Anders Riemann (r) is the founder and managing director of Nordic Harvest, Europe's largest vertical farm. To ensure that his lettuces and herbs grow and thrive here without pesticides, the hall in the heart of the Danish capital Copenhagen is hermetically sealed off from the outside world. This ensures that no harmful bacteria or fungi get to the plants. Herbicides, fungicides, and insecticides are thus rendered superfluous.
Because the artificial sun is always shining indoors, the lettuce grows faster than on the outside. Thus, the vertical farmer harvests much more frequently than conventional farmers: "We can produce at the same cost as a Danish farmer in the fields outside. But we harvest every 22 days. That means about 15 harvests a year. Whereas a Danish grower can sometimes grow two - and sometimes only one - crop a year."
For more information:
nordicharvest.com/