The floating dairy farm in the Port of Rotterdam, a €4 million project opened in May 2019 to show how food can be produced sustainably without the traditional tie-up with land, has taken another turn. The owners had recently put the farm up for sale after a disagreement with the local environmental department, which said a newly fitted floor did not comply with regulations. The 28 Dutch MRI cows living on the structure had been taken off the farm and were to be sold, and milk production was to stop.
That plan has now been set aside. According to Peter van Wingerden, who founded the farm with Minke van Wingerden, the farm is not being sold. The cows have been moved to several farms around 20km away, production of milk and other dairy produce is continuing, and a vertical salad-growing enterprise occupies the basement of the floating structure.
Cows 20km away, milk brought to the quay
Van Wingerden said the farm has the lowest emissions possible thanks to its modern technology and system, but that the rubber floor is German and holds no certificate of compliance in the Netherlands. A stainless steel pipeline runs from the quay to the farm, and a regular dairy truck brings milk from the dairy twice a week, at roughly 1,500 litres per batch. The 20km distance between supplier and farm keeps transport time short, he added.
He described the arrangement as a departure from the vision the project started with, but said the operation is coping with the system.
Vertical growing below the waterline
The vertical farm is a fully controlled and automated growing space with three layers, conveyor belts and a combination of grow-room and warehouse technology. It sits below the waterline of the floating structure, where it is cooled by the water. Four types of crops are grown: micro-greens harvested every two weeks, herbs every three weeks, leafy greens every four weeks and edible flowers every four to five weeks. The output is turned into tea and pesto — alongside the farm's Parmigiano cheese — as well as herb-infused salts and herb-infused whey. Van Wingerden said the vertical unit is performing well.
Two years left in the port
The farm will have to leave the port in just over two years' time, according to Van Wingerden, because the entire area is to become residential.
During its time in the port the concept drew crowds: hundreds of thousands of visitors travelled from around the world to see the cows, and milk produced on the farm, and dairy products made from it, were sold to local consumers through vending machines at the site.