Food entrepreneur makes a difference with hydroponics

A local food entrepreneur is making a difference with hydroponics to tackle South Africa’s food security issues. Bonothile Khuboni is tackling this pressing issue of food insecurity with sustainable agriculture which has become a key focus of her business venture.

She found her solution in hydroculture, a method for growing plants in water that uses very little space and no soil.

After graduating from Oribi’s #FoodSystem incubation programme, she went on to create and scale her first non-profit company, Imvelo Agri Solutions, at two schools in KwaZulu Natal where she teaches students about the value of hydroponics as a sustainable growing method.

Food insecurity is exacerbated by climate change and soil erosion. In South Africa, approximately 61 million hectares of land, about half of the country’s entire surface area, is classified as having a moderate to severe potential risk of soil erosion.

“Increasing soil erosion and infertile soil makes it hard for South Africans to grow their own food. I believe that hydroponic farming systems offer an innovative and sustainable solution to growing food on both a subsistence level as well as a commercial level,” Khuboni says.

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Academic research on hydroponics led to a desire to help

She gained a deeper understanding of food security in South Africa when she was doing academic research and the more she understood and learned about the impact of climate change on food systems, the more she wanted to do something about it.

Khuboni ran a pilot of her non-profit at Mqhawe Secondary School in KwaZulu Natal, where she set up her first hydroponic stations to grow organic vegetables, such as spinach and lettuce and educated and trained students.

“I wholeheartedly believe that it is beneficial for our youth to learn about hydroponic systems because they are an excellent way to combat issues connected to climate change and droughts as they require very little space, little water and no soil.”

She says she does not only teach students how to operate these systems but also allows them to feel the pleasure of growing their own nutritious food.

After completing Oribi’s incubation program, she received a grant that enabled her social enterprise to grow and set up a second hydroponic system at another school, Waterloo Secondary School, also in KwaZulu Natal, where she plans to produce 240 fresh green leafy organic vegetables within an approximately 30-day cycle.

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Hydroponics is quite new in SA

“Hydroponics, especially organic methods, remain relatively novel in South Africa. Our journey with Banothile has been profoundly enlightening as we, an incubator focused on nurturing social enterprises in South Africa’s expansive food system, have witnessed her remarkable growth,” Nthakoana Maema, CEO at Oribi in Cape Town, says.

“Throughout the incubation process, Khuboni faced the challenge of limited resources in organic hydroponics. Despite this, she persevered, using her inaugural hydroponic system as a platform for trial and error. We hope that the grant will empower her to translate her acquired knowledge into tangible implementation.”

Khuboni wants to cultivate organic produce for profitable sale at market rates, while her non-profit company is dedicated to inspiring individuals to cultivate their own produce.

The next step for her is to focus on accessing the retail market in South Africa. “Retail has a certain demand that we have to meet. At the moment, we are looking at ways to team up with suppliers,” she says.

Khuboni faces a challenging landscape now, mirroring the struggles of many small-scale farmers across South Africa who battle to access markets. The prevailing food system notably disadvantages smaller enterprises due to price fluctuations and volatility in fresh produce pricing, a predicament exacerbated by escalating food costs, she says.

Her immediate focus therefore lies in securing buyers for smaller volumes of organic produce in Durban. Her strategic vision extends to the Western Cape, where she plans to expand her hydroponic initiatives by establishing additional stations.