Vertical Farm 2.0: Designing an Economically Feasible Vertical Farm - A combined European Endeavor for Sustainable Urban Agriculture

Abstract

This report proposes a vertical farm design concept based on objectives to demonstrate optimization in advanced controlled environment cultivation, energy- and waste stream improvements, system automation as well as modular system applications. The Vertical Farm 2.0 (VF 2.0) report is the result of a Concurrent Engineering (CE) workshop held at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Bremen in conjunction with the Association for Vertical Farming (AVF). This workshop brought together experts from throughout the world to lend their experience and knowledge in a collaborative manner. The baseline scenario developed for VF 2.0 involves modular levels specialized for either leafy greens production or vine crop production. The final synopsis discussed is a facility which consists of five modules in total; two of those modules are dedicated to leafy greens and two modules to vine crop production. The ground floor is a dedicated processing level which deals with harvested products and transport of goods out of the facility.