Assessing the Benefits and Perceptions of Indoor Farming in Hot Climates

The human population will reach 8.5 billion by 2023, increasing demand for depleting resources such as food, energy, and water by 35%, 50%, and 40%, respectively. Therefore, there is an urgent need to promote new strategies that can ensure food security. Although indoor farming is potentially an innovative solution to the above scenario, there is insufficient information in the literature specifically related to stakeholder perception to guide its adoption effectively. This paper reports on an ongoing study that aims to assess the benefits of indoor farming in the hot climate context and assess stakeholders’ perceptions of this innovation. A literature review and focus group with building occupants to assess their perception of indoor farming were conducted to address the aim. The results identified critical factors such as design, psychological and operational considerations. These results were used to create a unique set of guidelines to direct future research into the design of an indoor farming prototype that has the potential to advance the security of food production. The findings of this study will thus, benefit researchers and other stakeholders working towards an integrated sustainable society.