Las Vegas to build farm skyscraper

Las Vegas is planning to construct the world's first vertical farm tower.

According to reports at Next Energy News, the $200m building will include 30 storeys of farming land and produce enough food to feed 72,000 people once fully operational.

The eye-opening vertical farm is expected to generate $40m in annual revenue – $25m from fresh produce and $15m from tourism – and require just $6m a year in operating expenses.

Nevada State officials, who spearheaded the project, reportedly claimed that the building will be able to grow more than 100 crops, producing everything from strawberries and lettuce to banana trees.

The officials said that the bulk of the produce would be used in local casinos and entertainment complexes, adding that they chose to build the project in Las Vegas because they wanted to clean up the city's image as a party, drinking and gambling Mecca.

Agricultural industry analysts are likely to be watching the project closely. Intensive farm towers have long been touted by some experts as a potential solution to the world's food shortages, allowing farmers to generate high yields in controlled biospheres without using up precious agricultural land.

The tower, which could become operational as early as mid-2010, could be replicated in other heavily built-up urban areas, where produce has to be transported long distances.

Food prices are currently climbing, driven by a combination of climate change, population growth, high energy costs and the shift towards biofuel crops.

Around 80 per cent of the available agricultural land is currently being used and the UN has warned that there is a serious risk of global food shortages if supply issues are not addressed.