical farm, is perhaps best illustrated in
conceptual projects such as James Wines’ ‘Highrise of Homes’. Conceived in 1981, Wines
describes the project as one that can,
“…accommodate people's conflicting desires to enjoy the cultural advantages of an urban
center, without sacrificing the private home identity and garden space associated with
suburbia16."
Physically, the concept is a simple steel and concrete frame of eight to ten stories, erected in a Ushape
for use in a densely populated area. Homes would be designed and built to the owner’s
specification on purchased ‘plots’ within the tower’s
levels, and would be serviced by communal utilities
fixed into the structure. Ultimately the radical nature
of the project rendered it an economic impossibility.
However, it is the theoretical nature of the project
that has generated its lasting appeal. It gracefully
illustrates one perspective of the human relationship
to the natural landscape in the modern age, wherein
the ability exists to simply construct artificial land
area when the natural variety is in short supply. The
precarious relationship exhibited between this
concept and the natural landscape perfectly echoes
that of the vertical farm.
The other typology fundamental to the concept of the
Highrise of Homes
? 1981 S.I.T.E. Architects
13
vertical farm is the practice of indoor agricultural
production. The simple notion of growing plants
indoors has, not surprisingly, existed since antiquity,
with the first reported incidence being the indoor
cultivation of cucumbers for the Roman emperor
Tiberius18. With the emergence of industrial glass
production in the 19th century, and the development
of hydroponics in the 20th century, indoor farming
has become a viable method of high-yield
agricultural production. Currently this practice only
accounts for a small fraction of the agricultural production in the world; however it is an extremely
fast growing sector of agriculture. In Canada, which is the largest greenhouse crop producer in
the Americas, total sales from greenhouse products went from $1,072,542 in 2003 to $2,151,614
in 2005 ? over a doubling in production in just 3 years19. In Europe, the land scarcity of the
Netherlands has encouraged the Dutch to invest heavily in greenhouse farming, which in 2002
saw 4,300 hectares of greenhouse vegetable production, compared to less than a thousand in
Canada and the United States combined20.
The Netherlands, with its relative land scarcity and high agricultural production, is one of the
primary sites for the vertical farm concept’s fusion between indoor farming and high-rise
construction. In 2001, the Dutch architecture firm MVRDV developed the conceptual project Pig
City, which is a theoretical design for a series of skyscrapers completely dedicated to the
production of pork. The designers explain their proposal by stating,
“In 2000, pork was the most consumed form of meat at 80 billion kg per year. Recent
animal diseases such as Swine Fever and Foot and Mouth disease are raising serious
questions about pork production and consumption. Two opposing reactions can be
imagined. Either we change our consumption pattern and become instant vegetarians or
we change the production methods and demand biological farming.”21
Their design studies the combination of organic farming practices with the concentration of land
area required for meat production. This project has particular traction in the Netherlands, as it is
the European Union’s chief exporter of pork and, due to land restrictions, currently under
pressure to reform their agricultural practices to reduce agricultural pollutions and increase food
safety.7
The Netherlands is also the site of the most advanced attempt to realize a dense agricultural
production facility. Proposed for the docklands of Rotterdam in 2001, the massive Deltapark
Greenhouse Agriculture
14
project is the world’s first politically endorsed initiative to construct a large-scale indoor densified
farm. Its intended proportions are astonishing; roughly 1 kilometre in length and 400 metres in
width, which, multiplied by its 6 floors accounts for a total of 200 hectares (500 acres) of indoor
‘farmland’. Deltapark’s creator, Jan Broeze of the University of Wegeningen, describes the
concept’s logic:
“If you cluster various activities, like greenhouses, fish farming, and manure processing,
then you create a sufficient scale for more sustainable food production…The idea is to
use wastes from one industry to sustain another.” 7
Termed an “agro-production park”, the Deltapark project was conceived not only to densify
agricultural production, but also as a hyper-efficient agricultural process that artificially mimics the
waste transfer processes of the natural world. It uses a ‘clustering’ of production facilities to
maximize the energy distribution and biological metabolism of the system. Similar to the vertical
farm proposal, Deltapark is designed to be run by ‘managers’ and technicians rather than
farmers.7
Amidst this activity of densified agricultural concepts
emanating from Holland, the majority of recent
research into densified/vertical farming has been lead
by Dr. Dickson Despommier, professor of Microbiology
and Health Sciences at the University of Columbia. His
work, ranging from the agricultural processes of vertical
farming to the cost-effectiveness of such a design, is
the primary force behind its emergence in North
America. Dr. Despommier’s interest in the concept of
vertical farming emerged almost by accident through
an ad-lib project he proposed for his medical biology
class in 200022. Since then he and his students have
generated the lion’s share of available material
promoting the concept, primarily though its climate
change and rising population accommodating virtues.
6.0 - Points of Detraction
Pig City ? Skyscrapers for pork production
? 2000 MVRDV
15
Despite the concept’s many advantages, there is significant momentum acting in opposition to
vertical farming. For instance, many people are initially sceptical about the concept’s energy
consumption, and therein its sustainability, due to the massive amount of artificial lighting needed
for growing the crops14, 15. While this is a valid point of uncertainty, it is currently possible to solve
this issue by way of renewable power generation, such as the incorporation of photovoltaic
panels or wind turbines. The ease of solving this issue will rise correspondingly with the evolution
of on-site renewable energy generation for buildings. An example of such a leap in technology
that has dramatically eased the initiative to generate on-site renewable energy can be found with
the new designs for vertical-axis wind turbines suitable for building integration5.
