How Vertical Farms Bring Fresh Food To Booming Cities

Vertical Farming: The cutting edge technology transforming Singapore's food markets
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In Singapore, the challenge of feeding a growing population is pushing the concept of urban farming to new heights. A super-efficient vertical farming system is producing greens for 5 million residents.
"Can we supply enough food for everyone on the planet?" is a question plaguing leaders around the world. In Singapore SkyGreen offers one example of how this might be possible, "not just technically, but economically". By increasing their food security while reducing the impact of food production on global climate change, SkyGreen is 10 times more productive per square foot than conventional farming.
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[@clownshoes7942]

I'm amazed that at the time I am writing this there are 27 dislikes on this video. Even one dislike is to much. What is to dislike about the prospect of producing food for everyone on the planet? Our governments create laws all the time to protect money and if we break those laws we are punished. There are laws that have existed since the beginning of time, they are there and as long as life exists these laws must be obeyed. They are called the laws of nature. One of these laws is that life needs nutrition to survive. Every established government in the world breaks this law every second of every day with almost no end in sight. All around the world people are dying from starvation because our governments decided that in order to eat you must have money and if you do not have money you do not have the right to farm land or acquire life sustaining nutrition. Life is important not money. Stop letting the government's of the world break the law. Im not asking any one person to change the world but to just think and talk with others to help spread ideas of how to use technology for everyone instead of for capital gains.

[@ChadLupkes]

Maybe every country, indeed every municipality, should consider challenging themselves to see how low they can push food imports. Local food production is better for everyone.

[@DQuale]

this is a clear example of the old saying, necessity is the mother of invention.

[@wanderingwade8877]

Hurray for Singapore. I'm not being sarcastic. I've been fascinated by this country for years.

[@HKspurs10]

thank you

[@themeathead301]

thank you journeyman pictures, you are helping people find out news that is not broadcasted, this helps me allot because in a couple of years, i want to study journalism at university, thank you again :)

[@ThorShaker]

A great production. Very informative!

[@zaireenzulaika5355]

I would like to have this video to be shown for my exhibition this week along with an exhibition poster. really love it!! thumbs up!

[@BruceLeeroy34]

One day I will refurbish one of the old warehouses in my community to be an indoor farm/herbal pharmacy.

[@NoobaruKun]

Jeremy C. don't discard that as a thought, that is a reality that easily could be achieved with some determination

[@AntonySimkin]

good, but stay with farm please, herbs are a hoax.

[@danospanos]

Great, great, great... Thank you for this journeyman.

[@jackng6698]

This ,method has a lot of benefits: 1. Save cost of production : land needed, transport cost, less chilling needed, 2. Fresher leaves, 3. less jungle destroyed

[@esoesminombre7056]

+dsndicmsa In Singapore these lettuce are definitely competitive since the alternative is even more overpriced imported lettuces. It says so in the story. Bear in mind that these lettuces are such a success that they can't currently keep up with demand. There is indeed an initial cost in infrastructure but in the long run this should be profitable due to huge cost savings in water, pesticides and transportation. This is in the context of Singapore, which is highly dependent on foreign food, but with global warming, exponential population growth and the arable lands getting harder to come by, it will soon become a wise investment in other countries as well. More importantly the current studies on vertical farming are rather enthusiastic about both its benefits and its cost-effectiveness.

[@karjeecheng9024]

They grow other vegetables too, not just lettuces.

[@justinchung19]

Do you not realize how much more infrastructure it requires to destroy an existing ecosystem for arable land, plough the land, water, fertilize, harvest, and ship? companies like plenty use 1/350th of the water and significantly less labor. Initial investment may be significant up front but operating costs are low.

[@danielg6542]

this needs to be in Vegas, we don't produce pretty much anything except drunk tourists.

[@lawson4u2]

Vegas has inadequate source of water

[@HanumanOlam]

I'm from Vegas, I agree

[@HanumanOlam]

@@lawson4u2 Our water source actually isn't inadequate. Our state actually has the 2nd or 3rd lowest stake in the Colorado river water supply, due to a treaty that was signed in the mid 20th century. Those numbers haven't changed, and with the growth of the city and amount of water the casinos are taking, I think the numbers need to be renegotiated. Most of the water is pumped to California's farms. If they rerouted that to urban farms we'd have enough. There's definitely enough water, we just don't have enough rights to it.

[@cattleNhay]

Daniel G and a great system of putting people in cages to extract even more of their money.

[@wilsonator2008]

If the coastal states on both sea boards actively invested in more desalination plants, they can use treated seawater for their crops and population and then inland states like Nevada can negotiate the usage of more water from waterways.

