Vertical farms could take over the world | Hard Reset by Freethink

Summary

This video explores the innovative world of vertical farming, exemplified by Plenty's indoor farm in Wyoming. By growing crops vertically, using recycled water, and LED lighting, these farms offer a sustainable solution to traditional agriculture. With a focus on flavor and nutrition, vertical farming could revolutionize food production, reduce environmental impact, and potentially change diets and cuisines globally.

Takeaways

• 🚀 The concept of a futuristic indoor farm, likened to a potential Mars farm, is introduced as a model for the future of farming on Earth.
• 🌱 Vertical farming is presented as a solution to traditional farming's limitations, allowing for year-round growth in a controlled environment.
• 💧 The indoor farm recycles water, aiming for a sustainable approach by minimizing the use of natural resources.
• 🌍 The script discusses the historical impact of farming on the planet, highlighting the need for a new approach to meet dietary needs without further ecological damage.
• 🌱 Companies like Plenty are leading the way in making vertical farming mainstream, with the ability to condense large areas of farmland into smaller, more efficient spaces.
• 💡 The use of LEDs to replicate sunlight is a key technology that has made vertical farming more viable, with LEDs becoming more efficient and affordable.
• 🌿 Vertical farms can control environmental factors to optimize plant growth, leading to a significant increase in yield and improved flavor.
• 💰 The economic feasibility of vertical farming is discussed, with the cost of technology decreasing and the potential for high yields making it an attractive investment.
• 🌱 The script addresses the social impact of vertical farming, including job creation in communities and the potential to improve access to fresh produce in food deserts.
• 🌱 The potential for vertical farming to revolutionize diets and cuisines globally is explored, along with the ethical considerations of transitioning from traditional to indoor farming.

Q & A

What is the significance of the indoor farm in Wyoming mentioned in the script?

The indoor farm in Wyoming is significant because it represents one of the world's most advanced indoor farms, which could be a model for the future of farming on Earth, similar to what might be needed on Mars.

How does vertical farming differ from traditional farming?

Vertical farming involves growing crops upwards on stacked layers instead of the traditional horizontal method. It allows for year-round farming without the need for pesticides and with water recycling, making it a more sustainable and efficient approach.

What is the potential yield increase with vertical farming compared to traditional farming?

Vertical farming can result in a yield increase of about 700% by condensing the growth cycle and optimizing the use of space and resources, as mentioned in the script with Plenty's ability to condense 700 acres of farmland into a big box retail store size.

How does indoor farming with vertical stacks affect water usage?

Indoor vertical farming significantly reduces water usage by recirculating water through a closed system. The script explains that 99% of the water transpired by plants is captured and recirculated, saving about a million gallons of water per week.

What role do LEDs play in indoor vertical farming?

LEDs are used to replicate sunlight in indoor vertical farms, providing the necessary light for photosynthesis. The script highlights that advancements in LED technology have made vertical farming more economically viable due to increased efficiency and reduced costs.

How does Plenty's vertical farming approach impact the flavor and quality of produce?

Plenty's vertical farming allows for the control of environmental factors, leading to produce with enhanced flavor and quality. The script indicates that their produce is cleaner, more flavorful, and doesn't require washing due to the absence of pesticides and outdoor contaminants.

What are the environmental benefits of moving to indoor vertical farming as described in the script?

The environmental benefits include reduced land use, no need for pesticides, and significant water savings. The script suggests that this approach could help 'give back' land to nature and reduce humanity's extractive impact on the environment.

How does Plenty's vertical farming technology contribute to solving food desert issues?

Plenty's technology allows for local farming in communities, such as Compton, which is described as a food desert in the script. This can provide jobs and access to fresh produce in areas that traditionally lack such resources.

What are the potential global implications of adopting vertical farming on a large scale?

The script suggests that widespread adoption of vertical farming could lead to fresh produce being grown in arid or frigid regions, changing diets and cuisines worldwide, and potentially disrupting traditional farming communities and their identities.

How does Plenty's vertical farming model contribute to the idea of 'democratizing flavor'?

