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Urban Farming and Architecture An analysis of the ways in which agricultural farming and food growth can be been

incorporated into urban architecture and how this can be applied to the future design

of sustainable living in a British urban landscape.

Thomas Saunders

BA (Hons) Art & Design

Student ID: 17124736

Word Count: 3707

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Content

Introduction: The Need for Urban Farming……………….………………………….…………….…………2

Chapter 1: Analysis of Rural Urban Frameworks Jintai Village………...….…………………………...….3

Green Roofing………………………………………………………………………………………….4

Chapter 2: Large Scale Plans for The Integration of Urban Farming …………......………………………5

CUPLs…………………………………………………………………………………..………………5

Analysis of MVRDV’s Tainan Fruit & Vegetables Market Design…………….……….………….5

Chapter 3: Integrated Urban Farming in Urban Settings………………...…………………………….……7

Integrated systems of urban farming in existing environments…………………………………...8

Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………………………10

Bibliography ………………………………………………………………………………………...………….11

Image List ……………………………………………………………………………………………...……….13

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Introduction: The Need for Urban Farming

The common attitude of those living in rural areas suggests it is believed that as the urban

environment grows, the rural environment succumbs to it. With new-ruralism and new-urbanism

making efforts to find ways for the two to coexist in their future design, the environment will one day

become a state of the two, blurring the lines between an area being strictly one or the other. Where

does this leave food production and agricultural that will allow for economical living within an urban

setting and what will this look like? I believe that if we look at not only the proposals for future design

but also solutions that have already been implemented in other parts of the world; we will be able to

draw from this what our own urban landscape that incorporates urban farming within the design of our

cities will look like in a British context. For example, looking at projects such as Bohn & Viljoen

Architects design of ‘The Urban Agriculture Curtain’ as well as Studio Precht’s proposals for high-rise

vertical farms we can begin to picture what an urban environment that incorporates space for food

growth may look like in the future. By shaping space that allows for the individual to become self-

sufficient and by reconnecting our cities to agriculture by integrating urban farming into our cities we

can achieve food security. Once more and more space is designated to incorporate food growth

within its architecture, we can begin to imagine what our sustainable urban landscapes will look like.

Our current cities were built around agriculture and food, there are still connections between food

growth in our urban lives that is still traceable on the maps of our cities and their street names. Near

the River Thames in London is Cornhill and Fish Street, because grain and fish came on and from the

river. After the end of “Dig for Victory” campaign which saw people grow food as a necessity, it was

followed by a sharp decline in urban food growth as a great deal of pre-war land was now able to be

farmed, meaning it was no longer a necessity to grow your own food. Modern technology such as the

railway, pasteurisation and refrigeration changed the delivery system of our food. The production and

the consumption no longer depended on proximity. Suddenly it was possible to overcome long

distances in a short amount of time and the food could be kept fresh for a longer. That made it

possible to grow food far away from sight and mind, a mindset that is still common today. In the next

50 years more food will be consumed than in the last 10.000 years combined and 80% of this will be

eaten in cities, meaning that our current food system will need to change once more, through urban

farming we can begin to develop this change into our cities. What will our cities become when urban

farming and CPULs (Continuous Urban Productive Landscapes) become an integrated and active

part in the design and architecture of our modern cities?

An example of the ways that urban design can incorporate various agricultural features to promote

self-sufficiency that I will look at is the village Jintai in China, created by the design firm Rural Urban

Framework as post-disaster housing. In 2008 the village Jintai, located near Guangyuan, Sichuan

Province was devastated by the Wenchuan Earthquake and then suffered from floods and landslides

in 2011 destroying many homes that had been rebuilt. The design company Rural Urban Framework

designed an environmentally sustainable village to accommodate people affected by the natural

disasters. This consists of 22 houses as well as a community centre, all of which allow for roof-top

gardening, encouraging self-sufficiency for the occupants, ensuring availability of food. A similar

project to this that follows the same ideal but on a much larger scale is the wholesale market

designed by the architectural firm MVRDV in Tainan, Taiwan. This solution aims to bring together

both agriculture and urban living allowing for members of both the urban and rural communities to

benefit from it, the design not only allows for the growth of crops but also houses a place where the

surrounding communities can come to buy and sell their produce. What design techniques are

translated between these different designs and what can we learn from these solutions to inform any

future designs of urban agricultural space and self-sustainable structures in a British context?

