Vertical farming is growing up

Whether “farm to table” or “feed the world,” producers are tasked with finding solutions. Innovation continues to be key in agriculture, enabling farmers to close the gap when faced with challenges around labour, energy costs, market access, and numerous other issues impacting their success.

When producing fruits and vegetables, weather and climate concerns also present difficulties, potentially impacting an entire growing season or crop; farmers have been working on ways to produce larger volumes in a controlled environment; welcome vertical farming.

What is vertical farming?
Vertical farming consists of various methods to produce crops in a controlled environment in vertically stacked layers. High-density production of produce grown under optimum conditions for year-round, continued production utilizing minimal land base and soilless growing methods.

There is no single method to farming vertically as innovators have adopted different approaches to maximizing production depending on the produce being grown. Aquaponic systems, hydroponics, growing media and aeroponics are common systems utilized in vertical farming. In Canada, hydroponics is the most used method; however, an increase in the use of aeroponics systems is emerging.

What does vertical farming look like?

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