Indoor Food Growing Operations Face Uncertain Future
2023-09-29
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1Indoor food growing operations are seeing both successes and failures in the United States.
2Some companies in the food industry are investing even as competitors fail.
3California-based Plenty Unlimited this summer began work on a $300 million indoor plant, while Kroger announced that it will be increasing its availability of vertically farmed produce.
4Meanwhile, two indoor farming companies that got strong backing - New Jersey's AeroFarms and Kentucky's AppHarvest - filed for bankruptcy reorganization.
5And a five-year-old company in Detroit, Planted Detroit, shut its doors this summer.
6The industry changes do not worry Jacob Portillo, a grower with Eden Green Technology, an indoor farming company.
7"The fact that other people are failing and other people are succeeding, that's going to happen in any industry you go to, but specifically for us, I think that ... the sustainable competitors ... are going to start winning," he said.
8Indoor farming brings growing inside in what experts sometimes call "controlled environment agriculture."
9There are different methods.
10One method called vertical farming involves stacking produce from floor to ceiling, often under artificial lights and with the plants growing in nutrient-enriched water.
11Other growers are trying very large greenhouses, indoor beds of soil in big buildings and using special robots for parts of the farming process.
12Supporters say growing indoors uses less water and land and permits food to be grown closer to consumers, saving on transport.
13Indoor growing is also a way to protect crops from increasingly extreme weather caused by climate change.
14The companies often say their products are free of pesticides, although the foods are usually not marketed as organic.
15But critics question the sustainability of operations that can require a lot of energy for artificial light.
16And they say paying for that light can make profitability impossible.
17Tom Kimmerer is a plant expert who taught at the University of Kentucky.
18Kimmerer has followed indoor farming alongside his research into the growth of plants both outdoors and inside.
19He said his first thought on vertical farm companies - especially those that used a lot of artificial light - was, "Boy, this is a dumb idea," mainly due to high energy costs.
20The industry has admitted those high costs. Some companies are seeking to push costs down by using solar power.
21But even the companies that use a lot of artificial light that does not come from renewables say they can be profitable by eventually producing a high volume of produce year-round.
22But Kimmerer thinks there are better ways to provide food locally and extend the growing season - outdoors. He pointed to Elmwood Stock Farm outside Lexington, Kentucky.
23The farm can grow tomatoes and greens the whole year using tools like high tunnels, also known as hoop houses.
24These are greenhouse-like structures that protect crops while still being partially open to the outdoors.
25He thinks investment flowing toward new versions of indoor farming would be better spent on solutions for outdoor farmers like special robots, or money support for regenerative practices.
26Curt Covington of AgAmerica Lending, a private investment company centered on agriculture, is not convinced that indoor farming operations can work - except in special cases.
27Given the high cost of indoor operations, Covington said, "It's just hard... to be very profitable."
28I'm John Russell.
1Indoor food growing operations are seeing both successes and failures in the United States. Some companies in the food industry are investing even as competitors fail. 2California-based Plenty Unlimited this summer began work on a $300 million indoor plant, while Kroger announced that it will be increasing its availability of vertically farmed produce. 3Meanwhile, two indoor farming companies that got strong backing - New Jersey's AeroFarms and Kentucky's AppHarvest - filed for bankruptcy reorganization. And a five-year-old company in Detroit, Planted Detroit, shut its doors this summer. 4The industry changes do not worry Jacob Portillo, a grower with Eden Green Technology, an indoor farming company. 5"The fact that other people are failing and other people are succeeding, that's going to happen in any industry you go to, but specifically for us, I think that ... the sustainable competitors ... are going to start winning," he said. 6Support and criticism of indoor farming 7Indoor farming brings growing inside in what experts sometimes call "controlled environment agriculture." There are different methods. One method called vertical farming involves stacking produce from floor to ceiling, often under artificial lights and with the plants growing in nutrient-enriched water. Other growers are trying very large greenhouses, indoor beds of soil in big buildings and using special robots for parts of the farming process. 8Supporters say growing indoors uses less water and land and permits food to be grown closer to consumers, saving on transport. Indoor growing is also a way to protect crops from increasingly extreme weather caused by climate change. The companies often say their products are free of pesticides, although the foods are usually not marketed as organic. 9But critics question the sustainability of operations that can require a lot of energy for artificial light. And they say paying for that light can make profitability impossible. 10Tom Kimmerer is a plant expert who taught at the University of Kentucky. Kimmerer has followed indoor farming alongside his research into the growth of plants both outdoors and inside. He said his first thought on vertical farm companies - especially those that used a lot of artificial light - was, "Boy, this is a dumb idea," mainly due to high energy costs. 11The industry has admitted those high costs. Some companies are seeking to push costs down by using solar power. But even the companies that use a lot of artificial light that does not come from renewables say they can be profitable by eventually producing a high volume of produce year-round. 12But Kimmerer thinks there are better ways to provide food locally and extend the growing season - outdoors. He pointed to Elmwood Stock Farm outside Lexington, Kentucky. The farm can grow tomatoes and greens the whole year using tools like high tunnels, also known as hoop houses. These are greenhouse-like structures that protect crops while still being partially open to the outdoors. 13He thinks investment flowing toward new versions of indoor farming would be better spent on solutions for outdoor farmers like special robots, or money support for regenerative practices. 14Curt Covington of AgAmerica Lending, a private investment company centered on agriculture, is not convinced that indoor farming operations can work - except in special cases. 15Given the high cost of indoor operations, Covington said, "It's just hard... to be very profitable." 16I'm John Russell. 17Melina Walling and Kendria LaFleur reported on this story for the Associated Press. John Russell adapted it for VOA Learning English. 18______________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20vertically -- adv. positioned up and down rather than from side to side 21bankruptcy -- n. a condition of financial failure 22sustainable - adj. involving methods that do not completely use up natural resources 23stack - v. to put things one on top of the other 24pesticide - n. a chemical that is used to kill insects that damage crops 25organic - adj. grown without the use of artificial chemicals 26dumb -- adj. stupid or foolish 27regenerative practices - n. a food production method that supports and nurtures soil health