South Africa: Dutch delegation visits Hydroclimaponics
Agricultural Counsellor together with owners Jacques van Buuren and Theo Cilliers
The hydroclimaponics system
The name ‘hydroclimaponics’ is given to the licensed product Eden green has developed. The system is being tested in harsh conditions to ensure that the system will work in every climate.
The basic system is made of plastic pipes where plants are vertically planted and grown. Below the pipes with plants there is a pipe with air. The air has the precise humidity, temperature and CO2-level the plant needs to grow at the best rate. A microclimate is created for every plant. Two pumps are used to ensure that the pressure is the same for every plant. The water is dripping in from above and contains the nutrients that this certain type of plant needs. This means that per square meter 700 plants can be harvested per year (much more than in conventional greenhouses with hydroponics) and different types of plants can be grown within one greenhouse. The system is very efficient in water and energy use.
Manager of the greenhouse harvesting lettuce
Relatively low tech
The equipment is relatively low tech (plastic pipes) and easy to work with, but the development of the system as a whole was high tech (all separate elements that make it working). For example the air needs to be the same for every plant, but it cannot be the same because of the distance to the pumps. Therefore, this needs to be compensated. One example of a solution for this is that first plants at the lower area are planted and then in the higher areas because the plants in the higher areas grow faster.
The link with the Netherlands
The development of the system was done in the Netherlands, mainly making use of Dutch sme’s (small and medium enterprises) specialised in construction, moulding, technical installations and with companies that are not necessarily involved with agriculture yet. That is a way to bring completely new ideas in. Companies that Eden green is also working with are for example Rijk Zwaan and PI Consultants. Priva is a strategic partner as well. Wageningen University was also involved with the development of the system.
The company wants to continue developing their system and that entails involving universities and investors in the process. A training programme is going to be set up in Almelo where the Dutch testing site is, to train students to work with the hydroponics system and invent new technologies. That was one of the reasons HAS Den Bosch was also visiting this company.
Further development
The facility in Almelo will also be used to further develop the system. The idea is to show potential investors that the hydroponics system works and that it is profitable. This facility will be used in cooperation with HAS Den-Bosch and Wageningen University. The universities will mainly work on the data procurement and development of a robot that can plant and harvest.
Agri business development projects
Eden green is not just interested in making profit. Their motto is to ‘feed the world’. They want to keep the system as simple as possible so that everyone is able to use hydroponics. Daily management of the greenhouse in Centurion is done by an employee that did not have a farming background. After three months of training and supervision she is fully able to manage the greenhouse.
Source: Agroberichten Buitenland