Plant factory to redesign future farms
Pilot project boasts humidity, light and temperature control
SERDANG: A plant factory prototype has been made to explore farming in the future where various issues in the agricultural sector such as land shortages and erratic weather can be minimised.
The plant factory, equipped with the latest technology to accommodate up to 30,000 trees, is to serve as a pilot project, said Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (Mardi) director-general Datuk Dr Mohamad Roff Mohd Noor.
“The factory is an indoor vegetable production system where all the necessary elements such as light, temperature, greenhouse gas and humidity are controlled with the support of an automatic fertiliser and irrigation control system,” he said.
He said as a pioneer in modern agriculture, the factory could address various issues in the agricultural sector such as land shortages, weather and natural disasters as well as the attitude of future farmers who might not want to be exposed to a hot working environment.
“Based on these factors, Mardi, as the research institute, will provide the technology that will meet the needs of farmers in the future to prevent people from losing interest in agriculture.
“Mardi has found the best alternative via the plant factory, using technology that is believed to be able to help ensure the country continues producing agricultural products without depending on the weather,” he said on Saturday.
Roff said this when met after the launch of a book entitled 50 Resipi Masakan Malaysia, as well as working papers entitled Teknologi Keropok Lekor Lembu and Sup Ikan dan Cendawan by Public Service Department director-general Datuk Mohd Khairul Adib Abd Rahman, in conjunction with Mardi’s 50th anniversary.
The plant factory can also produce fresh, nutritious and chemical-free agricultural products and at the same time, reduce space usage by growing crops vertically compared to horizontally as practised on conventional farms.
“Through the plant factory, farmers can also ‘design’ their own vegetables according to their personal taste.
“For example, if they want the vegetable to be high in vitamin A or C or oxide, they just have to control the light as different levels of light can have a different effect on the plant,” he said.
Roff believed the plant factory could become a big industry in the coming years but thus far, the agricultural industry players have yet to fully explore the technology due to the high cost involved.