By focusing on quality over the ability to ship long distances, Plenty's model ensures that fresh, flavorful produce is available to consumers regardless of their location, as mentioned in the script. This approach levels the playing field for access to high-quality food.

What are the potential challenges and disruptions to traditional farming if vertical farming becomes the norm?

The script discusses the potential for significant disruption to traditional farming, including the loss of farming community identities and the need for a transition to new jobs in vertical farming facilities, which offer year-round employment.

Outlines

00:00

🌱 Indoor Farming: The Future of Agriculture

This paragraph introduces an indoor farm in Wyoming, which serves as a model for what farming on Mars might look like. The farm utilizes vertical farming techniques, allowing for the growth of crops in stacked layers rather than on a flat surface. This method eliminates the need for pesticides and enables water recycling, making it a sustainable and efficient approach to farming. The paragraph discusses the limitations of traditional farming methods and how indoor farming can address these by increasing yield and reducing land use. It also touches on the role of technology, such as LEDs, in simulating sunlight for plant growth and the economic considerations that make this form of farming viable.

05:00

🛠️ The Technology Behind Vertical Farming

The second paragraph delves into the technology and efficiency of vertical farming, particularly the role of LEDs in replicating sunlight. It discusses how the efficiency of LEDs has improved due to widespread use in consumer electronics, making vertical farming more economically feasible. The paragraph also highlights the benefits of vertical farming, such as the ability to control the growing environment to enhance flavor and cleanliness of produce, and the reduction in water usage and land requirements. The narrative includes insights from Plenty, a company leading in vertical farming, which has already started selling its produce in local markets. The discussion also touches on the potential health benefits of cleaner produce and the company's plans for expansion and community impact.

10:05

🌐 Global Impact and Ethical Considerations of Vertical Farming

The final paragraph explores the broader implications of vertical farming on a global scale. It envisions a future where traditional farming is replaced by indoor vertical farms, allowing for the growth of fresh produce in diverse climates and locations. This could lead to significant changes in diets, cuisines, and the environment. The paragraph also raises ethical questions about the impact on traditional farming communities and the potential loss of agricultural identities. It concludes by suggesting that vertical farming could allow for the restoration of natural habitats and a less extractive relationship with the planet, hinting at the potential for a 'hard reset' in how humanity approaches food production.

Keywords

💡Vertical Farming

Vertical farming is a method of growing crops in vertically stacked layers, often in controlled environments. It is a key concept in the video as it represents the future of farming, particularly for its potential on Mars or in other challenging environments. The video discusses how this method allows for year-round farming in a compact space, reducing the need for pesticides and maximizing water usage through recycling. An example from the script is the comparison to libraries stacking books on shelves to utilize space efficiently.

💡Indoor Farming

Indoor farming refers to the practice of cultivating plants in controlled environments inside buildings, as opposed to traditional outdoor farming. The video emphasizes indoor farming as a solution to land scarcity and environmental impact, highlighting how it can increase yield and reduce resource consumption. The script mentions how indoor farms can condense the equivalent of 700 acres of farmland into a retail store-sized building, achieving a 700% increase in yield.

💡Yield

Yield in farming refers to the amount of produce harvested per unit area. The video discusses the limitations of traditional farming yields and how vertical and indoor farming can significantly increase yield. For instance, Plenty, a company featured in the video, claims to achieve a 700% increase in yield by condensing the growth cycle and using indoor farming techniques.

💡Pesticides

Pesticides are chemicals used to protect plants from harmful insects and diseases. The video argues for a shift away from their use in traditional farming due to environmental and health concerns. Indoor and vertical farming methods, as described, eliminate the need for pesticides by controlling the environment and thus the presence of pests.

💡Water Recycling

Water recycling in the context of the video refers to the process of reusing water in farming systems, which is crucial for sustainable agriculture. Indoor farms, as depicted, can recycle up to 99% of the water used, significantly reducing the consumption of fresh water resources compared to traditional farming practices.

