Global Controlled Environment Agriculture Market Research Report: Forecast (2022-27)

Market Definition

Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) is an approach to creating a fully controlled environment for growing plants within a closed ecosystem. In a CEA facility, water, temperature, light, CO2, & anything plants require during their different growth phases are given artificially.

Eliminating the possibilities of pests, enhancing yield & sustainability, and reducing the overall operational costs are the prime reasons behind the mounting popularity of CEA worldwide, and entwined with existing farming methods, it holds immense potential to revolutionize the agricultural sector.

Market Insights

The Global Controlled Environment Agriculture Market is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of around 25.71% during the forecast period, i.e., 2022-27. The growth of the market is likely to be driven primarily by the rising food requirements and gradually reducing arable land worldwide, i.e., leading to the growing need for a controlled environment for agriculture. Various technological advancements & their adoption in the agricultural sector have led to emergence of more innovative farming solutions & equipment to attain healthy crops & higher output. 

The reducing arable & fertile land globally due to rapid urbanization and soil erosion is the most prominent issue in the agricultural sector. As a result, it has become highly challenging for farmers to sustain sufficient yields. With this, CEA methods have emerged globally, which can help them produce abundant food year-round, more efficiently, and with only a few resources.

CEA promises a more sustainable & profitable future of the agricultural sector by minimizing water consumption and the need for pesticides, land usage, & transportation. Hence, the mounting awareness about the significance & benefits of growing plants in a controlled environment, as issues like less available arable land & unfavorable climate are well-addressed, is boosting the Global Controlled Environment Agriculture Market.

Impact of Covid-19 on the Global Controlled Environment Agriculture Market

The onset of Covid-19 in 2020 led to an economic slowdown and severely impacted various sectors worldwide, including the agriculture sector. It was mainly due to disruptions in logistics services & supply chain, unavailability of raw materials, food supply shortage, & banned imports & exports, owing to nationwide lockdowns & movement restrictions.

The pandemic underscored the significance of locally & organically-grown food and modern agricultural practices like indoor farming. As a result, the accelerated requirements for healthy & year-round available food provided a notable boost to the Global Controlled Environment Agriculture Market amidst the crisis.

Many countries took several initiatives in deploying rooftop farms to improve food security & enhance agricultural output and meet the burgeoning consumer requirements worldwide, which, in turn, promoted the overall growth of the global market amidst the crisis.

Furthermore, massive investments by AgriTech start-ups in developing sustainable & innovative farming methods to reduce waste, boost yield, & eliminate the risks of diseases are projecting remunerative growth prospects for the Global Controlled Environment Agriculture Market in the coming years.

Market Segmentation

Based on Growing Method:

• Hydroponics
• Aeroponics
• Aquaponics

Amongst all growing mechanisms, Hydroponics is projected to continue dominating the Global Controlled Environment Agriculture Market during 2022-27, primarily due to the rising awareness among consumers regarding the adverse effects of pesticides on plants and the mounting requirements for enhanced flavors & sustainability of various fruits & vegetables.

Hydroponics involves growing plants in mineral solutions that are without soil. It is the most sustainable method that aids in eliminating the severe effects of soil-borne insects & pesticides on plants. The significantly less labor requirement, low installation costs, and reduced water usage associated with Hydroponics provide substantial return-on-investment.

Moreover, hydroponically grown plants generate a much greater yield than those grown in soil since there is proper control over the nutrients. Hence, these aspects contribute to the burgeoning demand for Hydroponics and project lucrative opportunities for the overall market growth through 2027.

On the other hand, the rising demand for Aquaponics is anticipated to contribute significantly to the market growth over the forecast years. Aquaponics is the combination of Hydroponics & aquaculture, which provides more oxygen in roots to help plants grow better and eliminates the need for harmful chemicals for cultivation. The wastes produced by fishes grown in one tank are nutrient-rich & directed to the plants growing in another tank, which creates a sustainable ecosystem. Lettuce, peppers, mint, & cucumbers, among others are a few plants grown extensively worldwide through Aquaponics.

By Components:

• Lighting
• Climate Control
• Nutrients

Here, lighting components held the largest share in the Global Controlled Environment Agriculture Market in the previous few years, and the same trend is likely during 2022-27. It attributes primarily to the dependence of CEA methods on artificial lighting that acts as a substitute for the sunlight and provides sufficient light intensities required for crop growth.

The intensity of these artificial lights in terms of luminous efficiency, spectrum range, & color temperature is easily adjustable as per the plant & its cultivation requirements. Moreover, the burgeoning need for LED systems to reduce operational costs & power consumption levels since they generate lower heat than conventional lights is another crucial aspect contributing to the overall market growth of lighting components.

On the other hand, sensors are also gaining significant traction in the global market, primarily due to the surging adoption of Artificial Intelligence, the Internet of Things, and Big Data analytics in the agricultural sector. These advanced technologies help understand different crop conditions using the data collected by sensors. Light sensors, nutrient sensors, & humidity sensors are used extensively for monitoring crop health and the external environment.

Regional Landscape

• North America
• Europe
• Asia-Pacific
• South America
• Middle East & Africa

Of all regions globally, Europe is projected to be the major contributor to the growth of the Controlled Environment Agriculture Market through 2027. It attributes primarily to the extensive presence & utilization of various farming methods, including intensive, conventional, & organic, across the region, coupled with increasing expenditure by AgriTech startups on expanding their product offerings & business presence.

Countries like the United Kingdom, Spain, the Netherlands, and Germany are the leading markets across Europe owing to favorable policies & subsidies for promoting the use of CEA methods & more environmentally conscious land management and, in turn, overcoming challenges like rapidly growing population & climate changes. Moreover, the rapidly expanding genetically modified crop technology, coupled with the mounting adoption of nanotechnology & robotics in farming that facilitates better food packaging & more efficient disease & pest control, are also driving the regional market.

On the other hand, Asia-Pacific also projects notable growth prospects for the Controlled Environment Agriculture Market during 2022-27. It owes to the rapidly declining arable land in countries like China & India, which has created an immense need for innovative & efficient farming practices like CEA. Besides, the growing water scarcity & food requirements for the swiftly rising population of India, China & Japan are other crucial aspects projected to fuel the market growth across Asia-Pacific in the coming years.

Market Dynamics:

Key Drivers

• Rapidly declining arable land and burgeoning food requirements
• Changing climatic conditions worldwide leading to increased water scarcity levels
• Surging need for locally-grown crops to reduce import dependency

Growth Challenges

• Limited variety of crops produced using CEA practices
• Significantly high initial setup costs

Key Questions Answered in the Market Research Report:

1. What are the overall statistics or estimates (Overview, Size- By Value, Forecast Numbers, Segmentation, Shares) of the Global Controlled Environment Agriculture Market?
2. What is the country-wise industry size, growth drivers, and challenges?
3. What are the key innovations, opportunities, current & future trends, and regulations in the Global Controlled Environment Agriculture Market?
4. Who are the key competitors, their key strengths & weaknesses, and how do they perform in the Global Controlled Environment Agriculture Market based on a competitive benchmarking matrix?
5. What are the key results derived from surveys conducted during the Global Controlled Environment Agriculture Market study?

Frequently Asked Questions