Hydroponic farming is gaining popularity in Egypt as the country faces water shortages and dwindling arable land. This soilless growing method offers many advantages, but some experts note that high initial costs and some limitations in crop production could hinder its widespread adoption.
Hydroponic farming, also known as soilless growing, involves growing plants using nutrient-rich water, outside of traditional soil, usually in controlled greenhouses. Soilless substrates such as sand, gravel, clay, moss or sponge provide support for plant roots. In some applications, fish tanks are integrated into the system to transfer nutrient-rich waste from animals to plants grown in the water.
A 2020 WWF report found that hydroponic farming uses only 10% of the resources needed for traditional farming, helping to reduce deforestation and pesticide use.
Plug’n’Grow is one of several agritech companies that have emerged in Egypt in recent years to promote this form of agriculture.
According to the UN, Egypt faces an annual water deficit and is expected to be classified as a water-scarce country by 2025 due to climate change and Ethiopia’s construction of a dam on a major tributary of the Nile, Egypt’s main source of fresh water.
At the same time, arable land, which constitutes less than 5% of Egypt, is decreasing due to urbanization, with the remainder deserted.
In addition to its eco-friendly benefits, hydroponics offers faster growth and higher yields. Egypt, one of the world’s largest wheat importers, is particularly vulnerable to disruptions in wheat supply chains, as evidenced by the impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on global shocks and the increased food insecurity.
However, some experts point out that hydroponics cannot be effectively used to grow strategic crops. Besides crop limitations, high initial costs also pose a significant challenge for soilless agriculture.
According to El Said, the start-up capital needed for a commercial hydroponic farm is around 3.5 million Egyptian pounds (over 100,000 US dollars). Despite these challenges, Plug’n’Grow has facilitated the creation of approximately 30 soilless farming projects, primarily in Egypt, as well as some in India and Saudi Arabia.
Ahmed Makady, a Plug’n’Grow customer, acknowledges the high upfront costs but highlights the cost-effectiveness of hydroponics. After his first hydroponics experience in Upper Egypt, he recently launched his second hydroponic farm in Al-Qalyubia.
He says: “It [hydroponics] is characterized by a rapid return on investment,” citing higher profits compared to traditional agriculture. Makady explains that while traditional agriculture produces three to four tonnes annually per feddan (unit of area), hydroponics can produce more than 120 tonnes per year on half a feddan.
Indoor farming, often called “controlled environment farming,” uses different methods. Vertical farming stacks crops from floor to ceiling, usually under artificial lights, with the plants growing in nutrient-enriched water. Other approaches include large-scale industrial greenhouses, indoor garden beds in huge warehouses, and the use of special robots to automate parts of the agricultural process.
In conclusion, hydroponic agriculture offers a promising solution to water scarcity and dwindling arable land in Egypt. Despite the challenges and limitations, this innovative cultivation method has many ecological and economic advantages. It will be interesting to follow its evolution in the coming years and see if it will be adopted on a large scale in this country.