💡LEDs

LEDs, or Light Emitting Diodes, are used in vertical farming to provide artificial light for plant growth, replacing sunlight. The video explains how the efficiency and affordability of LEDs have improved, making vertical farming more viable. LEDs are crucial for creating the optimal light spectrum for various crops, as mentioned in the context of Plenty's research on light and plant growth.

💡Flavor

Flavor in the context of the video relates to the taste of the produce grown using vertical and indoor farming methods. The video suggests that these farming techniques can enhance the flavor of crops by controlling the growing conditions, such as light and nutrients. An example is the description of kale grown by Plenty, which is said to have a unique, desirable flavor profile due to the controlled environment.

💡Automation

Automation in farming refers to the use of technology to perform tasks traditionally done by humans. The video highlights automation as a key component of indoor farming, allowing for precise control over growing conditions and increasing efficiency. The script mentions that plants grown by Plenty have never been touched by human hands, emphasizing the level of automation in their process.

💡Food Deserts

A food desert is an area lacking access to affordable and nutritious food. The video discusses how vertical farming can be a solution to food deserts by bringing local farms to these areas. The example given is Plenty's facility in Compton, which aims to provide fresh produce to a community that traditionally has had limited access.

💡Nutrients

Nutrients in farming refer to the essential elements required for plant growth. The video explains how indoor and vertical farms can control the nutrients provided to plants, leading to healthier and more flavorful produce. The script mentions that Plenty can manipulate nutrient levels to change the flavor profile of their plants, such as making kale softer and sweeter.

💡Artemis Base

The Artemis Base refers to the planned lunar outpost as part of NASA's Artemis program. The video suggests that the technologies and efficiencies developed for vertical and indoor farming on Earth could be applicable to future off-world settlements, such as those on the moon or Mars. This keyword illustrates the potential scalability and adaptability of vertical farming techniques.

Highlights

The concept of a futuristic indoor farm in Wyoming is introduced as a potential model for Martian agriculture.

Vertical farming is presented as a method to grow crops in a compact space, reducing the need for pesticides and water.

The historical transformation of Earth's ecosystems for agricultural purposes is discussed, highlighting the need for a new approach.

The challenge of increasing crop yields while using less land is presented, with indoor farming suggested as a solution.

The idea that sunlight and rain may not be necessary for growing food is introduced, questioning traditional farming methods.

Plenty, a company leading in vertical farming, is introduced, with a focus on its environmental research and controlled growing conditions.

The benefits of vertical farming, such as increased yield and reduced land and water usage, are explained.

The economic and environmental impact of indoor farming, including water savings and land efficiency, is discussed.

The role of LEDs in vertical farming for replicating sunlight and their increasing efficiency is highlighted.

The economic feasibility of vertical farming is explored, with a focus on the cost reduction of technology as a driver.

The potential of vertical farming to change diets and cuisines globally is considered, along with its environmental implications.

The impact of vertical farming on traditional farming communities and the potential for a 'hard reset' in agriculture is discussed.

The possibility of growing fresh produce in arid or frigid regions through vertical farming is presented.

The potential for vertical farming to reduce the need for pesticides and the benefits for human health are highlighted.

The social and economic benefits of vertical farming in food deserts, such as Compton, are discussed.

The future of vertical farming, including the potential to grow a variety of crops and its implications for space exploration, is considered.

The potential for vertical farming to restore ecosystems and reduce humanity's extractive impact on the environment is explored.

Transcripts

This is the first farm on Mars.

Okay, technically, it's not on Mars.

It's Wyoming,

so close enough.

Anyway, it could be on Mars,

because this is one

of the world's most advanced indoor farms,

and it could be the future of farming right here on Earth.

With vertical farming,

you can start with a building roughly the size of a Costco,

grow your crops up and down,

instead of around you on the floor,

ditch the pesticides, 

recycle the water,

and you can grow pretty much anywhere, anytime.

Why do this?

Well, look at this.

It's all of the farmland in the world.

All of that used to be nature. 

- It is probably one

of the most defining acts of humanity.

