An innovative startup is redefining the narrative in the centre of Ohio, where ghost towns of shopping malls have become synonymous with a downturn in retail business. The company is converting empty malls into urban farms powered by AI, turning neglected retail spaces into successful hubs for healthy food production.
This will address two issues simultaneously: the overcrowding of empty commercial spaces and the need for Midwest communities for more affordable, fresher produce. The concept emerged from the perspective of developers who realised that large indoor malls provided ideal environments for controlled-environment agriculture.
The company refurbished these buildings instead of destroying them, removing the horizontal arrangement in favour of a vertical one, filling them with hydroponic and vertical farming beds, and climate-controlled areas. What were once food courts and department stores are now rows of green leaves, herbs, and vine crops being cultivated under low-energy LED lighting…