Leyte tests indoor vertical farming for disaster-hit communities

PALO, Leyte — The Leyte provincial government has launched a pilot project on indoor vertical farming technology aimed at improving food security in communities vulnerable to climate-related disasters.

Funded by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), the project, titled Small Indoor and Vertical Farming Technology to Address Food Security of Disaster-Prone Areas, has been undergoing testing at the Eastern Visayas Science Centrum in Palo.

The initiative uses hydroponics technology to grow lettuce indoors through a controlled environment equipped with air-conditioning systems and monitoring sensors.

The Office of the Provincial Agriculture (OPA) partnered with four irrigators' associations in implementing the project, which allows farmers to cultivate vegetables inside climate-controlled facilities.

Sensors installed in the facility monitor plant nutrition, lighting and temperature levels, enabling operators to immediately address deficiencies and optimize crop growth and harvest yields.

Leyte Governor Carlos Jericho Petilla said the technology shows promise but remains costly due to its dependence on air-conditioning systems and monitoring equipment.

"Everything now uses technology, including food production," Petilla said.

He urged the OPA to continue studying ways to make the technology economically viable while maintaining its potential to produce food and generate profit.

Petilla stressed that the government's role is to develop and validate the technology before eventually transferring it to the private sector for expansion and commercialization.

"Our role is to develop and test the technology. Once proven feasible, we can transfer it to the private sector, which can undertake expansion and commercialization," he said.

The governor also noted that shrinking agricultural land and increasing population growth may eventually make advanced farming technologies necessary despite current costs.

While indoor farming remains expensive and not yet economically feasible on a large scale, Petilla said it could become a critical component of food production as food prices rise and available farmland continues to decline.