Two of Arkansas's biggest problems, struggling farmers and food insecurity, could be addressed by a farming technique that was shown off in Sheridan on Tuesday. This year, we have spoken with several farmers who said they could be forced to close their family farms, and Arkansas often ranks near the top of the list for food insecurity in America.
These are important issues, according to Eudora Mayor Tomeka Butler. "We're in the Mississippi-Arkansas Delta," Butler said. "The biggest industry is farming. It's agriculture."
On Tuesday, Butler made the two-hour trip up from the southeast part of the state to Sheridan to watch a demonstration of a technology that she said could totally change her city. "With this particular technology," Butler said. "You can take one acre of traditional row crop farming and put it in your living room."
The technology she mentioned is known as "vertical farming," and the company that showed it off is Sheridan-based 180 Pipe. 180 Pipe's Vice President Luigi Campos said the system saves space and, since the plants don't touch each other, it also saves time.
Read more at THV11
