Today was another great day of exploring Iceland! We did many great things today, like going to the Gullfoss waterfall and a geyser, but what stood out to me the most was our visit to the Friðheimar greenhouse. I have been cooking for nearly my entire life and have naturally also been interested in farming and agriculture. I have seen how difficult it is to reliably grow produce year-round in milder climates and how that can affect both farmers and restaurants.
Seeing inside of the greenhouse today was amazing and it was super interesting to learn more about how they keep their greenhouses running efficiently especially in the harsh climate. They grow almost exclusively tomatoes at Friðheimar and are responsible for supplying about 40% of Iceland’s tomatoes. It is basically impossible to grow tomatoes in Iceland at any point in the year but with the gift of greenhouses and the ability to harness Iceland’s geothermal energy they are able to grow tomatoes year-round while still being very energy efficient. The geothermal heat is vital for the greenhouses operation and they had a very sophisticated network of pipes carrying this hot water throughout the greenhouse.
At Friðheimar they use a specialized computer system that helps control various aspects of the climate inside the greenhouse. They use it to control the lighting, humidity, temperature, and carbon dioxide levels. This system is very important to the day to day operations because it streamlines all of the individual steps needed to keep everything running perfectly. I hope that we are able to see more of this greenhouse technology implemented at both smaller and larger scales all around the world to help further reduce our environmental impact and produce more quality food for all of us.
Swanson School of Engineering 