Vertical Farming Has Found Its Fatal Flaw | WIRED

Vertical Farming Has Found Its Fatal Flaw | WIRED: IN%20JUNE%2C%20A%20vast%20new%20vertical%20farm%20opened%20on%20the%20outskirts%20of%20the%20English%20town%20Bedford.%20At%20a%20swanky%20opening%20event%2C%20members%20of%20the%20UK%20Parliament%A0heard%20that%20the%20gleaming%20facility%20would%20one%20day%20produce%2020%20million%20plants%20annually.%20It%20was%20the%20latest%20opening%20for%20Infarm%2C%20a%20European%20vertical%20farming%20company%20that%20had%20raised%20over%20%24600%20million%20in%20venture%20capital%20funding%2C%20promising%20a%20future%20where%20vegetables%20are%20grown%20in%20high-tech%20warehouses%20stacked%20with%20LED%20lights%20rather%20than%20in%20open%20fields%20or%20greenhouses.%0A%0ABut%20now%20the%20future%20of%20the%20Bedford%20farm%20looks%20less%20than%20gleaming.%20On%20November%2029%2C%A0Infarm%u2019s%20founders%A0emailed%20its%20workforce%20to%20announce%20they%20were%20laying%20off%20%u201Caround%20500%20employees%u201D%u2014more%20than%20half%20of%20the%20workforce.%20The%20email%20detailed%20the%20firm%u2019s%20plans%20to%20downsize%20its%20operations%20in%20the%20UK%2C%20France%2C%20and%20the%20Netherlands%2C%20and%20concentrate%20on%20countries%20where%20it%20had%20stronger%20links%20to%20retailers%20and%20a%20higher%20chance%20of%20eventually%20turning%20a%20profit.%20In%20September%2C%20Infarm%20had%20already%20laid%20off%2050%20employees%2C%20citing%20a%20need%20to%20reduce%20operating%20costs%20and%A0focus%20on%20profitability.%A0%0A%0A