Lufa Farms Brings Large-Scale Rooftop Farming To Montreal

Cities around the world have been embracing urban agriculture in recent years, as <a href="http://inhabitat.com/berlins-secret-garden-is-a-green-oasis-full-or-fruits-and-veggies-for-the-community-to-enjoy/" target="_blank">community gardens</a>, <a href="http://inhabitat.com/habitat-horticulture-living-walls-create-healthy-vibrant-interior-spaces/" target="_blank">living walls</a> and <a href="http://inhabitat.com/verticrop-processes-10000-plants-every-3-days-using-vertical-hydroponic-farming/" target="_blank">vertical farming</a> have become common sights in many cities. Taking the concept a step further, the folks behind <a href="https://lufa.com/en" target="_blank">Lufa Farms</a> in Montreal have built a 31,000-square-foot greenhouse on top of a two-story office building. The innovative greenhouse is designed to comply with stringent city building regulation and to withstand snowloads in Canadian winter conditions, and it produces over 25 different varieties of fresh produce. Intrigued? Hit the jump to find out more.

The greenhouse itself has been well thought out at every level. They have investigated what conditions suit each type of food grown, to maximise yield. They use a rainwater harvesting system to put a minimal burden on the cities water supply, and then recirculate the water used to irrigate the plants. Their reasoning is that when nutrient-rich water finds its way into the public water system it helps algae grow, thus potentially causing an additional problem. In terms of heating the large internal space, they contend that the heat island effect of the city is beneficial to them. Being placed on top of a heated building also reduces their heating requirements, and have developed a simple means of enclosing the plants in transparent curtains when the temperature drops. A natural gas heating system is in place, but is only called upon in the more extreme Montreal winter conditions.

Open since spring time in 2011, this commercially operated venture has reportedly broken even this year. Part of its success has been the way in which they have dispensed with the traditional supply chain. The farm have partnered with various sites and businesses around the city as designated drop-off points and the food baskets of fresh produce are sent to these locations at set times during the week. In this way, the customers know when and where they can collect their produce. The supply chain is massively simplified, and the food remains very fresh, without reliance on packaging or additives. A further bonus, the reduction in distribution requirements over a 12 month period more than off-sets the use of the natural gas heating in winter.

The Lufa Farm ethos has a natural aversion to using chemical fertilisers and pesticides in their growing processes and this is reflected in their choice of coconut husk fibre as a nutrient rich bedding for the plants. Allied to this, they have taken on the principles of bio-controls as oppose to pesticides. Basically this means they introduce insects that counter pests, an example being ladybirds, happily living inside the greenhouse as a response to aphids. Being on a rooftop, snails and slugs tend not to be an issue either.

Strangely enough, in the 18 months that the farm has been fully operational, the results seem to indicate that plants grow well in the city, as the increased Co2 levels in the urban environment is actually beneficial to them. Weekly orders for their customisable food baskets are now ten-fold from when they opened, and they hope the continued success of this urban farm will lead to a leaner, greener urban food production system across Montreal and beyond.

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