Why Do Buildings Need to Feed Us?
Food scarcity in urban areas
Cities have always been the center of growth, development, and advancement for the country. The majority of the population is shifting towards urban areas from rural areas in search of a better lifestyle. Although this shift has brought many positive changes in their life but also increased the problem of food security. Factors like abandonment, pollution, deforestation, and clearing farmlands to bring modern infrastructure all lead to food shortages. People are not able to grow to meet their rate of consumption. But what if your home can grow your food in your house like it used to be in the earlier times? For this, bring in the idea of edible urbanism, which can be achieved by integrating food systems in our structures to solve the real-life problem of the climate crisis and urban density. It redefines the idea of feeding in urban areas as a necessity.
What Is Edible Architecture?
Edible Rooftop Gardens
Remember times when gardens were just behind the houses, and people could easily pluck fresh fruits and vegetables from them. With smart planning and integration, this can be incorporated in urban homes as well. Edible architecture is a blend of architecture, urban landscape, and agroecology. It is the integration of food-growing systems in our buildings, like vertical gardens, terrace farmlands, or hydroponic walls. It is not just the incorporation of non-ornamental plants in landscaping, but turning it into functional and productive spaces. It is not merely green aesthetics but giving something fruitful to the environment, community, and people living in an area. The idea overlaps with terms like urban agriculture, in which agriculture is done in a particular area of the city, and agricultural urbanism, where agriculture is considered a core idea in urban planning. Edible architecture differs due to its multi-scale, it can be done from a small balcony herbs plantation to large rooftop farms in an institutional building. It can be adaptable to any space, size, budget, and level of integration in a structure.
Urban Foodscapes- Taking References From The Past:
Urban Foodscapes are the method of growing, distributing, and consuming food in a particular urban environment. It challenges us to make multiple uses of space in making something productive. It not only solves the problem of food shortage but also creates a place for interaction as well. It brings ecological stability, social well-being, and economic development to an area. References can be taken from the past, like how courtyards have gardens where farming can be done. They act as the social and domestic hub for people to interact and collaborate. They further help in enhancing the microclimate of that building. Temple Garden also had the same purpose but on a larger scale. Then come the shared orchards along with irrigational canals, transforming areas into agricultural ground. Stepwell farming is also an example of growing in rainy seasons and storing in other seasons of the year. They provide sufficient water during drought times. It shows how intelligently it helps in cooling down the cities, storing rainwater, and water in an area.
Architecture That Feeds – Typologies & Techniques:
As mentioned, edible architecture can fit any scale, and there is a shift that can be seen to bring these historical references to the contemporary world. In residential areas, planting can be done in the courtyards or backyards. Earlier, rooftops were left empty, but now plantations can be done there as well. These methods help in passive cooling by convection cooling and reducing the heat gain from rooftops. Hydroponic vertical walls help in stacking plants on the walls of balconies, which can be easily executed with less space requirements. Growing plants indoors, like adjacent to kitchen walls, helps in easy access to fresh ingredients and improves air quality as well. Apartments can have shared garden terraces, rooftop gardens, or aeroponic gardens for smaller balconies. Institutional areas like schools and universities can also incorporate them. In schools, yards can be incorporated, which helps in live practical training and connection with these agricultural aspects, and brings that knowledge exposure to students. Universities being large can incorporate forests, trails, and a nursery to keep students aware of these aspects, as one incorporated in Loyola’s Lakeshore Campus and Auroville. Hospitals can have healing gardens and choose fresh ingredients from this type of urban farming. Commercial spaces can have green facades, nature gardening cafes for good dining experiences, or community gardens, which help in bringing people together. Possibilities can be endless in this case. Can take examples from Mumbai terrace gardens, Pasona HQ in Tokyo has urban farms on office buildings, or Singapore’s Oasia Hotel, known for its green architecture with vegetation integration.
Agricultural Urbanism: A Shift in City-Making
Considering these aspects at urban levels relates to the concept of agricultural urbanism, which means considering agriculture as an integral part of urban planning. It’s not just placing agricultural patches in leftover spaces, but deliberately planning a city in a way that blends agriculture into it. It is more than gardening in the spaces. It is about zoning in a way that it becomes accessible to all by linking it to the transportation routes. Waste management of water used for irrigation purposes and building compost around the waste helps in proper disposal. Integration in the building systems and linking them with infrastructure all becomes very crucial at the planning and designing stages. It also needs the participation of people in telling their needs and incorporating them into their private property. Water accessibility and the tools needed are also to be considered. Community farming can be done in high-density areas, and food hubs or agromarkets can be built along. In Havana, Cubans converted large urban areas into productive farmlands and encouraged 300 private agriculture corporations and small home gardens to do the same to overcome food shortages.
Why Is Edible Architecture the Future?
Edible Architecture is a necessity for the growing population in urban areas. It has environmental, socio-cultural, emotional, and psychological impact as well on the users present there. Environmental impacts involve lowering the carbon footprint through transportation. These plants act as natural air purifiers as they reduce toxic contaminants from the air. Some buildings also use rainwater or recycled greywater for irrigation purposes, leading to better management of wastewater. More than this, the socio-cultural impact can be seen as these methods help in reviving traditional knowledge into the contemporary world. These spaces act as gathering and knowledge-sharing spaces for people who know this, like women, gardeners, and elders, to the younger generation, and create a sense of belongingness in the surroundings. These spaces also help in healing, connecting them to mental well-being as well. It is just like healing with nature. It also provides seasonal sensory experiences through the eyes, nose, and tongue, which makes people interact with nature. Also, it builds a sense of food access in an urban area in supply chain failure, and locally available food is available for self-resilience.
Challenges and the Way Forward:
These types of systems require an adequate amount of sunlight, a regular water supply for irrigation purposes, and maintenance at regular intervals. This requires proper water and waste management systems. Also, the position depends on the proper study of orientation and climatic considerations of an area. Structural factors include proper calculation for soil, water, and plant bearing capacity so that it will not collapse. Also, some particular laws by government bodies help in the regulation of food-producing buildings. It is easy to visualize, but still, innovations and experiments need to be done with a proper budget, as it is also a major factor in overcoming the complexity of these systems. It is an opportunity for NGOs to collaborate with the government to work on it. Also, it requires cross-disciplinary collaboration between different experts in the field of architecture, planning, structure, ecologists, chefs, and even the common citizens. Work needs to be done to bring it into a more practical version in the cities.
Edible Urbanism is revolutionized, as well as a challenge to improve cities’ conditions. It is about creating spaces that not only look good but also taste good. It’s high time to just look for aesthetics when there is so much potential to get something beneficial out of it. The benefits are not only in terms of social challenges but also environmental, psychological, and emotional as well. There are things to take inspiration from, as it is not something we just started, just scale and needs to be considered to be fitted in. Challenges are there, but if we overcome them, it is a good opportunity to do something good for our cities. Let’s try to make spaces and cities self-sustaining and future-ready ready as the future of architecture isn’t just smart or net-zero, it is nutritious, healing, and connected to soil and season.
