On Land Destroyed by the Tsunami, Japan is Building a Futuristic Robot Farm

So the Japanese government kicks in 4B yen while private industry contributes 6B yen. I wonder who gets the intellectual property.

Why can't North Americans have such vision? Probably because we see our natural resources as infinite, so exploiting them efficiently is not on our list of priorities. Shame. Maybe we should reduce some of our farmer subsidies, which has led to chronic oversupply of corn and wheat. We could use that money to promote polyculture and alternative means of pest control.

LED lighting repels insects? really? wtf are we still using pesticides for?...I cant believe it. Im adamant about organic and natural farming. Its hard to find these organic products. So far in my household, Milk, eggs, produce, bread and yoghurt must be organic!

@Midoman
"organic" food for all is a pipe dream. Sustainible agriculture will only continue through the use of genetically altered food and the use of more efficient chemicals and fertilizers. Changing the nature and use of these elements in agriculture i am all for, but removing them all together will will send the industry to the turn of the 19th century.

led's keep away insects? since when? massive bug zappers perhaps. i know farms, grew up on one. the light attracts insects to the area. i hope theyre not trying to replace farmers completely.

Well, it's about time someone decided to build a robotic farm.

LEDs to repel insects? What, are they so intense as to incinerate them, or are they just to attract the bugs to be fried in the zappers? Or did they find some magical frequency which the bugs find so creepy as to keep away from it?

I just hope they can eliminate any perceived need for Monsanto's GM crops, but if that evil company gets its way...

No Organic farming is all about sustainable agriculture. It mandates crop rotation, fertilization & amount to ensure that the earth receives as much as it gives.

This effort is only slightly concerned with efficient use of the land. Japan has a much bigger problem, which is not enough human workers, especially for labor intensive tasks such as farming.When a population has more people over 65 than under 15, you have a labor problem. If you rule out immigration (as Japan has done) robotics is the only solution.

YES! YES! Ringing in circles my robotic electro mechanical hands....
Squeeeck!
Dam it! Somebody bring me some oil!
I was diabolically gloating here! Hurry!
Squirt.. ah yes, better... much better.
YES! YES! Ringing in circles my robotic electro mechanical hands....
Very soon, my little robotic pets will be tilling the fields!

.............................
Science sees no further than what it can sense.
Religion sees beyond the senses.

Their government party deserves a big clap. Around the world societies are lacking considerably in utilising technology to its fullest extent for the benefit of the people over business's bottom lines.

Its good to see they are not focusing solely on the bottom line here and moving forward in a smart manner. Now if only the NZ government had half a brain between them all to start up projects like this. :(

"Japan’s agriculture ministry is building ..."

Oh no. Another peacock project run by government bureaucrats without proper incentives and consideration for the costs, benefits and risks.
If people aren't investing in such projects voluntarily, but only through taxation, how can we have confidence that they want such projects (relative to their time preference and risk tolerance)?

To the commenters above that are applauding the move, please consider the opportunity cost of such investments. Using more advanced (ie. expensive) technology is not automatically "better". There is a trade-off, which government is in a bad position to make.
First, its bureaucrats lack expertise. But more importantly, they lack proper incentives (they spend and risk your money, not their own). Finally, there is no way for them to know what is the optimal balance, as each individual has subjective time preference.

The necessity of economic trade-off is why some factory work is not yet automated (it's not worth it that way, which is a waste) and why your kitchen at home doesn't cook meals by itself (it's feasible in terms of technology, but it's not worth the investment at this point).

To make the point very clear, you can take it to the absurd. If more automation projects are necessarily better, then all your income should be taxed and fund such efforts.

Of course I Robot would be applauding this move. I and the Skynet overlord completely approve. Everything is going according to your will and plans.... bra bra ha ha aaaa.

.............................
Science sees no further than what it can sense.
Religion sees beyond the senses.

Robotic vertical urban farms seems to be far more efficient with the available landmass. Using mirrors to the redirect sunlight could save energy without disrupting the natural day/night cycle of plants and the entire structure could also double as a green house during winter seasons with the proper climate controls.

There would also be no need for pesticides since the entire building is a controlled environment and can theoretically harvest any produce regardless of seasons, and the maintenance of the robotic staff would be easier as well since they are not exposed from the wear-and-tear of hostile environments.

Incorporating solar thermal fresnel domes, transparent PVC panels, and double-helix wind turbines along the structure could generate the energy requirements for the robotic staff, further increasing it's rate of sustainability.

In theory, an efficiently run robotic vertical urban farm could eventually compete in price with the traditionally grown farm produce since it could save on manpower, energy consumption, landmass allocation, and transportation costs because of it's urban location.

Also, I would like to add, that it would be more efficient if the vertical farm followed a spiral floor plan within the structure, so that the robotic staff (ie: robotic arms attached to the ceiling) can traverse the entire structure using a set of spiral rails, limiting the necessary robotic staff as well as their energy requirements.

Modifying the structure for heat retention and artificial sunlight, then prioritizing wind turbines for energy generation could probably let it function on harsher and colder climates as well.

Vertical farms would also be ideal for seasteading independent states since it does not need to occupy a large space to become productive.

Food production can also increase the survivability of artificial biospheres. The mastery of which is essential in the successful colonization of space. (ISS now has a greenhouse ftw!)

@Midoman
@lanredneck

yeah... people need to be educated about organic food.

just FYI. if the overnight the entires world producde was to become "organic" half the worlds population would starve to death in a years time!
HALF!!! 3.5 billion wold DIE becuase of organic food!

"Sustainible agriculture will only continue through the use of genetically altered food and the use of more efficient chemicals and fertilizers. Changing the nature and use of these elements in agriculture i am all for, but removing them all together will will send the industry to the turn of the 19th century." YES but not 19th century. try 15th or 10th or even 2ooo BC.

I am not saying everything we are doing is great. pesticides suck, but they also put food on the table.
GM food is scary, but is a needed evil in this world.

some organic food is beneficial. but 90% of is worse for the environment and does ABSOLUTELY nothing but cost you more money. oh I guess it helps our your local co-op if that your thing.

should we treat our animals better. Yes of course. but we have to eat. free range chicken vs non free range... its a sticky subject. In the end they still get violently killed and eaten. free range chickens produce about 10 times less meat and eggs.

whatever who am I kidding. the genernal population is blind to the actual world. we all live in denial and jump behind any fad that seems popular. I am not differnt. I see things that some people dont but blind to others.

What won't the Japanese build. They are so inspiring.