Another point of contention lies in the costing viability of the construction and operation of the
vertical farm proposal14.15. This point is obviously dependant on current market trends, and one
that must be taken into account in the design process. By selecting a very economical form of
construction, perhaps even a renovation of an existing building, and offering the produce at local
market values, studies have shown the concept can be economically viable and profitable2. The
hypothesized scenario when on-site energy generation capacity would exceed energy
consumption, making way for a profit in selling unused energy to the grid, would add further
financial incentive.
However, the most critical voices of vertical farming come from those who view traditional
husbandry as a fundamental component of human culture, and subsequently regard the concept
of growing food in a centralized, artificial ecosystem, outside of the natural environment, as an
immoral proposition. Additionally, some view the inevitable marriage this concept could sanction
between industrial enterprises and food production as a logistical nightmare6.
This position is the latest incarnation of the
ideological argument against the intervention of
technology on traditional ways of life that has existed
since the dawn of the industrial revolution. Just as
the Luddites and Pre-Raphaelites were campaigning
against the emergence of industrial involvement in
the manufacturing crafts during the 19th century,
many today stalwartly resist the prospect of industrial
and technological involvement with agricultural
production. For example, the attempt to enhance
crop yields and plant resilience via genetic
modification has been met with passionate
A vertical beef farm located in Japan serves as an
indicator of the ethical dilemma inherent in
agricultural activity disconnected from the natural
environment
16
resistance, despite the absence of empirical substantiation to validate such scepticism. Of
course, this opposition is based largely on ethical grounds rather than scientific evidence8.
A more specific example relating to the concept of vertical farming can be found in the reaction to
the proposed Deltapark superstructure farm in the Netherlands. The proposal has generated
criticism from a few of the world’s top agricultural voices. Thomas Cierpka, executive director of
the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movement, said,
“Organic farmers want to control their production, but never nature as a whole. Food
production of this kind, unattached to nature, can in my mind never be called ecological.” 7
Angela Caudle, also with the IFOAM, said,
“The technological solution distracts from our human connection to agriculture and
food production…I can appreciate an attempt to find sustainable ways to deal with
producing more food for more people, but for me this is kind of like laboratory food” 7.
Many Dutch politicians and agricultural specialists have stood out against the idea. Socialist MP
Ruude Poppe commented on the proposal by saying,
“Animals can’t be produced in the same way as a toothbrush of a car. Food production
has always been a basic part of human culture. It’s about culture, not industry.” 7
Additionally, Henk Udo, associate professor of animal production systems at the University of
Wegeningen, says,
“My personal feeling is that this is turning agriculture into bio-industry. I doubt if farmers
will wish to become managers; that’s not what farming is about. I certainly wouldn’t be
keen on buying the products from Deltapark and I don’t believe this is what consumers
want.” 7
These concerns can be viewed as valid in the context of the current race toward the
industrialisation of every aspect of human production, and subsequently are acting out of fear of
contributing to the detachment of the human population from the natural world via the adoption of
a synthetic agricultural system.
7.0 Conclusion
Despite the aforementioned validity to the objections of vertical farming, it must be understood
that these voices are largely acting out of cultural sentimentality rather than rational objectivity.
When weighed against the vertical farm’s ability to dramatically minimize the ecological footprint
17
of agricultural production, counter global warming through the active reforestation of existing
farmland, and accommodate the rising food requirements of an exponentially rising population, a
rational mind must deduct that the shortcomings of vertical farming are largely overshadowed by
its virtues. Subsequently, unless humans are able to dramatically alter their relationship with the
earth’s ecosystem, and sufficiently reduce the pace of global population rise, the vertical farm’s
solution to the colossal problems of feeding a growing population and suspending global climate
change make it a very promising option.
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18
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19. Mailvaganam, Siva. “Greenhouse Industry Statistics”, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture,
Food and Rural Affairs Division May 25th, 2006
<http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/stats/hort/greenhouse1.html>
20. Greenhouse Vegetable Industry Factsheet, British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture,
Food, and Fisheries. 2002
<http://www.agf.gov.bc.ca/ghvegetable/publications/documents/industry_profile.pdf>
21. MVRDV. (2001) “Pig City”
<http://www.mvrdv.nl/_v2/projects/181_pigcity/textcredits/index.html>
22. Chamberlain, Lisa. “Vertical Farm” Polis Magazine (New York)
April 9 th, 2001. < http://polisnyc.wordpress.com/2007/04/02/vertical-farm/>
23. Buck, Anisa; Dine, Danial;et al. (2004) “Feeding 50,000 People”.
<http://www.verticalfarm.com/plans-2k4.htm >
24. Heilbroner, Robert L. (1953) “The Worldly Philosophers: The Lives, Times, and Ideas of
the Great Economic Thinkers”, Simon & Shuster
A.1 ? Competition Design 
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A.2 ? Cost Analysis of a Vertical Farm Concept
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 ps:뒷면 복사안된부분 원본에서 확인할것