Microfarming

Microfarming is an indoor microgreen growing solution that will empower people to produce and consume high-nutrition food in a resource- and cost-efficient manner. It will help generate money or food coupons based on whether a person signs up to be a farmer or consumer.

Microfarming is an indoor farming solution that allows people to grow microgreens all year. We envision a community-based solution that allows neighbors to act as farmers and consumers of high-nutrition, low-cost food. According to this solution, a farmer can grow microgreens for her/himself and sell extras to neighbors. Our company will provide starter kits with resources (soil, seeds, personalized tray etc.) to help grow microgreens at a reduced cost. We envision a subscription-based model where farmers can renew needed resources on a monthly basis. This solution will empower people to not only grow their own food, but also encourage them to eat healthy, all while making money. We expect our solution to result in less carbon footprint. Highlights of our solution include-

Minimal space – A farmer can grow microgreens in a tray near a window sill, or stick tray(s) to the window to save space.

Reduced time and effort – Our solution uses sensors coupled with a low-cost webcam and a mobile application to support effective microgreen farming. 

Tech-support – Our solution includes a "smart" growing tray embedded with low-cost sensors and a webcam to communicate when to water the tray, in addition to validating yields. Our solution includes a location-based, gamified mobile application that will allow farmers and consumers to access a marketplace. 

Incentives – Our solution will allow farmers to generate money by selling microgreens to consumers. It also includes a “soil return” program, where, the soil returned by farmers will be given away for free to the vendors who sell other produce at farmer’s market. In return, the vendors will offer discounts (as food coupons) to every consumer in our program. 

There are several pockets of food deserts in the world. Farming indoors all year at an economical price will allow people to not only grow and consume their own food, but also build a community for microgreen farming and consumption. 

Microgreens are very expensive and microgreen farming is less economical when produced in small quantities. Our solution overcomes these issues using a subscription-based model with a crowd-based growing effort.

Farming food is often perceived as requiring too much effort and patience. Most varieties of microgreens that can be harvested in 1-2 weeks, thus providing immediate return on investment.

Humans have the desire to live healthy longer and food is one of the means to support this desire. There is however limited, sustainable access to healthy food, especially among vulnerable population living in resource-constrained urban communities, owing to several reasons such as low income, lack of space, pollution, weather dependency, lack of knowledge/awareness about healthy food choices and so on. Our solution will nudge people to grow and consume healthy food in the process of making money or collecting food coupons. Our solution also increases awareness for one of the healthy, low-cost, low-effort food choices, namely, microgreens.