Fighting urban drought with smarter food production

So how should cities plan their future food systems in the face of this threat?

This concern is especially pressing in Mexico, where about 70% of the country is presently impacted by drought, up from about half as recently as December 2020. Additionally, about a fifth of the country is experiencing extreme drought compared to a baseline of less than 5% since 2012.

According to Urban Design Director Jorge Gerini, "Mexico's location and climate make it even more vulnerable to periods of low rainfall and wet seasons. Surviving the dry season depends on the amount of water that accumulates in the months that it rains."

Urban drought also contributes to the 11.3 million Mexicans that experienced severe food insecurity.

Of the little water Mexico does have, Gerini says that "76.3% of this is used for agricultural irrigation, 14% for domestic consumption, and the rest for industry and electricity." He argues that it isn't the lack of options available to grow food in a more sustainable manner that is the problem, rather the larger issue is "the costs of the technologies that make it really hard to make food production projects feasible."

With his passion for sustainability, he believes that "embracing a truly sustainable vision for urban agriculture" is the way forward.

So how do we do this?

Gerini envisioned the upgrade of an existing residential community in Mexico into a "dense mixed-use development that could become the new city center" while making the best use possible of the natural landscape. This 100,000 m2 construction (roughly 25 acres) hosts approximately 415 families and boasts "staggered platforms that privilege views, sunlight, and shaded spaces."

As the site rests on a slope and has a river crossing through it, Gerini decided to utilize these elements such that runoff and water from the river could be directed to specific sites for Community Supported Agriculture. He added two greenhouses and small pockets of land for soil-based agriculture to help residents form a stronger relationship with their food.

According to Gerini, "landscape plays an important role in the creation of microclimates that promote pleasant outdoor environments." Because of this, he added "a green network of interior parks that are connected by a linear park. This linear park also follows the staggered platforms that distinguish the project and links both extremes of the complex, integrating native flora and water repositories in its composition."

At the two ends of this park, Gerini added two greenhouses for growing vegetables. The larger one has 582 sqm while the smaller one has 350 sqm of available land for cultivation.

How will this project impact the community?

In Gerini's eyes, the main highlight of this site is the community hub. Two buildings - one which will act as the main community center, and another that could include a vertical farm and a farm-to-table restaurant - will "activate a plaza for the community" that can support a farmer's market.

The farmer's market was a result of wanting a space" where local farmers can come and sell their products. Locating them in the same place gives them visibility and generates a captive market."

His master plan additionally accounted for the social experience of the community. The plaza is a result of this because it gives people a place to "meet, socialize and expose community issues."

To make the most of local food production and further enhance the community's relationship with food, Gerini planned for the farm-to-table restaurant where "there will be experiences of menus being prepared from what is harvested on-site. It is an experience that generates ownership, care and also attracts visitors."

His idea was to have "all the food produced on the land to be sold to and consumed by the residents of the site," and become "incredible evidence for urban farming in Mexico."

Residents would not only be able to eat fresher produce, but they'd also be able to grow it themselves too. And, as a result, form a stronger relationship with food. Gerini believes that this will be a "great amenity from the perspective of the developer because it adds a unique element to the community."

But, how do we make this model economically feasible?

Gerini based the food production around what would yield a good market demand.

Gerini planned the greenhouses to grow arugula, spinach, basil, lettuce, chives, carrots, beets, and garlic throughout the year. Using Agritecture Designer, Gerini was able to figure out that these crops and structures would have a payback period of roughly 8 years but an annual revenue of $130,000. While this is a long time, Gerini wanted to be able to provide the community with a diverse range of crops.

To balance this payback period, Gerini wanted the vertical farm to produce "microgreens because their smaller production will yield higher prices due to the high demand." This was proved by the Designer software as the maximum annual revenue of the vertical farm would be over $590,000 and the payback period would only be ~2 years.

Watch Jorge Gerini's Full Presentation On This Concept

With this data backing up Gerini's vision, we're excited to see how this project gets actualized.
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Editor's note: The following information is derived from an interview Agritecture conducted with Jorge Gerini, Urban Design Director at Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos, as part of Agritecture Studios. This first virtual Agritecture Designer cohort supported architects with a deep interest in urban agriculture who lacked the technical background necessary to move forward with their concepts confidently. Learn more about Agritecture Studios' first cohort here!

Source and Photo Courtesy of Agritecture

Source: Agritecture