The effects of the increase in the prices are acutely felt by agricultural producers, particularly by horticultural farms, and they are struggling with dramatically declining margins, which harms the profitability of production. One of the solutions entering the market is the ISS Hydreset Irrigation Support System - a dynamic gas exchange system used while distributing nutrients in horticultural crops. According to the ISS Hydreset producer's declarations, it is a universal device, and the use of the system allows crops to improve quality and obtain a greater marketable yield.
Furthermore, research conducted in scientific institutions such as the University of Environmental and Life Sciences in Wrocław (Poland) confirmed the system's usability. The research concerned various horticultural crops: two greenhouse crops (tomato and cucumber), cultivation under cover (butterhead lettuce), and field cultivation (radish). The results are shown in Table 1, and the economic analysis of such investment confirms that using the ISS Hydreset system significantly increases the total yield and marketable yield compared to the control.
Table 1. The impact of the application of the ISS Hydreset system on the production results in selected horticultural crops obtained in vegetation experiments*
For all economics calculations, the authors have incorporated the current prices of products, means of production, fuel, and electricity (the only factor that changed was the use of the ISS Hydreset). Prices of horticultural products means for agricultural production and electricity - was the average reported price in 2022. The daily demand for water in individual crops was adopted in accordance with the estimates presented in Table 2 - for a greenhouse with an area of 1 ha and 1.6 ha.
Table 2. Daily water demand in m3 in selected greenhouse crops
With regard to the greenhouse cultivation of tomato and cucumber, the reference area was a block greenhouse with an area of 1.6 ha. Concerning the calculation for the cultivation of lettuce, this was the case with an area of 0.5 ha under covers.
In each calculation variant, the investment is for purchasing an ISS Hydreset with a capacity of 5 m3/hour, which gives a total daily capacity of 120 m3 of water or nutrient solution.
Table 3. Comparison of selected economic results of conventional crops and crops using the ISS Hydreset system in greenhouse production
The increased yield of plants and the improvement in the quality of the product as a consequence of using the ISS Hydreset system lead to a significant improvement in economic performance. The positive effect of the ISS Hydreset was particularly noticeable in the cultivation of greenhouse tomatoes. As a result of the application of the system, the quality of the marketable yield improved and early yielding.
Consequently, the producer can count on a higher margin on sales. Thanks to that, this result may even more than double - in the analyzed situation, the gross profit increased from 9.95 K EUR up to 87.7 K EUR. The producers of greenhouse cucumbers can also count on clear economic benefits from using the ISS Hydreset. In the analyzed case, the gross result on sales translated into a higher margin on sales - the gross profit in the case of using the ISS Hydreset is 56% higher. The economic analysis of the profitability of investing in this technology shows that the entity can count on a quick return of money.
In the case of producers of greenhouse (area 1.6 ha) cucumbers and tomatoes, the return on investment occurs after several months. With a larger production area, the payback period is shorter than one year.
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MIROSŁAW GLUCH1, JAN KARCH1, CZESŁAW SPYRA1, JACEK GRONEK1, JAKUB PANNEK1, ANDRZEJ SKROBISZEWSKI1, PIOTR CHOHURA2, MIROSŁAWA BRAJA3, 'ISS Hydreset - opportunity to improve economic results in selected horticultural crops,' Wroclaw University of Environment and Life Sciences, Department of Horticulture, ul. Norwida 24a, 50-375 Wrocław.