Out of Japan’s Fukushima Nuclear disaster comes a story that was decades in the making. It is a vision that saw the earthquake and resulting tsunami in 2011 move Japanese botanist, Shigeharu Shimamura into action.
The agricultural region there was severely affected and rampant food shortages were the result. It was time for the “farm of the future.”
Good News Network reports:
Taking over a giant semiconductor factory vacated after the earthquake, Shimamura’s company, Mirai (which means ‘future’ in Japanese) drew up design plans for the indoor vertical farm and contracted General Electric to co-develop a special LED lighting system.
The facility run by Mirai uses towering rows of thin soil trays and exact measurements for temperature, humidity, light and darkness, to create 100 times more vegetables per square foot than traditional agriculture methods. The bacteria-free, pesticide-free environment cuts food waste by 30-40 percent compared to lettuce grown outdoors.
Advantages realized have been savings in energy, water, and food safety, plus year-round availability, despite climate or weather.
Our takeaway is pretty much in alignment with the concluding statement made in the article, which can be read by clicking on through to it!
News to Share brief source: “Out of Japan’s Nuclear Disaster, New Indoor Farms Grow 100x More Food” via Good News Network
Image via Mirai “Indoor Cultivation for the Future” by Shigeharu Shimamura (Presented by Chieri Kubota, The University of Arizona)