Short on space, Hong Kong sprouts sky gardens
In this picture taken on March 24, 2021, a visitor looks at the Sky Garden, a 1,200 square-metre rooftop garden on top of the Metropole Plaza shopping mall in Hong Kong.
Invisible to those below, sprawling gardens of rhubarb, carrots and radishes have been flourishing on top of Hong Kong skyscrapers.
Since 2015, around 60 such farms have sprouted up in the space-starved city of Hong Kong. Located on abandoned helipads, mall rooftops and public terraces, these are a part of an initiativeby a local social enterprise called 'Rooftop Republic'.
In a city that practices what he calls the "instant-noodle city lifestyle", Cofounder Andrew Tsui sees these farms as a way to familiarising people with methods of producing sustainable food.
Tsui believes that the industrialisation of the food industry has damaged Hong Kongers' relationship with food. The organisation thus aims to enlighten people about food through the use of underused spaces in the city.
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Government statistics indicate Hong Kong discards around 3,500 tonnes of food waste daily, roughly the weight of 250 double-decker buses, the majority of which is not even recycled.
90 per cent of the food consumed by the city's 7.5 million residents is imported, mainly from mainland China. However, despite Hong Kong's high population density, there is still considerable room for growing food locally.
The amount of farmable land is only about seven million square meters, according to Tsui. Nonetheless, there is over six million square metres of untapped space on the city's rooftops, which holds the potential to double the supply of fertile land.
He adds that the challenge is to incorporate urban farming into daily life and make it a lifestyle, and for that to happen, accessibility is the first step."
Rooftop Republic works closely with architects, developers, and property managers to integrate urban farms into office building blueprints.
Some major companies have signed up for the initiative. Among the biggest names are the Bank of America and Singaporean banking giant DBS, which have partnered with Rooftop Republic to run a series of workshops for professionals and beginners.
According to the group's senior director of property management, Eric Lau, while Hong Kong mostly focuses on commercial property values, their organisation aims to promote the concept of sustainability.
Currently, Tsui observes that there is little interest among young Hong Kongers but there is a great opportunity to generate enthusiasm when it comes to the environment and climate change.
The ability to grow your own food is a necessary new skill that we all must learn to ensure a regenerative and green environment, he said.
(With inputs from agencies)tre