[@askquestionsplz]

vertical farming is awesome! i loved it the first time i saw it! genius for cityscapes

[@BGY777]

We need to adopt this form of agriculture asap for the incoming 2 billion people by 2050, especially in China and India where the population is very dense. Need a lot of capital and other resource to make this common practice and sustainable in the future. A hungry population is a dangerous population and that danger can lead to desperate situations from riots and in extreme cases, war. All parties involved should take the initiative NOW to anticipate delays, oppositions, and other obstacles. It's already 2015 and 7+billion people and counting. The clock is ticking, let's get a move on it people!

[@papadoc711]

This is a simple but incredible idea!

[@Blaffles]

Singapore is one of my very favorite cities!

[@iwanfishz9]

I didn't realised we had one of those here , glad to see this method being implemented.

[@jonmode3268]

i loved your channel

[@alaipeace]

Good reporting, regards.. from Malaysian citizen

[@232323C]

I am very impressed...awesome

[@eswajansen7579]

A very nice system ! Well done !

[@greob]

Good reporting. Thanks.

[@SeekerofTruths]

This is a genius idea, can't believe I haven't thought of it

[@dertythegrower]

This. Is awesome.

[@justintaylor8593]

Where I live you can not get a building permit to build something like this. Someday I will get my greenhouse ferris wheel .

[@Ben-Jack]

That's really cool, looks like it's going to be the future of farming vegetables.

[@itsudesuka]

I buy their veggies all the time! They've seemed to have failed to mention the benefit of a much smaller carbon footprint though

[@MaximilianonMars]

+itsudesuka Because the whole CO2 = bad notion is bunk. You don't have to take my word for it, but it's very difficult to sway people in their dogmatic belief in global warming. Anyway if you believe lower CO2 is a benefit then that's just another reason to support this cool business.

[@satin4all]

Sehr interessant !

[@DalTones79]

Amazing

[@ceskymarketing]

I see this as a way of liberating from addiction to marketes and production and sales monopolies. Also, exemptions from 2 taxes, etc., if we cultivate ourselves for ourselves, for our neighbors or for the village. (sorry for automatic translation)

[@burningexperience6031]

Food and water is important. I had an amazing vision when I saw this video. and i'm going to stick with it.

[@repivonex]

Documentaries aren't made to impress people. They provide information and if you can perceive it you gain knowledge. And when you learnt something (gained knowledge), you are impressed. Peace.

[@euengelion]

I know where my internship is going to be at, now!

[@meyawabdulaziz3863]

hmmmm cost and space effeicnt ... i wounder if i can do that on my roof

[@Borat911]

Faisal Abdulaziz Hahaha I was thinking the same ! I guess you can ... i've seen people do it

[@lkomaromi6878]

Faisal Abdulaziz you can, absolutely.

[@meyawabdulaziz3863]

L Komaromi yes...i am building a small one for herbs...but i have to anchor it with steel cables (the wind is strong here)

[@lkomaromi6878]

Brilliant.

[@phackqu]

I remember Jacque fresco talking about this a few years ago.

[@mizukageg6686]

I wanna experiment with urban farming, time to read some books!!

[@zaireenzulaika5355]

+News?Really? this is one of the type of urban farming. but most people now, just farm their vegies at their backyards at the cities. That is the most simple design of urban farming.

[@schmuelsonsradang4301]

Good luck. All the best.

[@LolFishFail]

So in theory you could have entire farming cities? Giant towers that produce fruit and vegetables. Mind blowing.

[@alamjahangir1043]

ii like this farm very much

[@serialchillerAEE]

omg i thought about this b4 even inside spaceship

[@HibHab69]

Electricity costs must be super high for some of these projects, especially in the case of that one over in Japan that uses the LED lights. I like this rotating tower though, hopefully it circumvents this problem.

[@ysdom]

I'm with you on that one. I think we should also be growing our residential buildings vertically and not outwards. I'd like to see all of us in nice, moderately tall buildings surrounded by parks and agricultural areas. If we could all also live closer to where we work and have the conveniences close to us, less fossil fuel usage as well. Everyone shouldn't just have-to-have their own house and lot - although I do see the advantage.

[@HaloandMetroid]

Not necessarily. Living in a rural area doesn't mean that person will be poor or have less access to jobs and poverty in urban area is rampant. By suggesting we continue to urbanize at the rate we are doing now is also to suggest that we rely on factory farms for our food. Its actually a good thing to have some of the population on the country side and in rural areas. Remember efficiency isn't always a good thing.

