High-Tech Plant Factories: Challenges and Way Forward

Abstract

Natural disasters in the Asia Pacific have substantially affected the agricultural sector with crop losses amounting to $28 billion USD. These incidences are expected to increase because of climate change. Plant factories, completely indoor environmentally controlled farming systems, have been touted as a solution to “climate-proof” agriculture. This policy brief highlights the challenges in this space that plant factory operators face and presents policy recommendations gleaned from best practices in Japan, China and Taiwan – the countries that have witnessed the greatest growth in plant factories in the past few decades.