USDA Vertical ag workshop report

On June 27 and 28, 2018 the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Energy co-hosted a workshop in Washington, D.C. The workshop engaged stakeholders, experts, and researchers from across the United States in interdisciplinary discussions on the potential for indoor agriculture (IA), in the context of sustainable urban ecosystems, to address global environmental challenges. Participants collaborated to identify Research and Development (R&D) challenges, opportunities, and needs relating to six major areas:

1. Community Services
2. Economics 5.
3. Ecosystem Services
4. Plant Breeding
5. Pest Management
6. Systems Engineering

Discussions relating to each of these six major themes are summarized in the body of this report.