The world’s first floating dairy farm has made a splash after moo-ving into position in the Dutch port city of Rotterdam, with the new facility offering the Netherlands’ with a unique and alternative agricultural solution.
The farm’s first batch of residents, 32 cows, have set up home on the three-story-high farm structure, where they enjoy staying on the spacious barn of their 900-square-meter floating home.
Following a circular design principle, the farm enables the milk from the cows to be processed into dairy products and collects their manure at the same time.
The farm has also been designed to desalinate seawater and produces abundant energy thanks to its vast array of solar panels, with most of the facilities capable of operating in an unmanned status.
According to Peter Van Wingerden, the farm’s designer, thanks to its unique location, the complex is expected to shorten the distance between healthy food reaching urban consumers and will, therefore, realize a sustainable supply of the fresh food in densely populated cities.
“We also want to reduce transportation because now food is transported all over the world, with planes and ships and trucks, and that creates a lot of pollution. And it also creates food losses,” said Van Wingerden.
With the geographical conditions of the Netherlands meaning the country is susceptible to frequent floods and high tides due to rising sea levels, it is hoped the floating farm will aid the future transfer of traditional food production on land to rivers and the sea. (REUTERS)
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