Vertical farming of rare produce takes root in UAE

After several years of experimenting with small numbers of saffron bulbs, Veggitech’s team grew around 150,000 saffron alfalfa bulbs from the Netherlands on a vertical farm in Zubair. The company’s farm in Sharjah also has an extensive fig plantation and grows tomatoes, peppers and leafy greens for mass consumption.

In addition to saffron and figs, at least 75 farms in Abu Dhabi have been encouraged to switch to organic farming and are successfully growing tomatoes, cabbages and cucumbers, among others.

It doesn’t stop there. Using new aquaculture methods, marine farmers in the emirate have successfully bred and farmed Atlantic salmon, oysters, sea bass and sea bream for domestic consumption. Fish farms in Dubai produce 10,000-15,000 kg of salmon per month.

Recently, Bustanica, the world’s largest hydroponic farm of Emirates Flight Catering, has started selling its produce to supermarket retailers such as Geant. The plant can produce more than 1,000,000 kg of high-quality leafy greens per year.

Veggitech officials say it’s a very profitable business. The Red Gold farm is the first of its kind in the UAE and the largest in the MENA region, covering 165 square meters, equivalent to 3.5 hectares of land. Depending on grade and quality, a kilogram of saffron can be sold for anywhere from Dh3,200 to Dh11,386.

Vertical farming technology with indoor temperature control solutions produces healthier crops without the need for fertilizers and pesticides.

“In our first harvest, each bulb will produce three to four strands of saffron, but next year we expect to produce 12-15 strands, and that will only continue to grow over time,” added Veggitech lead Dr Ardalan Ghilavizadeh of the project said. Saffron Project. Once the flowers appear, the bulbs are transferred to the greenhouse for the next stage of the crop cycle.

“Our first saffron vertical farm currently has about 5 tons of saffron bulbs, from which we expect to produce 1000 kg of saffron. From this we will get 3 kg of the best Super Negin in the world. It has been a fascinating time indeed, too A big step for the UAE,” explains Dr Ghilavizadeh.

According to a joint report published by Sharjah Research Technology and Innovation Park and Deep Knowledge Analytics on 24 November, the UAE’s agtech sector comprises 36 percent indoor farming, 15.9 percent precision farming and 15 percent agricultural inputs.

The industry is likely to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.5 percent between 2022 and 2027, the report said.

There are currently 66 UAE companies working on sustainability issues, and UAE-based companies received over $50 billion in investment in 2021, accounting for approximately 1.1% of global agtech investment capital. Additionally, approximately 65 percent of the nation’s agtech companies are micro-enterprises with fewer than 50 employees.

Ramie Murray, CEO of Dibba Bay Oysters Farm, told Gulf News: “We are growing and growing. We are currently producing 300,000-400,000 oysters a month. This is phenomenal growth for us. Only two years ago we were It produces 30,000-40,000 pieces per month. By early next year, we will be producing 600,000 pieces per month.”

“Currently, half of our production is consumed locally. We export the rest to countries such as Hong Kong, Malaysia, Maldives, Seychelles and Mauritius.”

The company aims to export to more Asian markets in the short term. It makes oysters widely available in major supermarkets across the UAE and in over 100 hotels and restaurants across the country. “We have three farm-to-table outlets in the UAE – two in Dubai and one in Dibba – where people can come and enjoy oysters straight from the growers.”

In general, oyster farming is a sustainable form of aquaculture that has no negative impact on the environment – ​​oysters filter 200 liters of seawater per day, improving water quality.