Food is obviously most vital to any human. Thus, the SDG2 ‘food, nutrition and agriculture’ is the second Sustainable Goal for all civilized united nations. However, most humans do now live in cities, whereas 75% in ‘the West’. Thus, cities and megacities have quite new and unsolved challenges. The traditional rural and agricultural solutions are insufficient to reach this vital goal. Still, this is the decade of the 4th Industrial and social reforms (IR4/SR4), which indeed provide such solutions, - yet hindered by political corruption. Therefore, in order to suggest some solutions, this blog will further elaborate on some previous blogs concerning, sustainable cities, LifeQuality and institutional obligations (SDG16).
This blog follows up on UU20220703 ‘Citizens of Cities’ and also UU20200802 and UU20210303. Issues mentioned were that more people are urban than rural and have lost their natural ways of self-sustaining by hunting and farming. The urban consumption exceeds the possible rural supplies. Moreover, the transport is unnecessarily costly, polluting and not resilient. Conclusively, workable solutions of this decade’s Industrial and Social Reforms need to be massively deployed. Hence, those obligations for Food (SDG2) are the national public institutions legal responsibilities (SDG17), - that includes most SDGs, - in particular; ‘water and sanitation’ (SDG6), ‘urban sustainability’ (SDG11), ‘Infrastructure’ (SDG9), ‘consumption (SDG12) and ‘partnerships’ (SDG17).
The food production should be much more efficient and closer to the cities, - preferably in suburban areas. The IR4 method is called ‘Vertical Farming’. In brief, large postindustrial buildings are reformed to maximize greenhouse mass production by electric LED light, nourishments and water. The efficiencies differ, but reliable figures shows that it uses 40% less energy, makes 80% less food-waste, requires 99% less water than the traditional farming – and converts the CO2 pollution into clean air. The controlled farming environments almost nullifies all ruin by insects, diseases and weather, - though lady bugs are used towards aphids. For example, the vertical farming has turned Holland to a major exporter despite its geographical disadvantages. Intriguingly though, red meat is cheaper than most vegetables in urban stores, - though urban vertical farming advantages are seldom mentioned by some self-declared ‘green’ politicians.
Moreover, the seas cover 2/3 of the global surface. Hence, sea-farming is also obvious for urban food production, since the potentials and advantages are even greater. The success of salmon sea-farms just indicate a peak of what can be farmed as the varieties of fishes, shellfish, seaweed and any aquarian flora and fauna. People really needs that nutrition, - even though uncustomed in urban areas. Sea-farming might even be as efficient as suburban vertical farming. In fact, vertical sea-farming, can be constructed so fishes’ droppings fertilize some seaweed-farms underneath. Furthermore, the aquarian plankton do massively produce clean oxygen by photosynthesis, which can considerably alter urban CO2 imbalance.
Moreover, insects as food are considered gross in modern western civilizations, - yet a delicacy elsewhere and throughout human history. Anyways, the insect-farming, can contribute to the SDG2 in direct and indirectly ways. Some key points are that; insects consume 1 2000th of water than mammals, they are coldblooded and do not user their energy for warmth, there are no insect virus transferred to human, there are about 1 million species that can be utilized in a number of ways, they can consume food waste and require little space, produces relatively little CO2, their energy-efficiency is about 80%. All in all, insects are very nutritious and farming is very cost-efficient. Even though humans will not eat insects, - they would be a very good supplement food for animals and fishes. All the urban food-waste from the cities can be gathered in sub-urban insect-farms and thereby contribute to a sound biological recycling.
Conclusively, all the new technologies of this Industrial Reform do certainly ‘revolutionize’ farming once again. Urban vertical farming, sea farming and insects farming are certainly the ways to solve the sustainable development goal 2 ‘end hunger’, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture. Actually, there are already enough food on earth, - but maldistribution and corruption hinder the SDG2.
Links:
UN Sustainable Development Goals
https://sdgs.un.org/goals
Food https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal2
Water https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal6
Sea https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal14
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vertical_farming
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_city
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_and_dependencies_by_population
See all UU blogs at: http://bloguu.azurewebsites.net/
Music:
Food, Glorious Food! - Oliver Twist (Instrumental)
https://www.youtube.com/embed/fPABDxrFPCo
Vertical farming is the practice of growing crops in vertically stacked layers. Here are several videos presenting 3 three kinds of vertical farming, - some advantages and disadvantages. There is also a video about fish-faming and insect-farming.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/EX9meGeMlUQ
What is the Blue Revolution?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBVXenVpfVM
3 Different Types Of Vertical Farms
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=suYcri3FzcI
Vertical Farming with Aeroponics: Top 7 Benefits of a Tower Farm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCQHwimJFGM
Vertical ocean farming - the least deadliest catch - TEDx
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8ViaskDSeI
Salmon Processing in Fish Factory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssZXFd3diDA
7 Biggest DISADVANTAGES of Vertical Farming
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_utKzBJ0XM