Growing vegetables in the cities is a good idea. Under the right circumstances, it is possible to reduce wastes and to eliminate pesticides and herbicides. At the same time, urban farms bring people together and nurture social cohesion.

1. Urban RootsGood. Sustainable. Urban.
CONCEPT

2. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Why growing vegetables in the city is a good idea?
Sustainability and efficiency
Vegetables are not packaged, stored
in refrigerators and transported.
There is no waste along the
distribution chain or unsold products
on the shelf.
Security and traceability
Vegetables are grown in controlled
environments, which significantly
reduce or eliminate pesticides and
herbicides.
Social impact and education
Urban farms bring people together
and nurture social cohesion. What's
more, they help educate children
about healthy eating and vegetables.

3. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Examples / Eagle Street Rooftop farm (New York, USA)
Where: rooftop
What: traditional with soil
Environment: outdoor
Site: rooftopfarms.org
Rooftop farms are a recent and
growing phenomenon. The most
significant experiences can be found
in the United States (where soil
prevails) and in the Far East (where
hydroponic systems seem more
popular).

4. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Examples / Yarok Bair (Tel Aviv, Israel)
Where: rooftop
What: hydroponics
Environment: outdoor
Website: yarok-bair.co.il
Yakor Bair is a rooftop farm built on
the sunny shed of a shopping center
(Dizengof Center) in the center of Tel
Aviv. It produces leafy vegetables
using a hydroponic system that do
not require the use of herbicides and
pesticides.
The company also performs an
intensive educational activity to
demonstrate the techniques of
cultivation without soil.

5. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Examples / Green City Acres (Kelowna, Canada)
Where: urban house
What: traditional with soil
Environment: outdoor
Website: greencityacres.com
Green City Acres is a single-family
agricultural enterprise in Kelowna,
Canada, which extends over an acre
(4,000 square meters). The founder,
Curtis Stone, has developed a
production model based on the
rotation of vegetables that grow
quickly and can be collected several
times during a season. He claims to
make over 80 thousand Canadian
dollars a year.

6. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Examples / Urban Organics (Minneapolis, USA)
Where: abandoned building
What: aquaponics
Environment: indoor
Site: urbanorganics.com
Urban Organics grows leafy
vegetables using the waste from a
fish farm. Indoor aquaponic cultures
require a major investment and are
economically viable only on a large
scale, but they have the advantage of
combining fish farming and
cultivation in an integrated and self-
sufficient cycle.

7. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Examples / GrowCycle (Devon, UK)
Where: abandoned building
What: mushrooms
Environment: indoor
Website: grocycle.com
Grow Cycle is an English social
company specializing in the
production of certain types of
mushrooms (pleurotis, shitake) on a
small scale. The cultivation bags are
made using coffee grounds, a
substrate that is recovered free from
the bars.

8. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Examples / City Hydro (Baltimore, USA)
Where: apartment
What: hydroponics
Environment: indoor
Site: city-hydro.com
City Hydro produces micro
vegetables (micro greens) in the
unused room of an apartment.
These are normal cutting vegetables
that are harvested immediately
before the plant becomes adult.
The chefs have been using them for
some time to enrich and decorate
dishes, but they are becoming more
and more popular among health-
conscious consumers like the
sprouts.

9. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Examples / Orti urbani (Rome, Italy)
Where: state-owned land
What: traditional with soil
Environment: outdoor
Website: zappataromana.net
The phenomenon of urban gardens
(in Rome 89 have been surveyed)
demonstrates the "need for nature" of
a part of the urban population, which
has a growing mistrust towards the
industrial production of food and
wants to return to have control of
what they eats.
Urban gardens have a strong social
impact and aggregate families and
seniors in the neighborhood.

10. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Urban Roots wants to produce vegetables and
mushrooms in the unused spaces of cities such as
rooftops, abandoned buildings and state-owned
areas.
The model is based on four cornerstones:
• modular production formats,
• focus on highly profitable crops,
• development of neighborhood ecosystems;
• integration with the regional short supply chain.

11. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Typical customer: restaurants
Harvest time: 14 days
Monthly production: 5 kg
Selling price: 20 € / kg
Microfarm:
10 racks (10 sqm)
Monthly production: 50 kg
Potential monthly turnover: € 1,000
Farm:
100 racks (150 square meters)
Monthly production: 500 kg
Potential monthly turnover: € 10,000
Modular Production Formats (1/2)
Module for the indoor hydroponic production of micro greens
It is possible to produce over 80
varieties of micro greens. The most
common are:
• borage
• chard
• red cabbage
• watercress
• coriander
• linen
• peas
• radish
• rocket salad
• mustard

12. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Modular Production Formats (2/2)
Module for indoor mushroom cultivation Module for cultivation of salad in soil on rooftopsForm for aeroponic cultivation
of aromatic herbs on rooftops

13. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Focus on highly profitable crops
The vegetables that are most suitable
for urban production have two
characteristics:
• they are harvested in less than 60
days;
• they are sold for more than 5 euros
per kilo or are sold in packs.
Micro Greens
Vegetables
Aromatic plants
Special plants for restaurants

14. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Neighborhood ecosystems (1/2)
A neighborhood ecosystem serves two types of consumers: high-spending families who prefer local
organic produce and high-end restaurants. The presence of many production points visible in a very
small area will help to create a positive storytelling and to fuel the popularity of the project.
In a neighborhood ecosystem there are different types of structures spread all over the territory that
also act as a touchpoint between Urban Roots and consumers. For example:
• an educational farm (at least 400 square meters) on the rooftop of an elementary / middle school to
involve the local population and feed the storytelling;
• an indoor farm (200 sqm) for the production of micro greens, aromatic plants and mushrooms;
• many outdoor farms on rooftops of large buildings (500 square meters);
• many micro outdoor farms (from 100sqm) and micro indoor farms (from 20sqm) in condominiums
that produce only one kind of vegetable (mushrooms, salad, aromatic plants);
• many delivery points (condominiums, schools and public buildings);
• a hub for the storage of goods and the organization of home deliveries.
Educational
Farm
Hub
Farm Farm
Delivery
Condo
Condo
Condo
Condo

15. © Nicola Mattina - 2017Urban Roots
Neighborhood ecosystems (2/2)
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5
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6 7
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2
3
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Gambero Rosso
Aquaponic culture
Weekly market
Elementary School Mater Carmeli
Educational farm
Cultivation in soil and hydroponics
Delivery point
School Margherita Hack
Hydroponics
Delivery point
Former hospital Forlanini
Hydroponics
Condominiums
Hydroponics
Public Offices
Hydroponics
Delivery point
Hub
Warehouse
5
6
7
Rome - Gianicolense neighborhood simulation
The Gianicolense neighborhood in Rome has a
population of around 140,000. The development of the
ecosystem could take place in four phases:
1. indoor farming in a warehouse or in a shop facing
the street with the production of micro greens,
aromatic plants and mushrooms;
2. installation of an educational farm on the rooftop of a
large building frequented by families (like an
elementary school);
3. installation of specialized farms on the rooftop of
large buildings;
4. integration of the local supply chain;
5. installation of micro-production farms on the
rooftops of apartment buildings.

16. Nicola Mattina
+39.338.4673186
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