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Chapter 1: Analysis of Rural Urban Frameworks Jintai Village

Rural Urban Frameworks goal is to create architecture that actively contributes to the future

transformation of communities and its inhabitants as a way to influence governments and policy

makers approach to the design approaches of community facilities, schools and other public

buildings. This is done through their experimental approaches of creating space that not only uses

urban design styles but also allows for self-sufficiency for its inhabitants with the hopes of

encouraging social and economic change of villages that may otherwise resist urbanization. Working

with limited resources and in areas that primarily uses rudimentary building techniques Rural Urban

Framework aim to not only address the need for each project but also specifically tailors enrichment

programmes for the wider community through their design of public space, allowing for more

possibilities for self-sufficiency and easier acceptance for future developments to be made.

Rural Urban Frameworks designed and created a village for people who found themselves homeless

after the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake which were followed by floods and landslides in 2011. The

design studio led by John Lin and Joshua Bolchover and based at The University of Hong Kong came

up with the proposal that would address the needs of its various users by creating four different

designs of houses differing in size and function. These structures consisting of new biogas

technologies, accommodation for livestock and more notably, each roof is sloped allowing crops to be

grown. This approach encourages sustainable and ecological living supported with rainwater

harvesting and natural light and ventilation incorporated into all the buildings designs. This project

was an investigation into modern rural livelihood. Rural Urban Frameworks believe that a planned

village is odd compared to a planned city, this thinking allowed them to create a space that has shown

to be beneficial to its inhabitants through the use of dense urban style planning while not forgetting its

relationship to its rural setting and environment.

While working in such a remote part of the world which has limited access to technology, materials

and construction know-how, Rural Urban Framework approached this build with the ideal of using

minimal, low costing and re-useable materials as well as rudimentary building techniques to create

innovative solutions that are environmentally sustainable. This is reflected in the main body and frame

work of each building being made out of concrete to ensure its structural integrity and durability with

the exterior walls being made of a composite of brick, plaster and straw which acts as a thermal

conductor, insulating the interior and keeping it at a constant comfortable temperature throughout the

year. These choices are of course common within the construction of many buildings both in China

and areas closer to home. These structures are designed to not only encourage food growth and self-

sufficiency to those who need it by incorporating agricultural aspects into the structure of the buildings

but also has space for community relationships thought through and designed specifically for

communal use.

Jintai Village (2017), Rural Urban Framework

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The roofing of the buildings consists of varying approaches and configurations to allow for crop

growth. Ridged roofs, to roofs with a diamond-shaped mono-pitch, or valley roofs that rise towards

opposite corners, each one stepped to optimise space used for plant growth as well as being used as

a recreational space, storage and a place to dry produce. This space will not only provide a reliable

food source for its occupants but will also create opportunities for trade of produce within the

community creating a source of income. With only a 4,000 sqm site the village had to be designed to

be compact yet functional meaning that to maximise the space the designers used similar feel and

approach to that of some inner-city neighbourhoods. The design of each building also incorporates a

water filtration system that collects water from the roof and is stored underground, providing a reliable

clean water source for the occupants of the village. It’s these features that allow the community to

benefit from self-sufficiency through the integrated agricultural aspects of their home and that could

also be implemented into the architectural design of cities in Britain.

Green roofing

In our own British rural and urban landscapes, the use of green eco-friendly roofing is becoming more

and more popular. With homeowners making the change from traditional roofing methods to the use

of more eco-friendly alternatives and incorporating this into their own designs over more traditional

roofing methods, the landscape begins to look a lot different. Within Britain this choice of approach to

roofing usually come with different incentives to the sustainable food sources for the Jintai village,

however, by including rooftop gardening into the green roofing in Britain we can make food growth an

active part of the everyday live of its inhabitants.

