Dutch scientists develop ‘floating farms’ to bring food to cities

Global Business

Dutch scientists develop 'floating farms' to bring food to cities

A team of Dutch developers has come up with an unusual solution to feeding the growing number of people moving into more urban areas – building floating farms on rivers and the sea.

They were inspired by a trip to New York during Hurricane Sandy, when they saw shops run out of food within two days – and decided to come up with a solution to beat the possible effects of climate change.

CGTN’s Elena Casas reports.

“We need the biodiversity on the land, we shouldn’t change all the earth into concrete to build, we should leave the land as it is and use different spaces, to find an answer to the growth of the world population,” Peter van Wingerden, CEO of Beladon said.

The plannedmodel shows what the finished farm will look like – 40 cows will live in 15 square meters of green space each, producing about 350 liters of milk a year, which will be turned into yogurt on site.

The cows will eat grass-grown underground under LED lights, and their waste will be used to fertilize other urban farms. The project aims to bring consumers closer to the food they eat.

The team said they’ve already had interest from governments and local authorities, including in China, where there are many low-lying river deltas that have a lot in common geographically with the Netherlands.

Uit Je Eigen Stat aims to reconnect city dwellers with their food – the beets, lettuces and celeriac going into these salads and quiches is grown on site.