An Urban's Rural View

The store Whole Foods is opening in the New York borough of Brooklyn this fall (http://tiny.cc/…) will get some of its produce from on high: A 20,000-square-foot greenhouse atop the store's roof will, Whole Foods says, "grow premium quality, pesticide-free produce year round" for the new store and several other Whole Foods stores in New York City.

Gotham Greens, the supplier Whole Foods is partnering with, describes itself as the ultimate in politically correct, green, local agriculture. It says its hydroponic growing system uses 10 times less water than conventional agriculture. It stamps out pests with "beneficial insects." It uses solar panels for power. It limits its deliveries to within 15 miles.

"Talk about local! This project takes the discussion from food miles to food footsteps," Viraj Puri, Gotham Greens Co-Founder, said in Whole Foods' press release. He promised the greenhouse will "provide Whole Foods Market shoppers with access to the freshest, most delicious leafy greens, herbs and tomatoes, year-round that will be grown right above the store's produce department."

Founded in 2008, Gotham Greens opened its first rooftop greenhouse in Brooklyn last year and has two others on the drawing boards, including the one for Whole Foods. The company's website (http://gothamgreens.com/…) includes a slick video with footage from inside their current greenhouse.

Admirable as this effort is, a sympathetic observer might wonder if it has staying power. Farming, any kind of farming, is just plain hard; problems pop up faster than produce. The company's ladybugs may wipe out aphids but how will they deal with those pesky unexpected pests and diseases?

Their computers are programmed to provide perfect weather but what happens when a computer goes haywire? They may be able to manage a single greenhouse but can they juggle the complexities of managing several?

And while these urban farmers won't have some of the problems their rural counterparts have, they'll have others. How will they cope when rooftop rents take off? What will they do if they're faced with vandalism? Fires?

Even if they pull it off, they will feed only a fraction of New York City's eight million people, and even if their success encourages imitators, they'll only be providing produce. Pamplona, Spain, may run bulls through the streets, but most cities will have a hard time providing their own meat.

Still, this is a trend to be watched. The country may not be making any more land but America's cities have lots of empty rooftops.