This Italian-designed beauty takes a piece of conventional agricultural machinery and turns it into an envy-worthy work of automotive design. You may not see it on the race track anytime soon, but something about its appearance makes you want to take this wonder for a spin even at slow speeds.

“It is a tractor with brand new styling that expresses the strength and durability of Zetor machines in a way that also communicates emotion and passion,” said Pininfarina’s design chief Fabio Filippini. Pininfarina launched this tractor with a sloped front end and other aesthetic features but also a durable body and easily-removeable side panels for protection but also regular maintenance access. Cooling vents add to the look but also keep the heavy machine from overheating. Dark components are more functional while red highlights areas of design.

“Pininfarina’s new design shifts Zetor to a more intense, emotional experience that is highly sensual, dynamic and modern,” said Zetor in a statement. “The idea behind the Zetor by Pininfarina concept is the embodiment of a perfect combination of power, dynamics and emotion while preserving the use and practicality of field machinery, which tractors certainly are.”

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Location-independent, portable and scalable, this novel approach to agriculture applies principles already used in cloud computing and other high-tech services to the growing of everyday essentials, effectively tucking a 1-acre farm into a 350-square-foot box.

Each Freight Farm container has space for 4,500 plants, stacked and ready to grow: “Built entirely inside a 40’ x 8’ x 9.5’ shipping container, freight farms are outfitted with all the tools needed for high-volume, consistent harvests. With innovative climate technology and growing equipment, the perfect environment is achievable 365 days a year, regardless of geographic location.” The units can also be moved to market to sell directly, carried easily (just like any cargo container) on the back of a standard truck.

Constant monitoring of temperature, CO2, pH and other essential data means instant feedback and easy remote adjustments as well, while a built-in 4G hotspot lets these farms stay connected from anywhere in the world. Optimized LEDs allow for maximum growth and minimum energy. Modular and stackable, farmers can order more units delivered on demand and expand their operations as needed.

Someone new to the game can also start out small: “Designed to be easily implemented and operated, The LGM is a complete farming system delivered ready-to-use for immediate crop production. The modular and stackable design makes it easy to integrate into any operation and add farms to scale quickly. Every LGM comes equipped to handle every aspect of commercial production, from seed to harvest.”

Cargo containers for non-standard purposes are nothing new, but this goes more than a step beyond turning shipping containers into homes or offices. More on the ecosystem: “Vertical hydroponic system for mature plant growth.  The vertical towers create a high density growing environment with four rows providing space for over 4,500 plants.  Drip irrigation, nutrient delivery system and spectrum focused lighting supports climate conditions to maximize plant development.”

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There are countless places on Earth where we have so far been unable to create farmland due to inhospitable conditions. Deserts, specifically, cover a large area of the planet but due to their lack of moisture, temperature extremes and difficult to cultivate sand they are basically the opposite of an ideal place to grow crops. But a conceptual project from industrial design students Ruud van Reijmersdal, Tom Slijkhuis, Joppe Spaans and Jeroen Rood proposes the use of nutritious gel to give plants everything they need to grow strong, healthy, and quickly in even the most unwelcoming of environments.

The gel would insulate the plants from temperature extremes while supplying every last thing they need to thrive. The gel is inexpensive enough that it could be used for mass food production just about anywhere for cost-effective farming – even on the moon. Because the plants are completely isolated and protected from their environment, they would have no problem growing in a low-gravity, cold, oxygen-free place. The Plant-Growing Jelly concept is everything that a great speculative project should be: just far-fetched enough to be revolutionary and just realistic enough to seem possible…one day.

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