Check Out London’s Freaky Underground Farm

By: 02.17.14

London is an ancient city, and that history extends deep underground. It includes, among other things, tunnels dug in the 1940s to protect Londoners from German bombing raids. And now, those tunnels are being put to fascinating use with an underground farm.

Essentially, some entrepreneurs are using the tunnels to hydroponically grow vegetables underneath the city. Here’s a four-minute tour of their underground farm:

Essentially, they use hydroponics and red LEDs to grow herbs, leafy greens, and potentially other vegetables. They point out that it’s more sustainable than other types of farming, and their greens don’t have to worry about crappy weather conditions or pests, buried as they are under tons of concrete and dirt. They also use exclusively sustainable energy to power everything, so really, this is about as carbon-neutral as growing food gets.

That said, it’s a little weird to realize that this is fifteen stories underground, and that these guys are growing food. Sure, right now it’s just salads, but as the technology improves, and as the idea branches out to other cities, it’s likely to include other foods.

Of course, it’s also likely that these guys are going to export their idea to the US, only to discover people have a much different crop in mind. But hey, at least they’ll be growing that stuff out of the way.

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