The potential of urban agriculture to improve food security: the case of recirculating hydroponic systems for vegetable and herb production

Abstract

Urban agriculture has gained enormous popularity in recent years, mainly to produce vegetables and herbs for food and ornamentals for decoration. This paper focuses on the potential of recirculating hydroponic systems to improve food security in urban areas, through the production and supply of vegetables and herbs. Recirculating hydroponics is the growing of plants in a soil-less culture, using an active nutrient solution that is continuously recirculated through the system. There are several advantages associate d with the implementation of these systems, including their ability to maximize crop productivity, making production systems economically feasible through the cultivation of high-value commercial crops such as lettuce, tomato, sweet basil and strawberry. These crops are commonly produced at high planting densities, even in less favourable production areas.

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