Indoor Farming: What are the Advantages & Why is it Called the Future of Farming?

What’s all the buzz about indoor farming? It isn’t for nothing. There are many advantages to it, including fresh food, year-round production, economic and environmental efficiency, and more.

Here is a quick look at some of the top reasons why people are going wild for indoor farming.

Fresh Food

One of the top advantages of indoor farming is that it allows individuals and small businesses alike to grow their own farm-fresh food. People want to know where their food is coming from and growing indoors allows them to have that peace of mind, along with some delicious produce.

Year-Round Production

Another amazing thing about indoor farming is that it lets people grow food year-round. Especially in regions where it gets cold for a large portion of the year, growing food indoors is crucial to maintaining enough produce to sustain individual and business needs. Just because the seasons aren’t perfect doesn’t mean that people should be settling for sub-par spinach. With the right indoor growing practices, it is possible for people to sustain themselves completely, even during the off-season.

No Weather Damage

Indoor farming also means that farmers don’t have to deal with weather damage, which is a huge source of crop failure. It’s awful to spend time cultivating the perfect farm or garden outside and then have it destroyed by a hailstorm. Why not opt for greater security? This is particularly important for the future of farming as climate change makes catastrophic weather more common a threat to food production. If people want to ensure that all of their crops survive, indoor farming and gardening ensures there won’t be any losses from drought, flooding, or other weather-related issues.

Cost-Effective

Indoor farming can also be extremely cost-effective when done right. Growing one’s own food is already a great way to reduce expenses, but growing food indoors takes it to the next level. Indoor gardens allows people the opportunity to control every aspect of the farming process for maximum efficiency. Forget about overwatering and receiving a huge bill or paying to replant crops eaten by the rabbits – indoor farms allow users to track and control their expenses much more easily.

Environmental Benefits of Indoor Farming

There are also some great environmental benefits to indoor farming. Big farms tend to use industrial farming methods that destroy ecosystems, through pesticides and deforestation for example. They often don’t pay attention to sustainable or ethical sourcing, processing, or retail for their products, either. By growing one’s own food or buying from a small, sustainable farm, individuals don’t put extra demand on the market for environmentally destructive produce practices.

Indoor farming often has specific environmental advantages due to its high efficiency. Reducing energy and goods consumption is the key to sustainability. Lower water usage, for example, means that indoor farms can be both more economically and environmentally efficient. Plus, if someone is growing foods that might not be suitable for the local area, such as a potentially invasive species that could damage the local ecosystem, it’s much more responsible to keep them out of the ground.

No Run-Off Risks

Even if growers are doing their absolute best to avoid chemicals, pesticides, and other unwanted materials, there are still risks. If the farm or garden is near a factory or industrial farm, a grower could face run-off into their crops from local water sources. The best way to avoid this is by growing indoors.

Non-Labor Intensive

Indoor farming is also less work a lot of the time. Many indoor farms contain highly automated systems, meaning that the labor required on the part of the farmer is minimal. This makes indoor farms more accessible to those who work full-time, have disabilities that prevent them from much physical farm labor, or otherwise don’t want to take on a bunch of farm labor. Everyone has the capability to grow their own fresh food without straining themselves.

Overall, there are plenty of compelling reasons why individuals and small businesses can benefit from indoor farming. From getting perfectly fresh food year-round to lower economic and environmental costs, many people reap a lot of rewards from their indoor farms. These farms are gaining massive traction for a reason: they are the future of food production.