Harvesting the future!

The focus is placed on the management of cultivated produce, particularly at the end of the growing season, exploring possible solutions for managing and preserving the surplus generated.

The research explores how the food produced at Losæter is managed throughout the growing season, with a particular focus on the surplus generated towards the end of the season. Rather than considering this surplus simply as leftover food, the research investigates its potential to become a resource that can support the community beyond the period in which it is cultivated.

A first mapping of the current food flow at Losæter reveals three main destinations. An estimate 10% of the production is distributed among volunteers, while around 70% is consumed during the community dinners. The remaining 20% represents a less defined part of the system, with no clear strategy for how this surplus is managed or where it ultimately goes. This gap in the existing food flow becomes a relevant point of investigation.

Looking more closely at this surplus reveals three main categories of produce: roots and root vegetables, dried herbs, and seasonal vegetables such as tomatoes and courgettes. Each requires different conditions for temperature, humidity, ventilation and storage time. The challenge is therefore not simply where to store the food, but how different preservation conditions could be integrated into Losæter’s existing system.

There is also a temporal gap in the current cycle. Community dinners mainly take place from May to September, while production decreases during winter. As a result, surplus is generated at the end of the growing season, while there can be insufficient produce when the dinners restart in May.

This creates an opportunity to explore preservation as a design intervention: extending the life of the surplus through winter so that it can re-enter the system the following season. The design challenge is therefore to investigate how storage, preservation practices and physical infrastructure could create a seasonal food loop connecting production, preservation and consumption across the year.

My name is Max Arroyo, a second-year Product Design student at ELISAVA in Barcelona. My main interest lies in product design and in exploring how objects can respond to their material, functional, and social contexts. I am interested in the relationship between form, ergonomics, materials, and user experience, and how these elements can come together in a meaningful object. Furniture, especially chairs, has been an important area of exploration, allowing me to investigate these relationships through structure, comfort, proportion, and character. Cinema and art history also influence my way of looking at objects and their role in everyday life.

I chose this project because I really enjoy building things and working directly with materials. I have always been particularly interested in furniture because it combines functionality, structure, and physical interaction with the user. I enjoy the process of starting with an idea and gradually developing it through sketches, materials, prototypes, and making.

This project gives me the opportunity to explore these interests while working with a real context and a practical need. Designing a storage structure for locally grown vegetables allows me to think about construction, materials, insulation, and usability, while also experimenting with how a simple structure can respond to the environmental conditions of winter in Oslo. For me, the project is an opportunity to combine my interest in furniture and making with a more contextual approach to product design.

This gigamapping explores the current management of cultivated produce at Losæter, focusing particularly on how food is distributed, consumed, stored, and managed throughout the growing season. The aim is to understand the existing infrastructure and identify opportunities for intervention that could improve the continuity of food production and community activities throughout the year.

The map begins by analysing the distribution of production based on the impressions gathered from several volunteers. Approximately 70% of the produce is allocated to community dinners, while 20% is stored and 10% is given away. This highlights the important relationship between agricultural production and the social activities taking place at Losæter. The community dinners are closely connected to the growing season, which mainly runs from May to September.

The second part of the map focuses on the existing infrastructure. Several elements are identified, including the bakehouse, compost site, containers, outdoor kitchen, and Stabburet. Each of these spaces has different functions and limitations. For example, the bakehouse works both as a sculpture and gathering space, but it is not a fully equipped kitchen. The outdoor kitchen also has limitations, particularly because it does not have a direct water connection. The containers currently mix gardening and kitchen equipment, creating potential issues related to hygiene, moisture, and cross-contamination. These observations suggest several possible interventions, such as reorganising the containers, improving the kitchen, or creating a dedicated cleaning station.

Particular attention is given to the Stabburet, an existing structure that is currently underused but has the potential to become a storage space. The map connects this opportunity to the seasonal cycle of production. During the winter, cultivation decreases significantly, breaking the circular relationship between growing and consumption. As a consequence, there is less food available when the community dinners start again in the following season.

The lower section of the map investigates the preservation potential of different crops. Roots such as potatoes, carrots, and beets can be stored for several months, while herbs can be preserved through drying. This suggests that part of the harvest could be intentionally preserved at the end of the season to bridge the gap between winter and the beginning of the next growing period.

Finally, the gigamapping identifies several possible directions for further development. These include creating systems for drying herbs, adapting the Stabburet for vegetable storage, redesigning the outdoor kitchen and cleaning facilities, and exploring ways of managing surplus production. Rather than treating storage as an isolated problem, the map positions it within a wider system connecting cultivation, infrastructure, preservation, community dinners, and seasonal cycles. This provides a basis for developing interventions that can strengthen the continuity and resilience of Losæter’s food system.

This gigamapping explores possible ways to improve the management of production at Losæter by responding to the challenges identified in the previous analysis. Rather than focusing only on the existing situation, the map proposes a series of interventions that could be implemented progressively, creating a long-term strategy for the development of the community and its food system.

The starting point is the current distribution of production. According to the information collected from volunteers, approximately 70% of the cultivated produce is used for community dinners, 20% is stored, and 10% is given away. The map identifies an additional possibility within this distribution: allocating part of the production to selling the surplus. This could create an alternative source of revenue for Losæter, which is particularly relevant given the previously identified difficulties with funding. A local farmers’ market could be developed where visitors can purchase fresh, locally grown produce, with the generated revenue potentially being reinvested into future community projects.

The main development is organised along a timeline divided into short-term and long-term interventions. The first opportunity is to make better use of the existing Stabburet. Instead of introducing a completely new structure, the proposal is to reuse and adapt the existing building as a seasonal storage space. Wooden panels containing natural insulation materials such as hay could be introduced to create a more stable internal microclimate. A grass-covered layer could also be incorporated into the roof, creating an additional thermal buffer while connecting the intervention with the surrounding landscape. The storage space would allow roots and other vegetables to be preserved throughout the winter.

Another short-term intervention focuses on the production flow itself. By analysing which crops are being overproduced, future cultivation could be adjusted accordingly. For example, producing fewer beets and increasing the amount of potatoes could reduce unnecessary surplus and, consequently, the amount of food that needs to be stored. This shifts the approach from simply finding better ways to store surplus towards preventing unnecessary surplus from being generated.

The map then proposes the development of a new kitchen as a longer-term intervention. The kitchen would respond to the current limitations of the existing facilities and provide greater capacity for community dinners. As participation increases, the existing outdoor kitchen could also be adapted into a dedicated cleaning station to accommodate a larger number of visitors.

Finally, the development of farmers’ market stands would extend Losæter’s relationship with the wider city. These stands could potentially be built through Dugnad events in collaboration with local organisations, such as carpentry schools. This would not only provide infrastructure for selling the produce but also create new connections between Losæter and Oslo.