Property development company Beladon BV, Holland, developed a floating dairy farm, which consists of a 900-ton concrete platform that will soon be a multi-level, high-tech home to 40 Meuse Rhine Issel cows.

This Floating Farm is a stable production farm that produces fresh dairy products dairy, but also boasts a high-tech living lab to research better food production, waste and water treatment processes.

The farm will feature a “cow garden” on the top floor of the building, boasting artificial leafy trees, lush bushes and sprawling ivy. A soft floor will mimic a natural environment and allow urine to soak through (to mitigate ammonia emissions). To allow the cows more freedom in their milking schedule, a team of robots will be on dairy duty, collecting an estimated 800 liters per day. The milk will then be processed on the floor below and sold locally. The team also enlisted a full-time farmer to determine cow-friendly materials, temperatures, feed and major elements of the design.