This urban farm is devoted to creating the perfect ham and cheese sandwich. Based out of Amsterdam, the Sandwich Factory (De Tosti Fabriek in Dutch) is an experiment in creating sandwiches wholly from scratch. Conducted by a group of young artists, the project began in a small wheat field with a barn housing two pigs and two cows (the pairs were to avoid loneliness).
In pursuit of the 'tosti' -- a popular grilled sandwich in the Netherlands -- the urban farm creates every ingredient. The experiment pushed the boundaries of what urban farming can mean. The Sandwich Factory Founder Sascha Landshoff explains their next endeavor will be about finding "the balance between local food and good food but also produce it in an efficient way."
Key Themes Behind This Trend
- Urban Farming
- Entrepreneurs can capitalize on the trend of urban farming by creating similar farms in their cities to locally source ingredients for their food products.
- From Scratch Cooking
- There is an opportunity for food entrepreneurs to innovate by creating food products that are made completely from scratch, as seen in the Sandwich Factory's project.
- Hyper-local Food
- In response to growing consumer demand for locally sourced food, food businesses can create hyper-local food products like the Sandwich Factory's 'tosti' to appeal to this trend.
Where This Applies
- Food and Beverage
- The food and beverage industry can embed itself in the urban farming trend and create products that source ingredients from local urban farms.
- Agriculture
- Agriculture companies can incorporate urban farming as a new way to produce food in a more efficient and localized manner.
- Hospitality
- Hotels and restaurants can appeal to the hyper-local food trend by sourcing ingredients from urban farms in their area and creating unique dishes that showcase the quality of the ingredients.
