The rise of controlled environment agriculture (CEA)
June 14, 2024
Controlled environment agriculture (CEA) is a technology-oriented approach towards plant-based food production, employing enclosed structures to grow plants in a protected environment where optimal growing conditions are maintained.
Drivers for growth of CEA include scarcity of resources, such as arable land, water and suitable climate, as well as changing climatic conditions putting increased stress on conventional farming practices.
CEA involves increased control over variables which optimizes plant growing conditions, resulting in higher plant quality and larger production volume while ensuring resource efficiency. These variables include temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide, light, nutrient concentration, and nutrient pH.
With a stable control of the plant environment, CEA can provide secure, high quality produce, year-round production of previously seasonal produce and higher production volume compared to conventional farming on the same size land.
Moreover, CEA allows for a more efficient use of land and fresh water (up to 90% less water and land than soil-based agriculture), reduced need to use fertilizer or pesticides, reduced carbon emissions as CEA allows operations to be located closer to end-users, reduced food waste, and avoidance of chemical runoff from broad applications of fertilizer and pesticides/ herbicides associated with field-based agriculture.
CEA growers employ various permutations of growing environments and growing methods to meet customer, operational and other metrics that are important determinants of the CEA operation.
Types of CEA growing environments
Greenhouse: A glass or polycarbonate structure that uses sunlight in crop production. Variables such as temperature, humidity and sunlight need to be considered carefully when growing produce in greenhouses, particularly during the summer months.
Vertical Farming: A crop production that utilizes supplemental lighting such as LED lights and gives the ability to control the environment. This type of controlled environment agriculture often uses a vertical space where plants can be stacked horizontally or in tall towers and may include rooms, warehouses, containers, factories and other converted indoor spaces not usually created for growing crops.
Protected Cropping: A crop production that is grown outdoors with some protection against exogenous elements. The protection may offer value against rain, hail and frost.
Types of growing methods
Aeroponics: Plants suspended in a closed or semi-closed environment; the exposed roots and lower stem are sprayed with a nutrient-rich water solution.
Aquaponics: Cultivation of plants in a recirculating water medium with aquatic animal wastewater from an adjacent tank of fish, crayfish, prawns or snails. The waste is broken down by bacteria into usable nutrients for the plants.
Hydroponic: Growing plants in a soil-less water or media matrix by bathing roots in a nutrient-rich solution, which can be paired with aquaponics.
CEA can offer the food industry resiliency and dependability beyond what traditional agriculture can offer. CEA can produce a broad array of product consistently, year-round, and despite weather or other adverse growing conditions. CEA can also be implemented locally, which reduces the supply-chain risk associated with distanced or international suppliers. Recent events, including the COVID-19 pandemic, have forced grocers, restaurants and other food providers to reconsider their supply chain risk and seek reliable and less variable suppliers.
As the commercial viability of CEA continues to rise, technological advancements play a pivotal role in enhancing its efficiency and scalability. Innovations such as automation, advanced sensors, and AI-driven analytics enable growers to monitor and adjust growing conditions with precision, thereby maximizing yield and minimizing resource consumption. Automation reduces labor costs and allows for more consistent and standardized production processes, while advanced sensors can track environmental conditions in real-time, providing data that can be used to fine-tune growing conditions.
AI-driven analytics can predict potential issues before they arise, making it easier to maintain optimal growing conditions and prevent crop loss. Additionally, developments in sustainable energy sources, such as solar panels and energy-efficient LED lights, are making CEA operations more environmentally friendly and cost-effective. These technological advancements are crucial in making CEA a more sustainable and scalable solution for addressing the global demand for fresh produce.
The future of CEA appears promising, with continuous research and development leading to more sophisticated and cost-effective solutions. As urbanization increases and the need for sustainable farming practices becomes more urgent, CEA is well-positioned to become a cornerstone of modern agriculture. Urban farming initiatives are on the rise, integrating CEA into cityscapes to reduce food miles and provide fresh produce to densely populated areas. Educational programs and collaborations between academia, industry, and government bodies are fostering innovation and ensuring a skilled workforce to support this growing sector.
CPM