Another beneficial advantage of green roofing is thermal performance, working as an insulator for the

building. One of the biggest problems facing a typical roof is poor insulation, leading to a large amount

of heat loss in winter compared to sweltering conditions over the summer months, making it attractive

for the occupants by reducing energy bills. With this approach to roofing also reducing the carbon

footprint of the home, using eco-friendly solutions such as this will aid in the EU targets of cutting

emissions by 2020. Figure 1 shows how much energy is used between two homes over time, one of

which has a green roof, resulting in less energy being used in comparison.

Figure 1: Graph of energy that is used a green roofed home and a traditional roofed home (2012).

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Chapter 2: Large Scale Plans for The Integration of Urban Farming

CUPLs

CPULs is a design strategy that aims to change how urban environment look and work through the

introduction of green space into cities. These spaces will range from parks to urban forests as well as

space for urban farming. They will act as assembly point for various activities that don’t happen in

buildings. Rather than creating space by knocking down building that make a city a city but rather plan

reclaim and utilise the space that would other wise not be used in its urban setting. By making green

spaces much more convenient through these integrated CPULs, urban farming can slowly become

part of the norm for people living in urban spaces allowing for features such as rooftop gardening,

water collection and communal spaces that have been applied to the Jintai village could also be

applied to these CPULs spaces, this will further expand the understanding and importance of urban

farming.

Analysis of MVRDV’s Tainan Fruit & Vegetables Market Design

‘Innovative, social, green realistic and remarkable for a changing world’ (MVRDV, n.d)

MVRDV are an architecture firm based in Rotterdam, founded in 1993 by Winy Maas, Jacob van Rijs

and Nathalie de Vries with this ideal to enable cities and landscapes to develop towards a better

future using the design of urban space. Using a collaborative and research-based approach to their

work across 47 countries ranging from the design of single homes to public buildings they hope to

make developments towards the future of design of cities that are smart, liveable, inclusive and most

importantly green. Through creating space that incorporate green space within their architectural

designs they’re also creating Looking at MVRDV’s innovative designs and proposals for the future

urban architectural design it’s clear that being eco-friendly to reduce carbon emissions is one of the

key principals that goes into each project they approach. Another project that MVRDV developed that

uses eco-friendly design by using crops and incorporating agriculture into the structure design is the

wholesale market of fruit and vegetables in Tainan, Taiwan. This project examples ways that food

growth can be integrated into the design of a building architecture on a large scale that could lead by

example for the design of modern British cities.

Located just East of Tainan, between the city the mountains and the surrounding farmlands, it’s a

place for both the urban and rural communities to utilise and access with equal convenience. With

construction expected to be complete in 2020 it will allow farmers to sell their produce and the urban

communities to buy good that are locally sourced, made easy by highways and convenient public

transport which all supports the city’s economy, the income for the independent farmers all while

reducing carbon emissions as a sustainable building that paves the way for incorporating agricultural

aspects within its architecture, allowing food growth on a larger scale meaning the wider pubic have

the opportunities to incorporate food growth into their day-to-day lives. The main structure of the

building is the stepped roof that allows for plant growth on the roof of the building. Each terrace that is

at a different height will grow different produce including pineapples, rice, roses and tea, each one

being allocated the space that best meets the plants climate requirements. The terrace steps down to

the ground level on its eastern corner giving easy access to the public with different public spaces on

the roof including sheltered areas, benches and picnic tables that allow visitors to sit and enjoy the

view. The exterior design of the building was created to mimic the surrounding landscape, create a

possibility of what our future landscape that consists of both the rural and urban landscape may look

like.

