From Soil To Sky: Vertical Farming in Uzbekistan
Abstract
Today’s environmental scientists are in no doubt that the world’s resources of fertile soil are rapidly deteriorating, and that new land for agriculture is becoming ever more scarce. Intensive farming, urbanization, desertification, and sea-level rises are all putting growing pressure on the planet's agricultural land and therefore on food supplies. The global population is expected to exceed nine billion by 2050 - up a third from today’s level and studies suggest that food production will have to increase by 70 per cent if we are to feed all of those new mouths. This means that scientists will have to develop new ways of growing crops if we are to avoid a humanitarian crisis. Indeed, UN Food and Agriculture Organization figures suggest that the number of undernourished people is already growing, and with escalating climate change, crop yields in many areas have been projected to decline. This paper shows that Uzbekistan, an arid country in Central Asia, has significant potential in vertical farming.