Market Overview

The Global Indoor Farming Market is estimated to register a CAGR of 7.5% during the forecast period.

  • The scarcity of arable land is driving the global indoor farming market, majorly due to land degradation, land transformation for infrastructure and settlement, and various human and climatic factors.
  • North America accounted for the largest market share in 2018. The US is a major contributor to the share in the region, followed by Canada and Mexico.
  • The market for indoor farming is highly fragmented with the top players accounting for a minor share and the other small companies capturing the lion’s share in the market. Some of the notable players in the market are AeroFarms, Bright Farms Inc., Bowery Inc., FreshBox Farms, Metropolis Farms Inc., Garden Fresh Farms, Village Farms International Inc and others.


Scope of the Report

The market for indoor farming is experiencing a rapid growth owing to the limited land use, water efficiency and the benefits of controlled farming devoid of any climate changes. The advent of indoor farming has also spurred concern over the environmental impact of conventional farming practices, globally. The indoor farming market report is segmented on the basis of the current growing systems, facility type, and various crop types. The report also includes a segmentation analysis based on geography covering all the major countries across the world. The review period considered for the report is 2015-2018 and the forecast period is 2019-2024.

Key Market Trends

Decrease in Global Per Capita Arable Land

The concept of indoor farming has induced a paradigm shift in food production with the minimization of land use. Owing to the newly growing mechanisms in indoor farming such as hydroponics, aeroponics, aquaponics, soil-based and hybrid techniques, the market is estimated to grow rapidly during the forecast period. According to the World Bank database, the total arable land per capita has decreased from 0.199 hectares in 2010 to 0.192 hectares in 2016. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation has reported that land degradation is the major factor causing the reduction in global arable land. Singapore has set an example by optimizing its agricultural land use by means of vertical farming as a part of its Food Security Road Map, which is an outcome of the 43rd Committee of World Food Security held in 2016. The various advantages of greenhouse farming and vertical farming, such as limited land use, year-round cultivation, and longer shelf life, are further driving the overall indoor farming market globally and in the Asia-Pacific and African belts in particular.

North America - The Largest Market for Indoor Farming

North America accounted for the largest share in the global indoor farming industry in 2018. With the help of high-efficiency LED lights and enhanced indoor management practices, the US growers have been able to adopt large scale indoor farming and are expected to reduce energy lighting costs by 50%, hence reducing the carbon footprint of controlled environment agriculture. As per the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the average yield of conventional lettuce farming doubled by two folds, when cultivated through vertical farming. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation, drylands in Mexico occupy approximately 101.5 million hectares of land, thereby thrusting the need for indoor farming practices. Canada has also seen a positive growth trend, contributing significantly to the world exports of hydroponically grown tomatoes. The growth of hydroponics and aeroponics systems in the region is further driving the overall indoor farming market, majorly due to the increasing focus on adopting innovative and efficient technologies to improve the yields.

Competitive Landscape

The market for indoor farming is highly fragmented with the top players accounting for a minor share and the other small companies capturing the major share in the market. Some of the notable players in the market are AeroFarms, Bright Farms Inc., Bowery Inc., FreshBox Farms, Metropolis Farms Inc., Garden Fresh Farms, Village Farms International Inc and others. The most adopted strategies for these companies have been mergers and acquisitions as well as incurring investments for setting up of farms globally. For instance, AeroFarms, the aeroponics giant based in the US, included IKEA Group and Momofuku Group for investments worth USD 40 million for its global expansion in 2017.

Reasons to Purchase this report:

  • The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
  • Report customization as per the client’s requirements
  • 3 months of analyst support