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Tainan Market (2016), MVRDV

The site will hopefully be completely functional and caters to the needs for those selling and buying

goods, but its terraced roof with its collection of growing products will allow visitors to take in the

landscape while escaping from bustle below. Below the gardens is the open concept structure with

high undulating ceilings that allow for plenty of natural ventilation where the actual market will be

located. This will allow for traders to buy and sell produce in the market with the added benefit of its

location, making the commute smaller and thus further reducing emissions. The two communities are

dependent on each other but have little interaction between the two, this site bring the two together in

a way that many people will never have experienced and open the door to further the understanding

of the communities but also the food production system to people who may have a disconnected view

as to where their food comes from having never had the opportunity to learn. This issue is also

addressed in the design through four story building nested within the market and raising up puncturing

through into the gardens above. This building will house administration offices, a restaurant and an

exhibition centre; ideal for school visits. This space will allow for and will lead to a better

understanding of where food comes from as a consumer. This solution is as much a space that

revolves around its responsibilities to the surrounding community’s as it is a place to simply grow

produce. The designers hope that the site will become a public experience of food and nature

meaning those who would otherwise not have the opportunity to experience their food growth as well

as the landscapes of Tainan will now have a place to do so.

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Chapter 3: Integrated Urban Farming in Urban Settings

Both the design of the Jintai village and the food market in Taiwan incorporate space for food growth

within their structure allowing the occupants to take steps towards self-sufficiency as well as food

security for our cities. One of architectural design studio Precht’s proposal of high-rises of vertical

farms and modular homes does exactly this. Studio Prech’s design proposes that through module

urban living and with urban farming becoming part of our cities new way of living we can begin to

approach food security. Precht’s studio works by the ethos of ‘‘What is possible?’ and not ‘What is

profitable?’’ This means that the solutions they design will be what they believe to be the best

possible design for context of the build meaning that many of their design proposals may not actually

come to fruition due to no lack of funding. Their design proposal of ‘The Farmhouse’ is a solution that

aims to combat the combined issues of climate change, population growth, and food shortages.

‘Our Farmhouse is an attempt to reconnect people in the city with the process of growing our food.

Since the industrial revolution, we grew apart from our food and that has a harmful effect on the

health of people and the health of our environment.’ (Chris Precht n.d)

The Farmhouse (2017), Precht Architecture

The structure is designed to be cross laminated timber panels are used to develop the modular

system as, amongst many benefits, it has a lower environmental footprint than steel, concrete or

cement. these panels are prefabricated off-site, flat-packed, deliver by trucks, and then assembled in

the structure of traditional A-frame houses to create a diagrid. each of its walls consists of three

layers: the inside layer includes the finishes, electricity and pipes; middle layer offers the structure and

insulation; and the outside layer features gardening elements and the water supply. the structure

enables homeowners to design their own home but also allows architects to create high-rise

apartments and other buildings. This means that these structures could be implemented in all parts of

the world. These stacked urban farms not only incorporate food growth into the everyday lives of its

occupants but can also produce a higher ratio of crop per planted area of traditional farmland. The

indoor climate of greenhouses protects the food against varying weather conditions and offers

different eco-systems for different plants.

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The Farmhouse Models (2017), Precht Architecture

Integrated systems of urban farming in existing environments

These structures all incorporate agriculture into their design to allow for food growth and sustainability

in their respected areas, all of which optimise the space that they have available to allow for optimum

food growth. With more and more architects using cross disciplinary practices to design the spaces

that we live in we can use urban farming to create cities that can take steps towards food security. It’s

clear that these projects alone however cannot solve the problem of feeding two billion mouths by

2050. By designing our future cities, we can only propose what they may look like, we can however

integrate urban farming into our current spaces. This will allow us to take steps towards cites that will

include urban farming throughout the entirety of the space’s architecture. With designers from other

fields creating systems that can be applied to our current cites we have already begun to apply urban

farming into our cities. One concept that could easily be applied to urban homes is the ‘Urban

Agriculture Curtain’ designed by the architecture group Bohn and Viljoen. The instillation proposes a

vertical indoor growing unit that can be seen as a new way of furnishing an office, cafe or flat.

