High rice flats: Overcrowded China solves space shortage issues by building 187-metre-high vertical farms to grow fruit and veg

• A network of huge 187-metre-high vertical farms would be used to grow vegetables and fruit
• The skyscrapers would be constructed on the outskirts of big cities such as the Tai Po district in Hong Kong
• China has seen much of its farmland disappear in recent years because of the rapid growth of its cities and industry
  

By Suzannah Hills

PUBLISHED: 21:45 EST, 20 July 2013 | UPDATED: 21:45 EST, 20 July 2013

It's a difficult conundrum faced by many countries around the world - how to produce enough food for an ever-increasing population when land and space is rapidly running out.

But it appears China may have come up with an answer with its plans for space-saving vertical farms.

They may look more like tower accommodation blocks usually found in big cities, but these 187-metre-high skyscrapers would only be used to grow vegetables and fruit.

Because of China's limited room for farming, there are plans to create these imposing vertical structures which provide food while saving land space

The plans to build in the vertical farms in Tai Po, Hong Kong, come after the country's rapid urban expansion in recent years which has seen much of its usable farmland disappear.

?

Despite still having one of the largest agricultural outputs - feeding 20 per cent of the world's entire population, only 15 per cent of all its land is suitable for farming and only around 1.2 per cent permanently supports crops.

And with its cities expanding in size by ten per cent annually since 2000, its farmland is becoming increasingly under threat.

This coupled with the world's ever-expanding population has led to fears of future face food shortages action isn't taken soon.

Despite being state of the art, the towers are inspired by traditional Chinese rice farming's amazing shifting terraces

But Spain-based architectural firm JAPA believes its model could solve this problem with its Dyn-net or Dynamic Vertical Networks model.

This would be a series of high-rise towers located on the outskirts of cities that could supply the food needs of the metropolis.

The structures would be made out of lightweight yet high tensile materials using as many recyclable resources as possible.

The shifting floors of the structure, inspired by China's traditional rice farms, means each ring of the building can change its position to best suit the plants, such as making them receive the maximum amount of sunlight or moisture.

The farming towers will create more agricultural land space by building upwards and using cutting-edge technology to grow as much produce as efficiently as possible

The system would also use hydroponics to grow produce, using little to no soil at all, and would even have labs to better monitor growth and nutritional value of the crops.

Visitors would be allowed into the building so they can learn more about local agriculture and get to witness the 360 degree panoramic views each platform offers.

The buildings could put an end to China?s difficulty in finding enough arable land to farm, which has been a problem throughout its history, leading to chronic food shortage.

Although China's agricultural output is the largest in the world, only about 15 per cent of its total land area can be cultivated enough to keep up with the population

While the production efficiency of its farmland has grown over time, efforts to expand to the west and the north have held limited success because of the colder and drier climate than its traditional farmlands to the east.

Since the 1950s, China's farm space has also been under pressure by the increasing land needs of industry and cities.

The company has suggested Tai Po District in Hong Kong which is the second largest administrative district and has a surrounding unused area of some 14,800 hectares in the northeast New Territories, as the idea site to test the farming skyscrapers.

The firm believes the structures would be able to feed the entire population of the surrounding Kowloon-Hong Kong area.

Not only will the towers provide food but also spectacular 360 degree viewing platforms and spaces to research on farming techniques

Share or comment on this article

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2372117/High-rice-flats-Overcrowded-China-solves-space-shortage-issues-building-187-metre-high-vertical-farms-grow-fruit-veg.html?ITO=1490&ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490

Ebates lotto Illinois Lottery texas lottery Dell Levis Fireman Ed