The Floating Farm in Rotterdam is no longer being sold, after its 28 Dutch MRI cows were moved to several farms about 20km away, while a vertical crop-growing enterprise is located in the basement of the floating structure. Peter van Wingerden, who founded the project with Minke van Wingerden, said milk and other dairy production were continuing and the vertical farm was performing well.
The change follows a dispute with the local environmental department, which said a new floor fitted at the farm did not comply with regulations. The farm had recently been put up for sale, and the cows were removed with plans to sell them and stop milk production. Van Wingerden said the farm's modern technology and systems gave it the lowest possible emissions, but the rubber floor was German and had no certificate of compliance in the Netherlands.
Under the current arrangement, the cows are on nearby farms and milk is brought to the floating site. Van Wingerden said a stainless steel pipeline runs from the quay to the farm, and a regular dairy truck delivers milk about twice a week, roughly 1,500 litres per batch. The supplier is 20km away, which he said keeps transport time short.
The Floating Farm opened in May 2019 in the Port of Rotterdam after an investment of €4 million. It was the brainchild of Peter and Minke van Wingerden, who created it with on-site feeding, milking, slurry and dairy production facilities as a way to produce food sustainably without the traditional tie to land. It produced milk and dairy products for local consumers, who could buy them from vending machines at the farm. The concept attracted hundreds of thousands of visitors from around the world.
The vertical farm occupies the basement below the waterline of the floating structure, where it is cooled by the water. It is a fully controlled, automated growing space with three layers and conveyor belts, combining grow-room and warehouse technology. Four types of crops are grown: micro-greens harvested every two weeks, herbs every three weeks, leafy greens every four weeks and edible flowers every four to five weeks. Van Wingerden cited tea, pesto, Parmigiano cheese, herb-infused salts and herb-infused whey among the products tied to the vertical farm.
Van Wingerden said the arrangement was not the vision the project began with, but that the farm was coping. The Floating Farm will have to leave the port in just over two years because the entire area is due to become residential.