Author: Kirstie Pickering

Typically constructed within redundant buildings or warehouse units, vertical farms are becoming an established sector of the farming industry, but what about container farms? In simple terms, a container farm is a vertical farming system that is built inside a shipping container. Its key benefit over more traditional vertical farms is its flexibility – placing a farm within a container rather than a building makes it transportable and it can be slotted into a vast range of spaces, from car parks to farmland. Other significant benefits of container farming are low cost of entry, consistent crop yields in any climate,…

The vertical farming sector in the Middle East is booming. The unique challenges created by extreme temperatures in the region makes the solution an attractive method to increase food production, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia and Qatar have all embraced vertical farming in some capacity to date. In Dubai, the world’s largest vertical farm was established last year. Bustanica’s indoor facility covers 330,000 square feet and the farm has the capacity to produce one million kilograms of salad crops per year. As a further sign of support for the growing sector, the fourth Global Vertical Farming Show…

Fischer Farms is to open a new vertical farm in the English county of Norfolk this summer. It will create 25,000 m² of growing space – enough to supply 6.5 tonnes of leaf salad, leafy herbs and other fresh produce to UK supermarkets every day. The site – which will bring 27 new jobs to Norfolk – will use the latest vertical farming innovations, pioneering technology and renewable energy to enable Fischer Farms to farm more responsibly, sustainably and productively in order to feed a growing population. News of the opening later this year is particularly timely after major supermarkets…