1. Are sunlight and soil essential for agriculture?
Ali Rahmat
Hiroshi Ito
Pengfei Zhang

2. Contents 1. Introduction
2. Plant factory（植物工場） and traditional agriculture comparison
3. Plant factory development
4. Conclusion

3. Introduction Contradiction Increasing Food demand
Increasing Food demand
Arable land Decreasing
Plant factory
New cultivation Technique
Contradiction

4. Plant factory（植物工場）
Plant factory is a closed growing system which enables a farmer (agrotechnician) to achieve constant production of vegetables all year around by artificially controlling the cultivation environment (e.g., light, temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide concentration, and culture solution).

5. Plant factory types Solar light（太陽光利用型）
Artificial lighting with solar light（太陽光併用型）
Artificial lighting（完全制御型）

6. What plants growth need

7. Functions of soil for plant
It fix plant to prevent fall down.
It store nutrients（養分） and water for plant growth.
It reduce harmful material harm to root.
It protects the root from temperature change.

8. Functions of sunlight for plant
It performs photosynthesis（光合成） and make carbohydrates（炭水化物） from CO2 and H2O .
It impacts morphogenesis（形態） of plant.

9. What replace soil in plant factory
Fix plant
Soil
Hydroponic cultivation
（養液栽培）
Growth plant using nutrient solution without soil.
Hydroponic
Provide water, nutrient
Prevent disease and Temp. change

10. What replace sunlight in plant factory

11. ●Cost Traditional agriculture and Plant factory
Vinyl greenhouse
(B)
A/B
Installation
costs(yen/1000 𝐦 𝟐 )
310 million
18million 17
Utility
18.6 million
0.4 million 47
Cost of plant factory is expensive!!

12. Traditional agriculture
Management
Plant factory
Traditional agriculture
Temperature
can control
can’t control
Humidity
Light
Farm field
anywhere
limited
Pest
no risk
high risk
Nutrient
control difficult
Management of plant factory is easier!!

13. Light □plant factory □traditional agriculture
It is not affected by natural environment.
Can control light efficiently
(24 hours uniform, no shade)
□traditional agriculture
It is affected by natural environment.
Can not control light.

14. Nutrient □plant factory □traditional agriculture
It is possible to control
the fertilizer.
Less nutrients waste.
□traditional agriculture
It is difficult to control
the fertilizer.
Nutrients is loss by
leaching and absorption.

15. Quality & Safety (Lettuce)
High
quality
mg/100g
μg/100g
mg/100g
×10³/g
Safety

16. Production cost (a lettuce) Price in supermarket (a lettuce)
Production (Lettuce)
Production cost (a lettuce)
Plant factory : 200 yen
traditional agriculture : 50 yen
Price in supermarket (a lettuce)
Plant factory : 300 yen
traditional agriculture : 100 yen
○Cultivation schedule(warm area)
traditional cultivation

17. Plant factory development
It is estimated the number of plant factory in commercial production exceeded 120 in December 2012, and this number is predicted to increase further in 2013 (Kozai, 2013).
Number of plant factory in Japan (March 2012)
By 2011, more than 20 plant factories spread over 10 provinces and municipalities in China have included 20 varieties of vegetables.
Chinese plant factory design

18. Singapore plant factory
Company introduce small and simple plant　Factory to invite Singapore citizen to planting plant.

19. Spread Co. Ltd “Kameoka Plant”
Established : July 2007 Site size : 4, m2 Building size : 2, m2 Building height : 15.7 m Growing area : m2 Heads : 7.7 million per year Yield : 770 tons per year Produce type : Lettuce Power source : Electrical power
Products
Inside plant factory
Plant factory

20. Some kinds of plant factory
A: Household plant factory
B：Small plant factory
Household plant factory (Panasonic Corp.) installed with LED, built-in camera, irrigation control unit, etc., connected with internet. Size: 60 cm wide, 80 cm high and 35 cm deep. Electricity consumption: ca. 100 W.
Small plant factory at the lobby of Sakakibara Memorial Hospital, Fuchu city, Tokyo. It is planned that vegetables be grown by the clients and served to the hospitalized clients.
Small plant factory for eye-catching display at LalaPort shopping center in Kashiwa city, Chiba, Japan.
C:Small plant factory for eye-catching

21. Some kinds of plant factory
Simple plant factory on the wall of a conference room
Simple plant factory in reception room
Daiwa plant factory for small garden
Simple plant factory in hall first floor

22. Sketch of plant factory in future
In future plant factory can be install in anywhere around the world

23. Problems of plant factory
High initial cost
High energy consumption
Limited types and varieties of crops available to production
Need cultivation technology to improve for higher production
Lack of human resource with both cultivated skills and facility management skills

24. Challenges of plant factory
To make a comprehensive Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).
To develop schemes to use plant factory in hotels, restaurants, hospitals, schools, community centers, etc.
Improve the lighting system and light quality.
To develop an integral environment control and management system.
To integrate the plant factory with other bio-production and resource recycling systems.
To develop management systems for the production of medicinal and other functional plants.
To use natural renewable energy sources and implement information technology

25. Conclusion Soil and sunlight can be replaced for plant growth.
Plant factory can get high production and high quality vegetable, but high cost.
Plant factory increase by year, and can be installed in anywhere (hospital, home, hotel, and so on ) for future.

26. Discussion topic 1. Do you want to buy plant factory product? Why?
2. Can plant factory will replace traditional agriculture in future? Why?