[@bnbcraft6666]

when I own my own house I'll have a garden since it'll be ecofriendly

[@ndog37]

Glad to see this. Food is freely available you just need smart people who are able to produce it.

[@EsotericWorldViews]

This looks like an amazing investment opportunity..

[@jordanwalter6570]

It would be amazing to see these in places like the US where we don't need them yet but to use our land for a more eco friendly and cost effective way to produce, imagine our miles of fields but multiple levels high, we could use one acre as six acres.

[@88roro11]

it would be interesting if he made some of those vertical instillations on top of buildings

[@jasonjames3001]

Any way to get more information on the gravity fed water wheel hydraulic system with the modern twist he was using? I have been searching for something like this.

[@karjeecheng9024]

Try contacting them at their website www.skygreens.com

[@1991araaron]

Thanks everyone.

[@naybobdenod]

check out the `Cuba` experiment of home grown foods,this came as a result of severe food shortages because of poor government. Every bit of land available for growing food was utilised including pots. It worked and the population is now well fed plus the general health of the population increased dramatically. Your comment is quite thought provoking. Sincerely JF ( UK )

[@LauraTeAhoWhite]

The future of farming.

[@iskdude57]

You should check permaculture, it's pretty amazing. I wish I could put links on here

[@Kez2612]

My thoughts exactly

[@gjc82071]

Yes I agree.

[@JustJP100]

Jack Ing is a true visionary

[@JeremyElliotPlus]

not doubtful at all. "Urban drift", the net movement of people from rural areas to cities, has been common knowledge for decades. Since the industrial revolution, rural population was a decreasing majority until 2010. Since 2010, it is a decreasing minority.

[@rhodan10000]

Together with In-Vitro Meat,insects and algues as organic food(slowfood or permaculture) it will be the future.Invitro meat and vertical farming will be the future in outer space too.

[@moisesalarmas2723]

Excelente...

[@luzmondilla4292]

God afternoon to all im albert MONDILLA jr of lukban province of quezon i lke vertical farming i will pray to GOD YOU WILL TEACH US HERE THANK YOU SO MUCH GOD BLESS US ALL

[@meow23]

I from mexico and a lot of mexicans used to come from farmer family's in the 40's and 50's but in the 60's come from a farmer family was equal as you live in pooverty and ignorance so a lot of parents push they kids to become a college graduate, now even college graduate people have not jobs because economy is bad and some of that people back to work in farms back to the basis just to survive

[@AlexisuwuAlexis]

oh my god Brass Eye is becoming real life

[@yanggang15]

I lived in Singapore for over 5 years, but I do believe the vegetables I bought home are mostly from Indonesia...Good idea though... 9 BILLION...I believe they are damn serious

[@richvonile]

Aquaponics & Hydroponics are the future farming.

[@threefacedpilgrim24]

on small scale, not mass farming

[@nielsf]

threefacedpilgrim 2 I think many small farms are better than very large ones anyway. Every city block having its own garden tower would really bring people together. Not to mention that crop rot due to insects would be lessened immensely. In a way we are distributing the "load" of the planet more evenly again.

[@Xilosphere]

nielsf This.

[@AntonySimkin]

@@threefacedpilgrim24 why not?

[@lm2193]

what is that machine with the chain 0:57? I checked 'gravity fed water system' google but I can't find any machine that looks like this.

[@unconventionalme8048]

Singapore, the example of true economic progress once regulations are brought into reasonable parameters and taxes are lower to allow ppl the financial means of growth, not the government.

[@nereyekadar]

I knew the idea, and I like the utilization. But here is something we should think about: Instead of using more and more medicine to control the symptoms of urbanization, maybe we should look into slowing down urbanization and maybe stopping it altogether. I'm sure we can grow enough food if %80 of the population didn't live in urban areas. And while I'm on the subject, can we talk about how much food goes to waste? In our houses or on the market?

[@cherubim59]

I hope Food produced in Singapore are made cheaper.

[@c0ffybeanz]

Weren't you listening? "One of the first..." So yeah, it's special to the WORLD.

[@lu-dx6oh]

at 4:26 it theres a sign or a pineapple 6.50 in singapore dollars, i looked at the exchange rate and thats 4.83 us dollars for a pineapple really expensive . over here in texas it costs 1 us dollar

[@timothyyap3479]

This is mainly because Singapore imports most of its produce from foreign countries. Just a decade ago they would've been Only about $2-3US but in recent years, many Chinese investors have been buying more and more of our Neighbour's produce, increasing prices dramatically

[@FeloniousAngel]

That guy is 50? He looks great, which I guess shouldn't be surprising.

