5/11/2020 Farming Anywhere Near You

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Farming Anywhere Near You

 Published: 19 March 2018  Theme: Future Economy  Share

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Near homes, on roo ops, on water — designers and farmers are
All Ar cles
introducing new farming design typologies that are reconnec ng
the city and its city dwellers with food.
By Themes
- Future Economy
Innovators at the forefront of urban agriculture are proving that - Heritage
city farms can be a catalyst for communi es, bridging people and - Mobility
food produc on in meaningful ways. When private and public - Nature
sectors work together for a common food security goal, urban - Planning
farms have the poten al to contribute more than just good food, - Smart Planning
but jobs, educa on, community engagements, na onal security
and environmental benefits.
Related
Ar cles
Farming in ci es
In China, issues in food safety have come to the fore, with public
concern about the impact of pollu on on farms and their crops. Future Economy
For centuries, agriculture has manipulated the landscape, Feeding Ci es of
resul ng in mass deforesta on and disrup on of natural systems, the Future with
according to Michael Grove, principal at US-based architecture Agricultural
and design firm, Sasaki Associates. Technology

Urban farming can help, says Michael. “If we can move some Technological
advancements and
agriculture to ci es and allow the land to revert to its natural reliable infrastructure
state, that's a posi ve benefit.” However, in ci es, farms are have enabled ci es like
typically relegated to a hodgepodge of plots and roo ops, limi ng Singapore to grow food
very differently.
their produc vity, he adds. To address this issue, Sasaki is
 13 November 2018
designing an en re district in Shanghai that will integrate mass-
scale ver cal farming and agricultural R&D with homes, shops,
restaurants and parks.

Planning
The Past and
The Sunqiao agricultural district in Shanghai designed by Sasaki Future of Hawker
Associates will be a living laboratory for farming innova on. Centres
(Image: Sasaki Associates)
We explore how hawker
centres parallel
In Holland, Dutch firm Beladon also wants to move farms into Singapore’s urban
ci es. Beladon chief execu ve Peter van Wingerden says that development, and look
urban dependence on transporta on to deliver food from rural ahead to how hawkers
farms or overseas is unsustainable, increasing pollu on, food will navigate the next
chapter of their history.
spoilage and vulnerability to geopoli cal rela ons. “Ci es want to
 26 July 2019
become climate adap ve for food produc on, but have li le
space.” In tackling this, Beladon has designed a floa ng farm that
can produce dairy, eggs or vegetables over virtually any body of
water.
Heritage
30 Years of
Conserva on in
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5/11/2020 Farming Anywhere Near You

According to Peter, as most of the world’s ci es are located on Singapore since

coasts or along rivers, they are presented with large areas of 1989: Ge ng
untapped space. In Ro erdam, Beladon’s floa ng farms are part of Ready
a larger residen al and commercial development that will help Even in the midst of
revitalise an area that was once occupied by port ac vi es. In urgent urban renewal
Singapore, Peter believes large reservoirs present an opportunity efforts in the 1960s,
Alan Choe, the first
too.
General Manager of the
Urban Renewal Unit had
dra conserva on plans
in the drawer.
Beladon shows that floa ng farms are possible with their closed-  14 November 2019
loop modular floa ng pla orm, a first in the world. (Image:
Beladon)

Retrofi ng urban spaces Planning

Ci zen
Par cipa on: The
Here in Singapore, where land is precious and the environment is Soul of Seoul
hot, wet and insect-ridden, tradi onal soil farming is imprac cal.
But one local urban farm is championing the use of marginalised Seoul, the winner of the
Lee Kuan Yew World
spaces to feed the city. ComCrop operates a ver cal hydroponic City Prize 2018, shows
farm on the roof of Scape on Orchard Road, and is ready to scale how ci zens as leaders
up with more roo op farms. Co-founder Allan Lim believes that of their own city can
transform everyday
urban farming has the poten al to do for food security what the
spaces and major
Singapore water story did for water security – assuring supply streets.
while contribu ng to economic growth. “If we become a primary  12 July 2018
producer of food,” says Allan, “we can spin off mul ple products
up the value chain, which creates more jobs.”

When it comes to marginalised space, most plen ful would be on

roo ops, but that presents another challenge to urban farming –
retrofi ng city infrastructure. When ComCrop began designing
its farm on the Scape roo op, co-founder Allan Lim says they were
designing against an exis ng system of roo op infrastructure that
rendered a lot of square footage unusable. It is a problem in
Singapore, he says, where there is no standard for roo op design.
To influence the design of usable roof space, ComCrop published a
booklet sugges ng prac cal design specifica ons and distributed
it to architects and developers.

Allan Lim of ComCrop at the roof of Scape on Orchard Road

leading a tour as part of the farm's outreach efforts. (Image: Chee
Boon Pin)

It takes at least 4,000 square metres to make an impac ul farm,

he says. But roo ops built today that can’t support a farm are lost
opportunity to make marginalised space produc ve for decades.
One sugges on is to set produc on targets for roo op farms to
drive what he feels is a more prac cal approach towards na onal
food security.

These ideas and others underlie a shi ing paradigm in farming,

where ci es and city dwellers develop a closer rela onship with
food and the environments in which it is grown.

As farms move into ci es, they have the poten al to interact with
residents and reconnect them with the food that is essen al for
their survival. The future of farming is one where urban farms
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5/11/2020 Farming Anywhere Near You

form synergies with surrounding communi es, businesses,

childcare centres, schools and old age homes, providing not only
food, but opportuni es for educa on, employment, and a greater
apprecia on for the food we eat.

At your doorstep
“We do not know the smell of the countryside anymore,” says
Peter, who muses about urban residents who accept the smell of
emissions from vehicles, refineries and other industries yet find
the scent of a natural farm foreign. His hope is to build floa ng
farms as close to the city as possible, integra ng them into the
fabric of neighborhoods and designed in iconic ways to make
them a rac ve, approachable and transparent.

Ci zen Farm also has a vision for communi es, to integrate the
farm and food produc on with surrounding child care centres and
elderly day care centres to provide opportuni es for educa on
and well-being. The farm has also developed prototypes for
indoor growing facili es that can be installed in HDB estates and
office buildings.

Educa on and outreach are a large part of Darren Ho’s work as

head of Ci zen Farm, where he conducts tours and talks, in part to
inform ci zens about where food comes from, but also to interest
them to become consumers of locally-grown produce. So far
Darren says public interest has been overwhelming in both
numbers and posi ve feedback, but Allan Lim at ComCrop, who
also conducts public outreach, says that there is s ll some way to
go towards educa ng local consumers. It could also be a price
point issue, as local produce is priced slightly higher than imports,
however local farmers are hoping that will change as they scale
up.

“I think AVA has done a good job to promote local produce,” he

says, “but people simply don't trust that Singapore can grow
things. It's a mindset issue.”

These farms were featured in URA’s Urban Lab exhibi on in

October 2017, “Growing More with Less”, to inspire new ways of
farming for the future. Urban Lab is a pla orm that regularly
presents the latest R&D and urban solu ons for a more
sustainable and future-ready city.

Writer: Jennifer Eveland

This ar cle was adapted from Skyline Issue 8.

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