Urban farms may one day form an integral part of the future megalopolis, but it's clear the concept still needs some refinement. The experiment in The Hague, a 1200 m2 greenhouse on top of the building De Schilde, proves to be a financial failure as its backers stand to lose money even after the farm shut down.
"Assuming that the disposal costs of the greenhouse and the aquariums will be very high and with the uncertainty about their current condition, the value of the goods is very low and possibly even negative," says a recently released bankruptcy report about the project in the Hague.
In July the project went bankrupt, after which the curator tried to continue the vegetable cultivation and the fish breeding. The activities of Urban Farmers were losing them money from the start, as costs were high and revenue too low.However, no interested parties were found that wanted to continue the current activities.
The Fonds Ruimte en Economie Den Haag, shareholder of one third of the building, will take over the greenhouse and try to minimize financial losses. No more (public) activities will take place at the urban greenhouse.
Read the bankruptcy report here (in Dutch).