Shipping Container Aeroponic Farming Is Good (for) Business

Farm-to-table may have worked its way into our everyday vocabulary, but shipping container-to-table could be the way of the future — at least if one South Carolina restaurant's business model catches on. In December 2017, Dockery’s restaurant on Daniel Island, S.C., installed Vertical Roots, an aeroponic shipping container farm that sits at its backdoor, and the quality, consistency, and cost-savings of the lettuce it produces could usher in a new era in sustainable dining. But let’s backtrack. Aeroponic farming is nothing new. The concept of growing plants in a soil-less environment with minimal water was introduced by botonists in the 1920s. The science, however, took a backseat to the more popular hydroponic — or soil-free, nutrient-rich water farming — and didn’t really gain traction again until the 1980s. In fact, Disney’s Epcot Center "The Land" pavilion is often credited with heralding aeroponic farming’s arrival. The exhibit was promoted as the agriculture of t