33 metres below ground, under the tube station at Clapham North lies a 2.5 acre farm created to reduce the carbon footprint in the capital.

Entrepreneurs Richard Ballard and Steven Dring have established this unlikely setting for a working farm through their venture Zero Carbon Food. The Growing Underground farm aims to produce sustainable fresh micro greens and salad leaves within the vacant tunnels beneath the Northern Line which were originally built as bomb shelters in WWII. Five successful test ‘growing beds’ have already been established with nine microgreens and three herbs, including rocket, peashoots and Thai basil. Ballard and Dring aim to undertake large-scale production by September 2014.

The pesticide-free crops are grown using LED lights and hydroponic systems, which means that they use 70% less water than traditional open-field farming methods, and are also unaffected by changes in weather. Any additional heat required is able to be diverted from the nearby Northern Line. As Zero Carbon Food intends for produce to never travel further than the M25, once harvested, leaves can be delivered to local restaurants and wholesalers within 4 hours of being picked thereby increasing shelf life.

Zero Carbon Food was created with the simple desire to provide an ever-growing London population with good produce with excellent provenance, but also illustrates the effectiveness of repurposing the city’s dormant spaces.