Future Blogger - STRAIGHT GANGSTA ON FARMS

When you think of a farm your mind may invoke images of rolling fields, tractors and perhaps a cow or two. But in the future – not so! Farms are movin’ from the country and into your nearest metropolis faster than you might think.

Due to unpredictable weather patterns that destroy millions of tons of crops each year and a growing human population set to peak at about 9 billion, some future-focused innovators are looking for better ways to keep food on the table. Two neo-farm prototypes currently evolving on separate continents share a common concept: urban farming as the future of sustainable agriculture.

The first project is the brainchild of Dr. Dickson Despommier, a professor at Columbia University. He imagines 30-story “vertical farm” skyscrapers in all the biggest cities. Each building would provide food and water to 50,000 people, produce crops year-round, and produce no waste. It would also naturally provide the environmental benefits of reducing pollution, restoring ecosystems, and solving the waste management problem.

Sound too good to be true? It was recently announced that Las Vegas is set to build the world’s first vertical farm. The project is estimated to cost $200 million and will feed 72,000. Design details are being currently being ironed out, but the doors should open sometime in 2010.

The other story starts in the underground vault of a bank in the Otemachi business district of Tokyo. No, this isn’t the setting for a Japanese heist movie. The underground facility was converted into a 1,000 square meter organic farm to be used as a training facility for people interested in agricultural jobs. Utilizing LED lighting and computer-controlled temperatures to grow over 100 different produces, it’s a high-tech fantasyland. Granted, it is just a demonstration facility, but it’s a great showcase of ingenuity and possibilities.

With construction projects underway, perhaps it won’t be too long before a massive vertical farm will grace the skyline in your city.

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