Stacked Greenhouses

Problem: The UK imports around 80% of its fruit and 50% of its vegetables, leaving it vulnerable to global supply disruptions. Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA), particularly greenhouses, supports domestic production but faces growing pressure from energy costs. Without innovation to improve energy efficiency and profitability, much of the UK’s greenhouse infrastructure risks becoming unviable. The core challenge is how to support growers in increasing productivity while reducing reliance on carbon-intensive heating systems. Aims: We propose a stacked CEA system: a vertical farm beneath a commercial-scale greenhouse. This closed-loop model reduces emissions and energy costs while enabling diverse, year-round crop production. Industry engagement: We are co-developing the system with growers (British Tomato Grower Association) and engineers (Cambridge HOK, Priva and Vertically Urban) to ensure operational practicality and scalability. During initial discussions with Priva, they said that this idea “could be the next big disrupting technology that positively impacts the sector”, clearly demonstrating an eagerness of industry to test the feasibility of this idea.