Sustainable nutrient-rich food production during covid-19 pandemic through year-round vegetable farming using hydroponic technique

The impact of ongoing Covid-19 pandemic caused disastrous food shortages and increased food prices due to disruption of agricultural systems and activities. In the aftershock of the pandemic, the global economy and infrastructure are more fragile than we realize since the food supply chain has been disrupted. Less consumption of nutrient-rich foods made the people more susceptible to Covid-19 infection during the pandemic. The situation resulted in a pivot to develop technology for economic and year-round production of nutrient-rich vegetables to alleviate malnutrition and to improve immunity of human body. This presentation will focus on the profitability of hydroponic vegetable production, the probable market availability of product in local markets and consumer’s choice of the hydroponic vegetables. Financial management for establishment of polyhouse and hydroponic systems, and the ways of having a standard profit to the grower and/or shareholders were explained. The paper also covered the advantages and benefits of hydroponic farming over conventional soil-based farming, the amount of profit that can be earned from a unit area of hydroponic farming technique, the risks of the technique and how the risks can be overcome. The procedure of establishing the polyhouses for running a profitable hydroponic vegetable farm by the low-income rural community were outlined.