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A new hydroponic growing system, growing directly in the supermarket

Hydroponic growing is becoming an increasingly popular method in urbanised centres such as metropolises. But in Cairo, a supermarket is bringing the technology directly onto its produce aisle and into direct contact with the customer.

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Hydroponic cultivation – a method of growing certain plants in wet tubes without soil, with the addition of liquid fertilisers and nutrients – is becoming increasingly common in large built-up areas. But in Cairo, a supermarket is taking its produce aisle to a new level of freshness. Here, a hydroponic refrigerator grows different types of lettuce directly in the shop, ready to be bought directly by customers once the growth cycle is complete.

Aerofarms | Newark, New Jersey Currently, the world’s largest active vertical farm is in Newark, New Jersey. It is former steel factory, converted to a 69,000 sq ft farm by New York -based startup Aerofarms. In its 12 layers of plant beds grow 250 different kinds of greens and are lit with LED lights that mimic natural sunlight. Aerofarms uses a method called aeroponics that leaves plant roots exposed so they can be sprayed with a mist filled with nutrients. They claim to use 95% less water than traditional outdoor farming.

Photo Aerofarms

Mirai and General Electric | Miyagi Prefecture, Japan Japanese vertical farms company Mirai Co. partnered with Generale Electric Japan to convert a former Sony Corporation semiconductor factory in Miyagi Prefecture into a vertical farm of 25,000 sq ft. Despite having only started production a few years ago, the farm is already shipping out 10,000 heads of lettuce per day, spread over 18 cultivation racks reaching 15 levels high.

Photo Mirai

Jones Food Company | Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, UK Launched three years ago in a converted cold store in Scunthorpe, Linconshire, the Jones Food Company vertical farm has long been Europe’s largest. The site supplies 15% of UK’s cut basil. The company has also recently broken ground on its second venture in the country to build a three times bigger vertical farm in Gloucestershire.

Photo Jones Food Company

Jones Food Company | Lydney, Gloucestershire (summer 2022) With a 148,000 sq ft addition in Lydney, Jones Food Company is set to open its second vertical farm in the UK with capital backed by online retailer Ocado. It will feature growing space equivalent to 70 tennis courts which will make it the world’s largest. The first harvesting is planned for summer 2022 and founder James Lloyd-Jones anticipates supplying 1,000 tonnes of fresh produce to UK supermarkets from the location.

Photo Jones Food Company  

Nordic Harvest and YesHealth Group | Taastrup, Denmark YesHealth Group and Nordic Harvest have completed the first phase of construction of a 7,000 sqm, 14 levels high facility at Taastrup, on the outskirts of Denmark’s capital. The indoor facility is being equipped with robotics, hydroponics, arrays of 20,000 LEDs, smart software and other technologies for processing more than 5,000 individual data points. It will run entirely on wind power, slashing the carbon footprint of production.

Photo Nordic Harvest

VertiVegies | Lim Chu Kang, Singapore With the investment and support from one of the most technologically-advanced indoor vertical farming companies, Sanan Bio, Singapore’s VertiVegies is building a 20,000 sqm indoor vertical plant factory in the Lim Chu Kang area. The new farm will produce many varieties of sustainable vegetables to supply the country’s shortages in the food sector. There will be no chemical or pesticide used in the farming of the vegetables as compared to traditional soil-based farms.

Photo VertiVegies

Planet Farms | Cavenago, Italy Planet Farms, a company established in Milan by Luca Travaglini and Daniele Benatoff, built the largest and most advanced vertical farming facility in Italy covering over 9,000 sqm. Based on a highly innovative integrated growth process starting with seeds and ending with packaged products, Planet Farm has developed a system to constantly monitor production activities and automate processes. The facility based in Cavenago specialises in the production of basil, aromatic herbs and salad. All crops will grow in environments with pure air and water, from traditional seeds and without using pesticides and saving up to 97% of water.

Photo Planet Farms

Upwards Farms | Luzerne County, Pennsylvania (2023) 
Brooklyn-based Upward Farms has unveiled plans to launch a massive 250,000 sq ft vertical farm set for an early-2023 opening. The site will be located in North-eastern Pennsylvania’s Luzerne County and will specifically focus on microgreens. Rather than the hydroponic or aeroponic growing method used by most of the competition, Upward relies on aquaponics, a looped system that utilises fish to grow plants through the production of natural fertilizer.

Photo Upwards Farms  


Schaduf, the responsible company, was founded in 2011 by Sherif and Tarek Hosny, two Egyptian brothers who were inspired by an ancient irrigation tool to bring food security and self-sufficiency to low-income communities. The Arabic word “schaduf” refers to an ancient irrigation tool, still used today by farmers in many countries, that raises water in irrigation canals to harvest crops. The duo started the business by selling rooftop installations to low-income families through repayable loans, while contracting the construction of the mini-rooftop farms to a manufacturer who completes the installation in a single day.

According to one report, this type of system requires 90 per cent less time to grow produce than a company from California-based Advanced Container Technologies. It is not yet clear whether customers have to pay more for extra-fresh produce or whether hydroponic set-ups reduce costs for retailers: they spend less on transport from farms, but are also responsible for growing the plants.

Read also: The world’s largest CO2 removal plant
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