Vertical farming: A trade-off between land area need for crops and for renewable energy production

Indoor vertical farming (VF) may play an important role in tackling future food insecurity as it can reduce the land use requirements for crop land and is not affected by environmental conditions. However, its energy -intensive operation and the associated environmental impacts can be a cause for concern. To alleviate these issues, it is desirable to operate VF with renewable energy. Our aim was to investigate the land use requirements for generating renewable energy for VF and whether the land area saved by growing crops in multiple layers is sufficient for energy production. The land area requirements for wind and solar (photovoltaic, PV) energy were assessed for lettuce, tomato, potato and wheat production in VF systems in Spain and Sweden. In addition to current-technology scenarios, future scenarios for technological advancement in VF systems and renewable energy generation were included. The results showed that with current technologies, the saved land area was sufficient to produce enough energy only in the case of using PV for lettuce production. However, with improved technologies, the saved land area was sufficient to produce electricity with PV for all crops except tomatoes in Sweden. In contrast, wind energy only satisfies lettuce production, even with future technologies. This study serves as a guideline for determining the feasibility of VF operated with renewable energy in relation to land area, electricity requirements and renewable electricity generation potential in various regions of Europe.

Automated summary

Indoor vertical farming can be an important solution for future food insecurity by reducing land use and being unaffected by environmental conditions. However, its energy-intensive operation raises environmental concerns. This study examines the feasibility of operating indoor vertical farming with renewable energy by assessing land use requirements and renewable energy generation potential. The results show that with current technologies, the saved land area is only sufficient for energy production in lettuce farming using solar energy. However, with improved technologies, the saved land area can generate electricity with solar energy for all crops except tomatoes in Sweden. Wind energy only satisfies lettuce production even with future technologies. This study provides valuable insights for determining the feasibility of operating indoor vertical farming with renewable energy in different regions of Europe.