A new venture aims to create a vertical farm in Denmark which will output 1,000 tons of local greens a year.
The farm will be fully wind-powered, and use hydroponic to grows its plants which will get their energy from LEDs rather than the sun.
The idea is that Denmark would be able to get its veg from the farm rather than importing it from Spain, Italy or Kenya.
The farm will sit on the outskirts of Copenhagen and is set to begin producing 1,000 metric tons of food a year by the start of 2021.
While a local Danish startup – Nordic Harvest – is running the farm, it has partnered with YesHealth, a Taiwanese tech provider, who has a proven record creating similar profitable high tech vertical farms.
The firm believes that if the farm is a success, that farms with a footprint as small as 20 football fields could produce enough greens for the whole country.
The 75,000 square foot farm will use hydroponics to produce the veg. Hydroponics allow food to grow with little water and no pesticides.
The company will manufacture its’ own LED lights for the farm but is quick to point out these will be powered by wind turbines reducing its’ environmental impact.
Labour costs are reduced through automation and each room is packed with 14 shelves for growing greens.
The company will initially price its’ greens to compete with organic veg in the Danish market but hopes it will soon become competitive with conventional produce.