We literally changed the ecosystem of the entire planet

in order to meet our dietary needs.

Plants today produce roughly what they produced 10,

20 years ago.

We've just managed to pack more of them into a field,

and there is a limit to that type of yield gain.

Our job is to build the farms that unlock nutrition

for everyone on a scale that no one's ever seen,

and the only way we can do that now is by growing indoors.

- Indoors?

Don't you need sunlight and rain to grow the world's food?

Maybe not.

This is Hard Reset,

a series about rebuilding our world from scratch.

- So pods are where we do almost all

of our environmental research.

This is where we understand what drives flavor,

what drives appearance, what drives yield,

in all of the different crops that we grow.

- Why would we want to farm vertically?

Well, there's a reason

that libraries don't spread their books all over the floor.

They stack them up on shelves,

so that they can stack a lot of books in a small footprint.

Vertical farms do the same thing for agriculture,

and while vertical farms are not new,

companies like Plenty are leading the charge

and making them mainstream.

- Okay, this is Nate's story. Plenty. 

- So going vertical allows us to put a lot more product

in a single spot.

It allows us to circulate air easier,

administer light easier,

allows us to have massive growing plants.

- We can condense about 700 acres of farm land

into the size of a big box retail store.

And we harvest 365 days a year.

We were able to condense the growth cycle

to about 10 days for a lot of our products,

which is about a 700% increase in yield.

We are doing that all while saving

about a million gallons of water per week,

and using about 1% of the land compared

to traditional farming.

- In an indoor farm, we put water in the roots,

so they take the water up and they transpire that water,

and then that water gets sucked into our air handling units.

We condense it all and put it right back in the system.

So 99% of the water that's transpired in the field

and lost, is captured and recirculated in our farms.

We have strawberries in another space,

we've got an upstairs space devoted to tomatoes.

Overall, we've got over 50 different discreet spaces

that we use to do these tests.

- Historically,

vertical farming has been too expensive and too inefficient

to make it a better option than traditional farming,

but that's all changing now

as these technologies drop in price.

- Humanity is on that cost curve right now,

we just don't realize it, right?

We're riding this cost curve down to a future

where almost anything is possible

in an extremely controlled environment.

- That's not to say that one

of these vertical farms is cheap.

A new facility can cost a hundred million dollars

to install,

but the cost of each component is plummeting

as industries like solar and robotics are flourishing.

But the surprising technology

that's helped make this possible is LEDs,

what vertical farms use to replicate the sun.

Let's break that down. 

- Our system is just a system of energy transfers

and our ability to manage the efficiency

of those energy transfers in some way

or another is what makes us economical

or non-economical as a business.

It sounds crazy,

but like most everything in the world, right,

we can only save our species if it makes economic sense.

(laughter)

You know, life and death,

let's make sure that we can afford it, right?

- Right.

Nate gets it.

Basically, an LED's efficiency comes down

to how little loss there is between the grid's electricity

and the amount of light it puts out,

then how much light is actually absorbed

and used by the plant.

- We think about LEDs as the point

of major energy loss in the system.

We're taking electrons and converting them into photons.

- And thanks to all your TV and cell phone

and light bulb buying,

LED technology has gotten really, really efficient.

And Plenty is getting really good

at putting out the kind of light

that actually results in plant growth and plant flavor.

- LEDs has just been going

down, down, down in price and up, up, up in efficiency,

and our understanding of what makes a good photon

versus a bad photon at the plant level has been going

up, up, up as we've been researching and working.

We're really kind of transitioning into a world

where humans and machines are partnering together

in better and better ways to make farming awesome.

- Plenty is not vaporware,

it's already on the market.

Their first farm

in the San Francisco Bay Area has produce available

at local stores today.

It's premium price, but it's not unaffordable.

Plenty is banking on their produce being better

and more flavorful than produce from traditional farms.

- What we can do with nutrients and lights

is we can change the flavor profile of our plants.

So things like a blue light can make a more crispy crunch

on a plant like kale.

The kale is nothing like a kale you would think of.

