In recent years,there have been many new places to grow food: on warehouse roofs, in old tires, on top of bus shelters,etc.But now, the city of Taipei, Taiwan,China can pride itself on being the only city that has a farm in a subway station.

The farm, named Subway Fresh, is located in Taipei Nanjing-Fuxing station.In the 40 meter big space, rows of produce grow vertically under sterile LED lighting.

Vertical farms have become more and more popular in Taiwan.In addition, smart farms have the advantage of being sterile,hydroponic, and organic, which is a draw for many people who have become concerned about pesticides (農藥)used in traditional ground-based farming.“One thing that most people are worried about is the unavoidable use of pesticides in traditional land-based farming,”Julia Yang,an executive, said.The farm's organic produce and fresh salads are sold at stalls on the third floor of the subway station.

Taiwan is a hometown of a large number of people.It has a population of about 23.57 million people and is only 36,197 square kilometers.This means that it has to take advantage of every square foot of available space in order to keep its citizens well fed and self-sufficient.

This is why the advent of smart farms like Subway Fresh is so important.They are less labor intensive than regular farms,are less subject to the whims of the weather, and most importantly have a high yield for a small amount of space.

Reading Check

How much do you know about the advantages of vertical farms apart from the information in the text?

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