The global production of plant-based foods is a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. Indoor vertical farms (IVFs) have emerged as a promising approach to urban agriculture. However, their environmental performance is not well understood, particularly in relation to operational choices where global warming potentials (GWP) can vary between 0.01–54 kg CO₂e/kg⁻¹ of leafy greens produced. We conducted a life cycle assessment (LCA) of a building-integrated IVF for microgreen production to analyse a range of operational conditions for cultivation: air temperature, CO₂ concentration, and photoperiod. We analyzed a dynamic LCA inventory that combined a process-based plant growth model and a mass balance model for air and heat exchange between the chamber and the outside. Results showed that the GWP of IVFs can vary greatly depending on the operation conditions set, ranging from 3.3 to 63.3 kg CO₂e/kg⁻¹. The optimal conditions for minimizing GWP were identified as 20 ℃, maximum CO₂ concentration in the chamber, and maximum photoperiod, which led to a minimum GWP of 3.3 kg CO₂e/kg⁻¹ and maximum production of 290.5 kg fresh weight week^-1. Intensification of production thus led to lower impacts because the marginal increase in yield due to increased resource use was larger than the marginal increase in impact. Therefore, adjusting growing conditions is essential for the sustainability of urban food production.

The literature on agricultural technology (ag-tech) for urban agriculture (UA) offers many narratives about its benefits in addressing the challenges of sustainability and food security for urban environments. In this paper, we present a literature review for the period 2015–2022 of research carried out on currently active UA installations. We aim to systematise the most common narratives regarding the benefits of controlled environment agriculture (CEA) and soil-less growing systems in urban buildings and assess the existence of peer-reviewed data supporting these claims. The review was based on 28 articles that provided detailed information about 68 active UA installations depicting multiple types of ag-tech and regions. The results show that most research conducted for commercial UA-CEA installations was carried out in North America. Standalone CEA greenhouses or plant factories as commercial producers for urban areas were mostly found in Asia and Europe. The most often cited benefits are that the integration of multiple CEA technologies with energy systems or building climate systems enables the transfer of heat through thermal airflow exchange and CO₂ fertilisation to improve commercial production. However, this review shows that the data quantifying the benefits are limited and, therefore, the exact environmental effects of CEA are undetermined.

Indoor Vertical Farms (IVF) can contribute to urban circular food systems by reducing food waste and increasing resource use efficiency. They are also known for high energy consumption but could potentially be improved by integration with buildings. Here, we aim to quantify the environmental performance of a prospective building-integrated urban farm. We performed a Life Cycle Assessment for a unit installed in a university campus in Portugal, producing broccoli microgreens for salads. This technology integrates IVF, product processing and Internet of Things with unused space. Its environmental performance was analyzed using two supply scenarios and a renewable energy variation was applied to each scenario. Results show that the IVF system produces 7.5 kg of microgreens daily with a global warming potential of 18.6 kg CO₂e/kg in the case of supply direct on campus, or 22.2 kg CO₂e/kg in the case of supply off campus to retailers within a 10-km radius. Consistently in both scenarios, electricity contributed the highest emission, with 10.03 kg CO₂e/kg, followed by seeds, with 4.04 kg CO₂e/kg. The additional use of photovoltaic electricity yields a reduction of emissions by 32%; an improvement of approximately 16% was found for most environmental categories. A shortened supply chain, coupled with renewable electricity production, can contribute significantly to the environmental performance of building-integrated IVF.

An experimental urban-agriculture (UA) project was started in 2018 with multiple stakeholders in Lisbon, Portugal. The project involved setting up an indoor vertical farm in a university building. Early on, there were promising outcomes across the environmental, social and economic pillars of sustainability. However, the project was closed in 2022. Here, we carried out an analysis of the sustainability-governance pillar that aimed to provide some understanding of why the project did not proceed. We used role-constellation mapping of the 27 stakeholder groups engaged. We also carried out force-field analysis of the stakeholders and their desirable or problematic interactions across seven factors of governance. Results showed that although the parties engaged represented various project aims and dimensions, there was a failure to establish a network of stakeholders consistently engaged in governance practices at the outset and in an ongoing way. Inadequate project culture and a lack of critical governance factors led to a failure in conveying a strong sense of ownership of the project to the stakeholders. This case study raises the need for future UA projects to invest in good governance structures, the promotion of dialogue between the parties, and a shared culture, in order to become sustainable.

Urban agriculture (UA) is emerging as a promising strategy for sustainable food production in response to growing environmental pressures. Indoor vertical farming (IVF), combining Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) with Building-Integrated Agriculture (BIA), enables efficient resource use and year-round crop cultivation in urban settings. This study assesses the environmental performance of a prospective IVF system located on a university campus in Portugal, focusing on the integration of photovoltaic (PV) energy as an alternative to the conventional electricity grid (GM). A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was conducted using the Environmental Footprint (EF) method and the LANCA model to account for land use and soil-related impacts. The PV-powered system demonstrated lower overall environmental impacts, with notable reductions across most impact categories, but important trade-offs with decreased soil quality. The LANCA results highlighted cultivation and packaging as key contributors to land occupation and transformation, while also revealing trade-offs associated with upstream material demands. By combining EF and LANCA, the study shows that IVF systems that are not soil-based can still impact soil quality indirectly. These findings contribute to a broader understanding of sustainability in urban farming and underscore the importance of multi-dimensional assessment approaches when evaluating emerging agricultural technologies.