It's soft, it's kind of sweet, it's crunchy.

So I make a pesto out of it that I really love.

- I sampled Plenty's products

and they're not wrong.

The baby arugula, baby kale,

and mizuna mixes all have a ton of flavor.

And that kale pesto that Shireen mentioned?

So good.

And because farms

like Plenty use a tremendous amount of automation,

these plants have actually never even been touched

by human hands.

- When you grow things outside,

the elements are much more unpredictable.

If you grow indoors,

you can control a lot of those factors

in ways that aren't accessible to outdoor growers,

and the result is that our produce can be hundreds

of times cleaner.

- Plenty doesn't need to use pesticides

'cause there are no bugs.

Its produce doesn't have bird poop on it

because why would you put birds inside a warehouse?

- That results in a product that's so clean,

you don't need to wash it,

and that's a huge step forward for human health and safety.

- Hey there!

This is your colonel talking. 

- Faster, unhealthy food dominates people's diets,

but that's partially because alternative produce

for most is kind of gross.

- It could be the best tasting lettuce

and tomato hamburger ever!

- So globally,

we eat about 1/3 of the fresh fruits

and vegetables that we should be consuming.

That's a huge problem;

that's why we see the rise of heart disease and diabetes

and all of these different things in places

where people used to just struggle

to get enough calories, right?

And what we've done in the last 50 years is we figured out

how to trick our bodies into wanting

to eat the wrong things.

Humanity is trapped in our addiction to those calories,

and we don't have the land or the resources

or the ability to compensate with high-nutrition food.

- Most produce has been packed up and shipped off

to another country or transported across state lines

via trucks and trains.

That's not great for the environment

and it also sucks for the flavor of your produce.

- Many products like tomatoes are designed

for durability, 'cause they gotta be shipped

across the country in these massive trucks,

and not for flavor.

So our products can last longer on shelves

because they're not spending three or four days on a truck.

- We're able to concentrate on quality

over the ability to ship.

And so this is, in a lot of ways,

the democratization of flavor.

- Right now, we are really focused

on building our facility in Compton.

We're in the middle of construction

and hoping to open that facility in the next year or so.

Compton is a food desert.

So we're bringing jobs to communities

that really are looking for investment in people.

These aren't seasonal jobs, they're full-time jobs,

365 days a year, living wages.

Being able to grow in communities anywhere means

that we will be able to offer that produce

to places that traditionally haven't had access.

I mean, that's what we can do,

is we can create local farms everywhere.

- With their San Francisco

and Compton facilities,

Plenty will only be growing leafy greens

and shorter plants.

Tall crops like wheat or corn don't make much sense

to farm vertically,

but that may all change in the decades to come.

So picture a scenario where we got rid

of all the traditional farms

and replaced them with just vertical farms.

Fresh produce could be grown in arid places

like Cairo and Phoenix

or frigid places like Helsinki and Calgary.

Every place in the world would be able

to grow the same crops grown in California and Tuscany.

How would that change diets and cuisines

and our impact on the environment?

The businesses and lives of people associated

with traditional farming would be severely disrupted,

farming communities would lose their identities,

but does that outweigh the potential benefits?

- That hard reset is one where the vast majority

of our food is grown indoors.

It's grown in a completely protected environment

under artificial light.

You know, given exactly the nutrients it needs,

it's hyper productive,

it's in the cities or in the regions where the people live,

and humanity is fully untethered from the environment

in terms of how our population grows.

We can go anywhere and grow these crops

in almost any conditions.

Now we can expand kind of this human consciousness

of flavor in ways that were never possible

when we were seasonally locked into production cycles.

- This is the kind of technology

and efficiency we'll need with the Artemis base on the moon,

and eventually on Mars.

But it's also kind of what we need here on Earth.

- We can give the world back a lot.

We can give the world back land,

we can give back the jungles of Borneo to the orangutans,

we can give back the Amazon to the planet,

we can give back the Midwest the buffalo,

we can give back the things that we've taken,

and we can be a lot less extractive.

- Come back next time for another

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