Dubai – The business mission of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) visited a vertical farm inside a container – Madar Farms – in Abu Dhabi on Monday (1). The company produces 22 cultivars of leafy greens and micro greens like lettuce, arugula and basil, as well as edible flowers. Madar doesn’t export, and it’s working on domestic growth. For now, it sells to restaurants and retailers like Carrefour, Spinneys and Barakat.
Fifteen kilograms of leafy greens are produced every week. Three hundred kilograms of micro greens are picked a month. The information was given during the visited of the Brazilian group by Research & Development Project engineer Muhammad Shoaib. In another area similar to this one, Madar produces different cultivars of tomatoes and wants to reach the milestone of 1 tonne a day. O Khalifa Fund supports the project.
A kilogram of lettuce usually costs around AED 20 (USD 5), while the one from the vertical farm costs an average of approximately AED 150-200 (USD 40-54). Despite the high value, Madar Farms accounts for 20% of the market in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Ras Al Khaimah. “We want to increase our production so that we can lower prices,” Shoib said. The company aims at consistently supplying fresh, sustainable, tasting, high-quality food.
A head of lettuce usually takes eight weeks to grow, and they plan on cutting this process to 36 days while keeping the same amount of nutrients and boosting the plant’s photosynthesis process. It’s important to control the temperature and humidity of the place, or the whole crop will be ruined. The plant in Abu Dhabi started operating in 2019, and the company was founded in 2017.
The ABCC business mission started on Sunday (31) in the UAE. The delegation, composed of 11 companies, will visit Qatar, too. The two countries host major global events. Expo 2020 Dubai is running in the UAE from last October through late March 2021. Qatar will host FIFA World Cub from November to December 2022. The mission runs through next weekend with business prospecting and training activities on the Arab market.
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
