Summary
This narrative review examines emerging food production technologies that could substantially reduce or eliminate agricultural land requirements. The authors assess indoor vertical farming, industrial synthesis of foods from inorganic precursors, plant-based meat substitutes, fermentation-derived products, and cellular agriculture—considering both their current state of development and potential future scalability. The paper contextualises these innovations within broader food system dynamics to assess their plausible impact on land demand.
Regional applicability
The findings are relevant to UK food policy and land-use planning, particularly given the nation's constrained agricultural land and climate commitments. Technologies such as vertical farming and fermentation-based proteins could support domestic food production resilience, though adoption will depend on energy costs, regulatory frameworks, and consumer acceptance within the UK context.
Key measures
Land area footprint per unit of food output; technological feasibility and economic viability of alternative production systems; interactions between technology adoption and land use demand
Outcomes reported
The paper reviews the state of potentially disruptive food production technologies (vertical farming, cellular agriculture, fermentation-based foods, plant-based alternatives) and explores how they may interact with endogenous and exogenous food system factors to influence future land demand.
Topic tags
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