Lean Principles in Vertical Farming: A Case Study

Abstract

Vertical farming (VF) has been recognised as an important tool for managing future food security, yet economic viability poses a significant hurdle with the vast majority of farms closing within three years. The application of lean principles poses an opportunity to address inefficiencies, such as significant labour expenditure, but existing literature is yet to consider process improvement methodologies in VF. In this paper, an established framework for lean implementation is applied to an industry case study providing techniques for process improvement. This work is novel and crucial for workflow standardisation and higher profit margins in this emerging sector.