Helping NASA Grow Food in Space: A Conversation with Federico Marques

Key Insights & Timestamps:

• [00:00]: Podcast begins
• [01:12]: Hydroponic farming, nutrition & the genesis of Moonflower Farms
• [06:30]: Technology & food innovations in hydroponic farming
• [10:44]: Moonflower Farms partnership with NASA to grow food in space
• [16:56]: Tackling farming shortages in the US by educating students on hydroponics
• [21:28]: Challenges in hydroponics & innovations to simplify
• [25:22]: How your startup can work with NASA & SATOP in Houston
• [27:28]: Houston’s hyper-local grow network, the first of its kind

Guest Spotlight:
Federico Marques, Founder & CEO of Moonflower Farms
Federico Marques is a sustainable technology thought leader focusing on nutrition, climate impact and hydroponics. While working with NASA at the Stennis Space Center, Federico learned about the importance of hydroponics in bioregenerative life support systems and brought this research and experience to Moonflower Farms. In 2016, Federico founded Moonflower Farms and created the first indoor vertical farm in Texas. Since its founding, Moonflower Farms has focused on innovating farming in the Houston area and developing the technology to allow flowers to grow in space by 2030.

Key Takeaways:

• Inspired by his wife’s diagnosis with celiac disease, Federico has been incredibly interested and educated in the topic of nutrition, especially nutrition security. The majority of food grown in the US is made for transportation and distribution, with longer shelf lives and firmer fruits and vegetables. The downside of this, Federico explains, is that many US citizens are losing out on valuable nutrition from their food, because the length and time of transportation and the damage to fruits and vegetables take a toll on the quality of the food they’re eating.
• Hydroponic farming not only positively impacts nutrition security, but also food supply, sustainability, climate impact and water availability. The majority of individuals in the US live in highly populated cities, nowhere near the farms where their food is grown. With hydroponic farming, less space is used, so populated areas can support these farms. Less water is used to support hydroponic farming systems, less waste is created and less pesticides are used, leading to more people being able to enjoy more nutritious foods through environmentally safe means.
• While Moonflower Farms gets its name from its partnership with NASA to grow flowers on the moon, the most recent and upcoming projects for Moonflower exist right here on Earth. In the United States, farming is becoming increasingly difficult, especially as there is a shortage of younger farmers in the workforce. Moonflower is partnering with universities and schools across Texas to bring hydroponic systems into classrooms to teach kids and young adults about the potential this technology has to change the world and the sustainability of learning to grow your own food.