Vertical Farming 2022-2032

With a global population expected to reach 10 billion by 2050, paired with a decreasing amount of arable land caused by climate change and growing urbanisation, the agriculture industry faces major challenges over the coming years. To this end, vertical farms have attracted much interest over the last few years as a possible solution. By growing plants indoors under fully controlled environments in many stacked layers, using artificial lighting instead of the sun, vertical farms can tune their growing environments to the exact needs of the plant. When combined with soil-free growing techniques and high growing densities from their layout, vertical farming can achieve yields hundreds of times above that of conventional agriculture, 365 days a year and without requiring pesticides.

 

 

Supporters of vertical farming claim it could revolutionise global food production, practically eliminating food miles by enabling crop growth right next to urban population centres. Currently, fruit and vegetables often travel thousands of miles to reach consumers, losing freshness and quality along the way and increasing the risk of contamination. This has been a particular issue in the US, where recent E. coli outbreaks from contaminated produce have led to hundreds of hospitalisations in recent years. This has been further exacerbated by recent disruptions to the supply chain caused by the pandemic and geopolitical issues, highlighting concerns with a notoriously complex supply chain. By disrupting the highly centralised model for fresh produce, vertical farming could help overcome these issues, while capitalizing on the broader consumer trend towards local production.

 

 

 

The vertical farming industry has attracted much interest from investors over the last few years. The industry raised over $1 billion in 2021, a record high that exceeded the combined funding generated in 2018 and 2019. Of note is California-based vertical farm Plenty, which has raised over $900 million in funding to date; this included $400 million in a 2022 Series E funding supported by retail giant Walmart and SoftBank Vision Fund. Across the Pacific, the industry is already well-established - in Japan there are over 200 vertical farms currently operating, with industry leader Spread Co. Ltd. producing 30,000 heads of lettuce every day in its highly automated Techno Farm Keihanna plant.

 

However, the industry is also facing many challenges. The sector is littered with bankruptcies - PodPonics and FarmedHere, once operators of the largest vertical farms in the world, closed their doors in 2016 after struggling with spiralling power and labour costs and organisational complexities. Part of these challenges are the high cost of crop production commonly associated with vertical farms. Maintaining a controlled environment requires a great deal of energy, and the use of artificial lighting over sunlight accounts for a large part of this energy usage. The running of a vertical farm can also require much manual labour often in environments not designed for growing crops (such as inside shipping containers); human intervention is required for many aspects within the farm, ranging from crop monitoring to system maintenance. The associated energy and labour costs can contribute significantly to the high prices associated with vertically farmed produce, which may discourage consumers from these products.

 

Nevertheless, enthusiasm remains high and technology is helping to decrease the costs of vertical farming and make large scale urban food production a reality. This report provides an in-depth discussion of the key technology areas that are helping to make vertical farming a reality, identifying areas that could be key to the success of the industry, such as:

 

Based on interviews with 17 major players throughout the sector, including executives from 80 Acres, Kalera, Crop One Holdings and Jones Food Company and profiles of over 30 companies, this report draws insight into the state of the vertical farming industry, discussing the challenges that the industry faces and the factors involved in creating a successful vertical farming company. The report considers the economics of vertical farming in comparison to conventional agriculture and identifies opportunities for players in the industry and the wider value chain.

 

The report goes on to describe the value chain for vertical farming, as well as business models and how the markets for vertical farming change across geographies, contrasting the rapidly emerging markets in North America with the established markets in East Asia. The report then forecasts the future of the vertical farming industry covering produce in key geographies and business types up to 2032.

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