Title: Vertical Farming Market: Technological Prospects 2022-2028
1Vertical Farming Market Technological Prospects
2022-2028
Vertical farming a closed environment
crop-growing technique has gained prominence
globally owing to high food consumption and lack
of arable land for cultivation. The volume of
global food consumption reached 2.5 billion
metric tons in 2021. This elevates the need for
this technique to reduce reliance on weather,
high soil fertility, and water consumption. Our
estimates indicate that the global vertical
farming market is set to propel at a CAGR of
23.10 from 2022 to 2028. Several crops have been
grown in stacked layers in skyscrapers,
warehouses, or shipping containers in recent
years, especially in Asia and Europe. For
instance, Vertical Future, a London-based
company, concluded research to deliver
sustainable fresh produce with zero agrichemical
components. Hence, a gradual shift from
conventional agrochemical-based farming to
sustainable controlled environment agriculture
has widened the markets scope.
Technology-Driven Offerings A Sustainable
Approach 1. Lighting category captures the
major share in terms of offering and is expected
to continue its dominance over the forecast
period. Farming with lighting technology enables
consistent plant growth, reducing the heat stress
on roots and ensuring uniform lighting. LED, in
this regard, is a popular supplementary light
source as it consumes 85 less heat than high-
pressure sodium (HPS) lights.
2- Hence, the LED grow light is set to become the
most sought-after technology, forecasted to reach
about 12 billion by 2030. GoodLeaf, a Canadian
vertical farm, is among the many to have replaced
old lighting systems with LED to grow varied
crops and reduce overall energy- related costs in
vertical farming. Overall, the growing
implementation of this technique in skyscrapers
and greenhouses is estimated to drive the
markets demand in the coming years. - Vertical farming is inclined towards deploying
sensors to store information in the cloud and
analyze data in real time using the internet of
things (IoT). Increasing government support for
modern agricultural techniques has boosted the
demand for these sensors in the market. For
example, the European Commission introduced the
Farm Advisory System to help farmers understand
rules for animal health, agriculture, and the
environment. - Another development includes collaboration
between International Rice Research Institute and
government partners to introduce the Cereal
System initiative in South Asia to offer tools
for location-specific fertilizer recommendations
to growers. Estimates indicate C02 sensors to be
a popular device, followed by pH, EC, and
magnetometer sensors. - Climate control is a critical aspect of indoor
farming techniques, with air quality control
gaining major prominence. Hence, CO2 enrichment
methods have been adopted to saturate CO2
solutions, reducing overall cost and the need for
additional equipment such as HVAC systems. Since
the build-up of heat and humidity in the growing
area increases the risk of infection, vertical
planes are incorporated as it allows air to move
easily compared to horizontal layouts. - However, the rising need for airflow examination
has influenced players to introduce new systems,
such as the airflow monitoring system by Kanomax
that measures air velocity 24/7, enabling farmers
to intervene in real time if the airflow is poor
or excessive. The deployment of such advanced
systems creates opportunities for operating
players to launch new products, thus driving the
market. - Bio-Pharma Farming A new Vertical?
- In addition to being economically viable in the
food industry, vertical farming is expected to
show significant prominence in the biopharma
sector in the upcoming years. Molecular farming,
in this scenario, holds the potential to offer
proteins that can be used as a therapeutic tool
in healthcare and life sciences. In line with
this, a few bio-pharma companies like Abattis
Bioceuticals Corp have adopted vertical farming
technology to produce nutraceutical components.
Therefore, the adoption of advanced solutions
like indoor cultivation will accelerate the
vertical farming markets development over the
forecast period.
FAQs Q1) Which countries have adopted vertical
farming?
3Several countries in the Asia-Pacific and Europe
have adopted vertical farming techniques,
including Japan, China, Singapore, the UK,
France, and the Netherlands. Q2) Which are the
key crop types in the vertical farming
market? Tomato, berries, pepper, cucumber,
microgreens, lettuce and leafy vegetables, and
others are key crop types in the vertical farming
market.