[@moosefactory133]

I am amazed that Sky Greens can compete against conventionally grown lettuce and cabbage producers. If this is true, I would love to see this done all over the world.

[@Koroistro]

+moosefactory133 It can compete aganist conventionally grown products because in Singapore those have travel costs associated with them. At the time of this video it means that while Sky Greens is actually more expensive to produce but it has a fraction of the delivery cost. It makes this cost-effective only for cities which don't have a lot of farm land close to them.

[@themiko1210]

I think it is more of maximizing the utilization of a small plot of land for agriculture

[@ahhinwee6195]

A move in the right direction

[@miiigoreng]

Yes, most of our foods are imported from every places, Malaysia & Indonesia largely supply the groceries. Quite uncommon & costly, tasting something from our own soil. .

[@Felixinhk08]

The missing subtitle at 1:11 is "three dollars per month for these all four towers"

[@chrislecky710]

cool,

[@TheBushdoctor68]

That's a great project. However, I'm amazed that they are not using the waste that fish and shrimp produce to feed the plants. In that case you will have free nutrients and a harvest of fish and shrimp as well. Check out Will Allen's Growing Power for a perfect example.

[@blakhope]

while towers are good since there in the cities board out mountains would also be good farms since there usually sparkly populated

[@lamond57]

*** I agree too***

[@premekmraz4079]

They pump water high up into water tank. Then, they left the water fall down to move with plant´s bed and rest of water energy transform in generator into electricity. I think, If they didn't pump water so high, then strenuosity would be the same. And they could save money for generator.

[@marys.2301]

i just bought 50lb grown in Texas.

[@nonchalantd]

More food should be produced locally and frozen wherever possible, so that it can be eaten in the months when the produce is out of season, e.g., I keep asparagus and spinach in my freezer because it spoils quickly.

[@stevee233]

Grow high, not long!

[@firefox39693]

Hong Kong is another city that would love this technology.

[@RalfStephan]

So how much energy do you need to get all this metal into place?

[@ChrisPlaysLinux]

The problem is not urbanization. Urban areas are more energy efficient generally. It is how we power our urban areas. With coal and oil.

[@Theorist1984]

What futuristic movie is this from? ;)

[@Forbeszy1]

Seems like its better if we all did that instead of normal farming.

[@0xHalox0]

hmmm right, and in home composters should be sold in stores and micro cluster housing should be established as the norm :)

[@Anenome5]

> That could be illegal in some states. In states like Idaho & Washington, you don't "own" the rainwater that falls on your property. This is an illegitimate law, and thus should be ignored and resisted by all.

[@hlimkb]

Step towards the right direction,prices will be at a premium because of the costs n tech involved.

[@nightlightabcd]

As I understand it, China has the first super skyscraper with the same principle, along it outer part. One of the tallest buildings in the world.

[@hotmeish]

❤️❤️❤️

[@fahmianugrah]

this is why i study agronomy.. yeah

[@tuuyen3197]

Rau luôn tươi mới và luôn có mỗi ngày.

[@Cyrus992]

How far will food prices comes down? 30%? 70%?

[@Barskor1]

Average age of a farmer in the US is around 68 this is only possible with mechanization & petrochemicals for fuel pesticides & fertilizers. Peak oil learn about it, why do you think they have to go farther and more extreme places to get Oil if you don't believe in Peak Oil? Rudolf Diesel made the diesel engine to run on vegetable oils so farmers could supply their own needs and communities. Grow industrial hemp food fuel and fiber all from 1 plant gained at the same time.

[@takenRipsaLLDAY]

Sorry people but this information is wrong. Please check your facts, there is already more then enough food being grown world wide to feed every person on the planet. The problem is fair distribution and were we are putting are resources

[@trispectre8366]

And don't forget yield gaps.

[@AntonySimkin]

don't forget upcoming natural disasters... Argentina had to buy soy beans this year because of massive rains and dry outs.

[@wilsonator2008]

Nobody: Me in my Minecraft Survival Mode Server:

[@MrJonslife]

Well done singapore.

[@gjc82071]

That could be illegal in some states. In states like Idaho & Washington, you don't "own" the rainwater that falls on your property. Containing the water is a serious, criminal offense. Then you have corporations like Monsanto, who's ultimate goal is to criminalize ALL, private, organic, vegetable gardening. They came damn close with HR875 "Monsanto Dream Bill" sponsored by congresswoman Rosa DeLauro,...wife of Monsanto's CEO.

[@TallHorseVideos]

The food exists, just not the infrastructure.