Vertical superfarms to produce inner-city crops

A Parisian design studio, Studio NAB, has developed the concept of a ‘superfarm’ as an alternative to traditional farming methods and to keep up with the demand of growing and farming food in urbanised areas.

The project involves creating a building in which foods will be grown that have a very high nutritional value, and which are often referred to as ‘superfoods’ – hence the name. The superfarm will also strive to recreate a sustainable ecosystem within an urban environment, which will include seaweed culturing, insect farming and aquaponics.

The project design has been imagined in the heart of a city on a river development, a response to the scarcity of land in the city, and will be 34-metres high.

Each level of the structure will increase in size as you get closer to the top floor, and so gets the maximum amount of floor space with a minimum impact on the environment. Each floor will have a different function, with the top floor being used as a greenhouse with beehives and planting spaces. The roof will house solar panels and wind turbines to power the building.