US-ENVIRONMENT-AGRICULTURE-FARMING

Lettuce grows under artificial lights on an automated growing rack at a Bowery farm in Nottingham, Maryland, on April 14, 2023. - Bowery Farming operates three commercial farms and is the largest vertical-farming company in the United States, manipulating light, humidity, temperature, and other conditions to grow produce. The systems are designed to produce a sanitary crop, so there is little risk of contamination from bacteria like E. Coli. These huge farms grow produce in nutrient-rich water, not the healthy soil that many people believe is at the heart of both deliciousness and nutrition and they can consume vast amounts of electricity. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP) (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)