Asia: Urban farm sprouts atop a Hong Kong skyscraper
“If coding is the skill set to learn for the 21st century, growing your own food is a necessary new skill that we all need to learn to ensure a regenerative and green planet,” he said.
AFP
August 1, 2021
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And around 90 percent of the food eaten by the city’s 7.5 million inhabitants is imported, mostly from mainland China.
But while Hong Kong is one of the most densely packed places on earth, there is still considerable space to grow food locally.
Tsui said some seven million square metres of farmable area is currently cultivated. But more than six million square metres on the city’s rooftops remain unused.
“So, we could have the potential of doubling the supply of land for growing food,” he said.
“The challenge for us is to design urban farming as a lifestyle to integrate into our daily life,” he added. “And the first step for that, of course, is to be accessible.”
To incorporate urban farms into the blueprints for office buildings, Rooftop Republic closely collaborates with architects, developers and property managers.
As well as the Bank of America garden, financed by property consultancy giant JLL, Singaporean banking giant DBS has partnered with Rooftop Republic to set up an academy that runs workshops for beginners as well as professional courses.
“In Hong Kong, most of the people focus on the commercial value of the properties. But we want to promote the concept of sustainability,” said Eric Lau, the group’s senior director of property management.
