'Garden Pod' off Siesta Key created to address food insecurity, lower costs

SIESTA KEY, Fla. - A new feature off Siesta Key's coast called a "Garden Pod" was created to not only address food insecurities in the Tampa Bay area and around the world, but it will also lower costs. 

The Garden Pod uses sunlight and the power of water to grow food. Todd Kelperis, the creator of the Garden Pod, said he hopes it will be the wave of the future. 

"The biggest costs in agriculture is power and water," Kelpris said. "If you can eliminate the biggest cost in agriculture, you can revolutionize the agriculture industry."

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A solar-powered prototype left Sarasota Bay on Wednesday, heading for Siesta Key. It uses desalinated water from the Gulf of Mexico to help grow plants. 

"This has technology in it that will grow things better, with higher quality, in shorter duration time," Kelperis explained. 

He said it’s a breakthrough when it comes to feeding the need in the community too. It lowers costs by reducing labor expenses and by using renewable energy.

"If I can take clean water, put it on a plant in the ocean, where temperatures are great, I can save a lot of cost. It can revolutionize the entire industry and help a lot of people," Kelperis said. 

He and his team hopes this will change and feed the planet. 

"What if we have eco-sustainable homes with the help of one of these pods?" Kelperis said. "These pods show validity of our model. It shows the gardens work to support the environment, the people and a better planet". 

Later this year, the team hopes to add technology that uses audible signals to simulate natural aquatic environmental sounds that will help support fish habitats. 

They worked with the Tampa Bay Innovation Center to make this a reality.