As spring turns into summer, the Khalifa fund’s investment in Abu Dhabi hydroponic agriculture is beginning to pay off.

 

The Khalifa fund for enterprise development was launched in 2007 to help local enterprise in Abu Dhabi. At the beginning of 2015, Ahmad Kalfan Al Romaithi revealed that Dh 130 million (approximately 35 million US dollars) had been approved for the funding of up to 130 hydroponic farms.

 

Ten farms were initially funded by this project and this number quickly grew to 40.

 

By mid-June, three of these farms had already begun supplying locally grown fruit and vegetables to union co-op markets in Dubai and Ajman. The co-op’s production of about 60 tonnes of tomatoes per month is expected to double when the remaining farms begin producing by the end of this year.

 

Hydroponics is an agriculture technology which doesn’t require soil. This technology can allow locally grown crops near cities and in other regions which are unsuitable for traditional farming. It’s space age science that promises to feed a hungry world, especially in dry climates.