Deep-mine farms grow lettuce and pak choi in North Yorkshire experiment

Researchers at a science facility inside Boulby mine are testing vertical farms over 1,000 m underground, aiming to prove that disused mines can produce fresh vegetables year-round.

Inside the Boulby underground laboratory in North Yorkshire, a team of about two dozen scientists and technicians is running a 12-month trial to grow leafy greens more than a kilometre below the surface. Led by Jacob Nickles of the University of Sheffield and supported by the socially-focused producer Farm Urban, the experiment uses vertical towers to cultivate pak choi and lettuce within the mine’s cool, low-radiation environment.

Early harvests have produced lettuce heads larger than a human head, though some crops have underperformed, a problem the team attributes to engineering rather than biology. The venture aims to demonstrate that repurposing disused mines can lower the energy footprint of controlled-environment agriculture, contribute to the target of doubling global food production by 2050, and generate employment in economically challenged areas.

Government science minister Patrick Vallance praised the concept for its potential to boost food security while reducing reliance on volatile weather. The facility, part of the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s Boulby Underground Laboratory, also hosts cutting-edge physics research and plans expansion to increase underground space by 2030.