Chile: University of Talca hosts third International Vertical Farming Seminar

The University of Talca, Chile, recently held the Third International Vertical Farming Seminar, bringing together leading experts and entrepreneurs. Professor Miguel Urrestarazu of the University of Almería, Spain, delivered keynote presentations, along with Cristian Sjögren and Eduardo Vásquez, founders of Chilean vertical farming companies AgroUrbana and Farmtastica, respectively.

As part of the event, the university officially inaugurated the Horticultural Vertical Farming Module of the Maule Region—a state-of-the-art prototype built within a repurposed 20-foot maritime container. This high-efficiency, low-cost system can support over 1,300 plants and was designed as a replicable model for urban and peri-urban food production.

Developed by an interdisciplinary team of agronomists, biosystems engineers, mechatronics experts, economists, and computer scientists, the module showcases how cutting-edge agricultural technologies can be adapted to diverse Chilean conditions. The project promotes sustainable food production through controlled environment agriculture tailored to local realities.

The Maule Regional Government, the University of Talca, the INES I+D project, and the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences jointly funded the initiative. Dr. Gilda Carrasco, a Professor at the Department of Horticulture, led it.

By spearheading this initiative, the University of Talca reaffirms Its role as a national leader in vertical and controlled-environment farming, offering scalable solutions in a country characterized by geographic extremes and increasing demand for resilient, decentralized food systems.