Scaling Up or Selling Out? A Critical Appraisal of Current Developments in Vertical Farming by Austin Miller A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Political Economy Carleton University Ottawa, Ontario © 2011, Austin Miller Library and Archives Bibliotheque et Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du 1+1 Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-94663-3 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-94663-3 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non­ L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par I'lnternet, preter, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans le loan, distrbute and sell theses monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non­ support microforme, papier, electronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. 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Canada Abstract This thesis engages with material on the forefront of the social and natural sciences as it appraises the practice of vertical farming (VF). Proponents suggest VF can help ease the burden of converging food, ecological, and energy crises. The research uncovers counter-hegemonic discourses invoked by VF proponents, and analyses how actors navigate the dominant economy. Research focuses on case studies through material and discursive lenses. The results fill a niche in literature relating to alternative agriculture models, as they focus on a proposed solution to, rather than problems with agribusiness. This thesis contends with practical challenges to many normative assumptions, and exposes difficult questions which involve setting parameters, arbitrating compromise, and striking a balance between effective political action and pacification. This research elucidates intersections of power, production and resistance as they relate to important issues of the day. As such, the conclusions are both stimulating and relevant. Acknowledgements This thesis would simply not have been possible without the help of a number of wise and generous individuals. First, thank you to Carleton University and the Institute of Political Economy for accepting my application and providing me with the resources to complete this research. I should extend a special thanks to Donna Coghill, for dealing so patiently with all my questions. Of course, a refined argument in a polished document is the product of numerous conversations and typed iterations between myself and my thesis committee. Thank you to my supervisor, Patricia Ballamingie, and my committee member, Peter Andree, for their patience, sage advice, and excellent analysis over the course of each draft. I also appreciate greatly the folks at The Plant, Growing Power, and Sweet Water Organics for participating in the research and being such amazing guides and hosts. Also, much appreciation goes to James Meades for sharing his energy during the long editing process. Finally, a big thanks to Carleton University Graduate Students’ Association for keeping me employed and providing the space and services I needed to get the job done. Preface This project began some years ago, out of an interesting confluence of ideas and events. I had just been accepted into the Master of Arts program at the Institute of Political Economy, at Carleton University. I had also just begun to manage the design and construction of a sustainable student housing compound, located close to campus. As such, my general responsibilities converged around researching and implementing alternative (critical and sustainable) forms of social organization and economic development. However, a spark of inspiration came to me one afternoon, while practicing yoga on my lunch break at the building site. Enjoying the outdoors (despite my immediate urban construction surroundings), my mind flickered between thoughts of how to design the compound and what to research for my thesis. I acknowledged these questions, but refocused my mind on the present moment, reflecting on my yoga practice. Farhi (1999) succinctly describes the thought as: the premise that suffering arises from a mistaken perception that we are separate. Whether we feel separate from human beings, or separate from the trees we walk under, the rocks we walk upon, or the creatures that walk, fly, swim and crawl around us, yoga insists that this separation is an illusion.1 I then realized I had one answer to both previous questions: I would focus my design and research on mitigating the widespread suffering associated with the status quo, by reconnecting people with each other through and with nature. After pondering and discussing this notion a bit further, it soon became apparent that in real terms, separation means capitalist alienation, and that the most perverted (and perhaps basic) form of disconnect of people from each other and nature stems from industrial agriculture. Theories of social nature iv soon came to articulate the informal sentiments I felt that sunny afternoon. Conversing with other so-called ‘foodies,’ I felt unconvinced by what seemed to represent New Age ‘back-to-the-land’ fantasies of small-scale production. While I espoused the same values, I recognized the desperate need to scale up production in cities where, despite some rural retirement plans, the vast majority of humanity will live now and into the future. This longing for a possible middle ground led me to vertical farming as a site of study. I felt that it was worth trying to implement, but feared relying too much on technology and capital. Theories of co-optation and counter-hegemony soon came to articulate this personal dilemma. This thesis is therefore part of a dialectical process through which the intellectual has been informed by the material and spiritual, while engaging with emergent properties of the current political economy. Following the rich tradition of auto-ethnography, my intent is to ground the document in lived experience while making the material more accessible to those who may benefit from it. I hope you find it a useful and enjoyable read. Salutations, Austin Miller. Table of Contents Abstract..............................................................................................................................ii Acknowledgements...........................................................................................................iii Preface...............................................................................................................................iv Table of Contents.............................................................................................................vi List of Illustrations.........................................................................................................viii List of Appendices............................................................................................................ ix Chapter 1: Substantive Context....................................................................................... 1 1.1 Topic...................................................................................................................................... 3 1.2 Literature Review................................................................................................................ 12 1.3 Research Questions............................................................................................................. 19 Chapter 2: Conceptual Framework..............................................................................21 2.1 Political Economy: Technology and Co-optation............................................................22 2.2 Political Ecology: Scale and Social Nature...................................................................... 34 Chapter 3: Methodological Framework........................................................................42 3.1 Critical/Dialectical Methodology...................................................................................... 43 3.2 Methodological T ensions................................................................................................... 46 3.3 Research Models: Phronesis, Action Research