Below Tokyo streets, a staffing agency is nurturing an underground and pesticide-free farm.

“The six rooms all have different crops, with one for flowers, another for herbs, a room that is a paddy field, while the others have different vegetables, including tomatoes and lettuce, as well as strawberries,” said Aiko Umehara, a spokeswoman for Pasona.

Apparently crops develop at a much faster pace compared to the outside world as computer-controlled artificial lighting and temperature enables climatic conditions to be created that are suitable for farming all year round.

The produce grown will not – yet – end up feeding Tokyo residents, as a provider of personnel, Pasona regards the plant as a “training facility” for young people who are interested in a job in agriculture, or those considering a career change.

“Before, people from Tokyo had to go a very long way to get to a farming area, but now we can provide them with training in a place that is accessible,” explains Ms Umehara.

Via The Scotsman and Asahi.