The Urban Agriculture Curtain (2009), Bohn and Viljoen Architecture

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The installation was commissioned for the UK's first urban agriculture exhibition London Yields: Urban

Agriculture in 2009. In this high-yield and low-maintenance system of hydroponics, eight planting trays

are hung on an off-the-shelf cable system and connected by pipe to a nutrient-rich water supply. The

produce from The Urban Agriculture Curtain will be harvested every two weeks (at which point the

trays will be restocked with new seedlings) and used in the Building Centre's Cafe. The growing field

is four times as space efficient as its horizontal equivalent allowing for fresh produce grows year-

round, ready to be eaten off the plant.

Indoor gardening has always been something that most people have chosen to include in their

homes, usually with a couple potted plant and perhaps the odd easy grow plant that can be used in

the kitchen. For urban farming to be implemented into our homes in ways that will lead to self-

sufficiency, these food systems will need to be integrated into the everyday lives of the inhabitants

that allows for easy and convenient food growth .For Designer Tom Dixon have also chosen to design

in home instillations that will aid the promotion of urban farming. Partnering with IKEA they have

begun to a project to imagine the future of urban farming “Gardening Will Save the World”. As part of

the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2019, they have designed an experimental model for growing plants

in the urban environment with plans for the design to be available in stores in 2021. Designed in two

separate levels, the garden will be a hybrid of traditional gardening methods and modern approaches

including hydroponic technology. The base garden is a horticultural laboratory where hydroponic

technology is implemented to grow hyper-natural edibles. The raised garden is a botanic oasis with a

naturalistic aesthetic and will encourage visitors to immerse themselves in a canopy-like ecosystem of

trees, flowers and plants with medicinal, health and environmental benefits. With Tom Dixon’s

research studio exploring sustainable and affordable solutions to urban farming that can easily be

implemented into urban homes food security will begin to become more of a possibility.

Gardening Will Save the World (2019), Tom Dixon partnered with Ikea

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Conclusion

After looking at buildings that incorporate agriculture into the design of their architecture, I believe that

through urban farming, we can begin to make steps towards food security in our cities. For British

cities to take further development towards food security I believe that the utilisation of space is key.

By designing specific spaces and areas for CPULs we can integrate urban farming into the everyday

lives of people living in areas that would otherwise have no connection of where their food is sourced.

By raising both awareness and convenience for food growth within the cities people are more likely to

become more responsible for where their food is sourced, leading to people becoming more and more

self-sufficient. New architectural design of solutions that have urban farming built into their structure

will allow for this to happen in years to come, however before we get to the point were projects such

as Precht’s Farmhouse become a reality as a common integrated part of the design of our cities we

must take stepping stones before we can get to that reality. By utilising the space that we already

have in our cities and by incorporating food growth into our homes with systems such as the urban

agriculture curtain, it will become easier to transition into our future homes that have food growth and

urban faming built into the design of our future cities.

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Image List

J Jintai Village (2017), Rural Urban Framework.

Source: http://www.rufwork.org/index.php?/project/jintai-village/

Figure 1: graph of energy that is used a green roofed home and a traditional roofed home. (2012)

Looking Up: How Green Roofs and Cool Roofs Can Reduce Energy Use, Address Climate Change,

and Protect Water Resources in Southern California

Sourced: https://www.nrdc.org/sites/default/files/GreenRoofsReport.pdf

Tainan Market (2016), MVRDV.

Source: https://www.mvrdv.nl/projects/391/tainan-market

The Farmhouse & The Farmhouse Models (2017), Precht Architecture

Source: https://www.precht.at/the-farmhouse/

The Urban Agriculture Curtain (2009), Bohn and Viljoen Architecture

Source: https://inhabitat.com/luscious-vertical-gardening-curtain-by-bohn-and-viljoen-uses-

aquaponics-system-to-produce-fresh-veggies/

Gardening Will Save the World (2019), Tom Dixon partnered with Ikea

Source: https://www.fastcompany.com/90353160/heres-a-first-look-at-ikeas-utopian-urban-gardening-

project