How This Underground Urban Farm in Stockholm Will Heat the Building Above It

In just a few months, an emerging startup in Stockholm will attempt to change how urban farmers think about sustainability—and how building owners can benefit from being eco-friendly. A Swedish company called Plantagon is expected to open a basement farm under a 26-floor office tower in the city without paying a cent in rent.

How? If all goes according to plan, the heat from the LED lights helping to nourish the plants will be vented to the rest of the building, covering heating costs that are nearly three times the amount the building’s owners would charge to lease the space.

The recycled energy is part of Plantagon’s plan to alter the landscape of urban farming. According to Fast Company’s Adele Peters, the company—which is soliciting a round of capital on the Swedish crowdfunding site FundedByMe—is looking to provide a model for farmers to host and distribute their greens while minimizing overhead. Some of the produce will be sold directly to office workers above the farm, including two restaurants; Plantagon also plans to open a store in the building as well as sell goods to nearby dealers that won’t require fossil fuels to transport.

Plantagon intends to open 10 more farms in Stockholm and one “plantscraper” (the concept art for which is shown above) that will provide food on multiple floors while subsidizing costs with tenants on others floors. Eventually, Plantagon might even be able to sell its additional heat from the farms into citywide channels to further support the cost of doing business. 

[h/t Fast Company]