Farms in the Sky?
Biofilta Foodcube and Foodcube slim and accessories allow for anyone to build an urban farm on a rooftop, in a carpark or any underutilised city space very quickly, transforming city spaces into productive food growing spaces within days. One very high profile example is Melbourne Skyfarm overlooking the Yarra River in the heart of Melbourne’s CBD. On this project, which has been designed and is being built by The Sustainable Landscape Company, Melbourne Skyfarm will transform a 2000 square meter former carpark into a thriving community space, producing large volumes of fresh produce for charity, and hosting education, a café, bar, events space and rooftop nursery. Due to open in early 2022, the farm is a great example of integrated sustainability – taking a disused rooftop carpark, and transforming it into a community space that incorporates urban cooling, urban biodiversity, community access, urban farming and much more.
Cities have all the ingredients for growing large amounts of fresh produce within city limits – abundant organic and nutrient streams, as well as abundant rooftop rainwater runoff. These “waste streams” can be collected, harvested and combined and turned into fresh produce. What has been missing is well designed, easy to assemble food growing systems. Foodcube and Foodcube Slim have solved these issues, removing the barrier to transforming cities into urban farms. Every new building, apartment or development can now feature easy to use, productive, water efficient urban farms.
For more information about Melbourne Skyfarm visit their website and for more information about the designer/builder of the project visit The Sustainable Landscape Company.