Like my friends, I love to go out window shopping. Then, slowly my wallet seems to get lighter and my hands start to get heavier. We get super excited when we walk into a store like Ulta or Macy’s that has a 20% off or even a 65% off discount, especially on a day like Black Friday. Just like I like a good discount on my clothes, I love a good discount in my produce. Vertical farming offers us an economic benefit of producing more for less money. Vertical farming is the practice of plants growing on top of each other in containers or rows in stacked layers. In 2015, it became widely known to many companies to grow more crops in less space. Vertical farming is different and sustainable. Today, it is the future of Agriculture. We should all learn to adapt and implement this into our lives. Vertical farming provides an environmental benefit and social benefit by addressing food deserts, and an economic benefit by using less resources.
To begin with, vertical farming improves our environment by using sustainable and renewable technology. Growing up in a studio, my mother grew a small garden in the yard. She grew cherry tomatoes, serrano peppers, pequin peppers, hierbabuena, and epazote, a couple of mexican herbs, to name a few. The process of a simple garden at home can be a lot of work and time consuming for some. After I moved into an apartment with my family there was no space, so we turned to vertical farming. Vertical farming uses a modern idea of indoor farming to grow produce, also known as Controlled Environment Agriculture. This method gives us the access to control the plant's environment, water, nutrients, and other aspects. It is easier to start than a traditional garden and easier to maintain. Most vertical farms use aeroponics systems and coconut husks (certified organic) instead of soil. It is the same technology NASA uses to grow their food with only water and nutrients, zero soil. Research has found aeroponic systems grow plants three times faster and produce 30% more than traditional methods.
Every year there is more pollution in our world and in our air. Many of which is produced by our improvements in technology. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration stated that one of the factors potentially contributing to the contamination many states had with Romaine Lettuce was the “use of irrigation canal water to dilute crop protection chemicals.” Not only is canal water available for everyone to use for irrigation but also for human uses. Sometimes these chemicals run-off into our canals affecting the food supply. Vertical farming permits the people to control its water supply from a closed loop which prevents any run-off. In addition, vertical farming is environmentally friendly for not using any harmful pesticides or chemicals like Roundup. Best of all, consumers would participate buying organic produce from these crops.
In addition to taking care of our environment, vertical farming is important to every place to produce fresh vegetables and fruits. 23.5 million people who live in food deserts lack the quality of nutrients and vitamins fresh crops can offer them. 85% urban areas are food deserts. Two years ago, my father was diagnosed with Hepatic Steatosis, also known as Fatty Liver Disease. There are more than 3 million cases of Fatty Liver Disease in the United States and it is becoming more and more common. This disease could also lead to obesity, 36% of United States population is considered obese. Narrowing it down, diseases like obesity happens because of the lack of good nutrients in the body. Vertical gardens provide the nutrients needed to be healthy and not get these diseases.
United States Bureau of Reclamation confirms that 0.5% of Earth’s water, is freshwater. Freshwater is precious, we need to preserve what we can. Vertical farming addresses this issue by using 90% less water. We can grow food without fossil fuels but we can not grow food without water. This shows that vertical garden not only saves us water, but as well as space.
Many families could start their own small vertical garden. The average family of four in California spends $100 on vegetables and fruits per week. Having a small vertical farm would save families money after investing in the infastruction. They would save about $75 per week with a vertical garden, that is $240 per month! Which is a better deal than you can get in any store. In conclusion, vertical farming is the future because it reduces pollution, reduces food deserts, provide nutritionist options, and helps conserve fresh water. Overall, there are many reasons why vertical farming is the future of agriculture. Now it’s the time to bring it to our own homes and schools.
References
Albright, T. Tower Garden by Juice Plus. Retrieved from
https://www.towergarden.com/tg
Bandsma, R. (2018, July 2) Long-term metabolic effects of malnutrition: Liver steatosis and insulin resistance following early-life protein restriction. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6028108/
Grateful. (2019, September). Next Gen Farming Without Soil and 90% Less Water. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ww2TP_tU7o&t=17s
Federman, S. and Zankowski, P. (2018, August). Retrieved from Vertical Farming for the Future. Retreived from https://www.usda.gov/media/blog/2018/08/14/vertical-farming-future
Happy Films. (2017, May). Organic Sustainable Farming is the Future of Agriculture. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWkYtZxpQUo
Helmer, J. (2015, February 15). 4 Tips for a Successful Garden. Retrieved from https://www.ffa.org/the-feed/4-tips-for-a-successful-urban-garden/
Plantagon. (2017, May). Backlight The Rise of Vertical Farming. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOQHwjnOTng
Tower Garden. (2012, November). What is tower Garden Vertical Aeroponic Growing System? Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0o5kLBBvj9g
Tower Garden. (2012, October). Vertical Aeroponic Technology: See How Tower Garden® Works. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7EzYmO9u8M
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