Growing food out of water in Bhutan

09/09/2024

Like millions around the world, Kinley Wangmo and her family were left without a source of income during the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns. Unlike most of the world, this Bhutanese mother found a livelihood solution in hydroponics farming, which involves growing plants in a special nutrient-rich water instead of using soil.

What began as a simple interest soon blossomed into a profound passion. She attended online trainings and saw that this innovative technique was also full of promise for addressing the challenges of food security and land fragmentation in her landlocked Himalayan homeland.

Hydroponics uses less water and is more productive than soil-based agriculture and can be carried out all year round. Though hydroponics can be expensive and difficult to install, all it requires at its most basic level is the plants, water, a container and a source of light.

To save on the cost of importing hydroponics systems, she learned extensively from international experts and customised their approaches for Bhutanese farmers.

Using her previous experience as a contractor, undertaking everything from plumbing to electrical jobs, Kinley, who also currently runs a hardware shop, leveraged her skills and self-taught know-how to build a hydroponics system using the deep flow technique, which catches and recycles water using pipes. The system is low-cost, efficient and made using readily available materials.   

It’s also easy to maintain, making it accessible and practical for small-scale farmers in Bhutan’s rugged terrain.

Kinley started Bhutan Hydroponics in a small-scale greenhouse in the Changzamtok area of the capital, Thimphu, back in 2020.

In early 2024, Kinley was one of the 30 recipients of funding support from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) as part of its Peri-urban and Urban Farming project in Bhutan, implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock.

The project helped her with land development, equipment and materials for the farm, as well as seeds on a cost-sharing basis, and technical support with installing the greenhouses, garden structures, irrigation systems and digital equipment she needed for the venture.

Her vision is steadily taking shape with the establishment of three spacious greenhouses.

"The main benefit of hydroponics is that it helps plants and vegetables grow faster than traditional soil farming, and it takes up less space," Kinley explains. "In a greenhouse, we can control everything to make sure the plants grow well.” 

Kinley is keen to share her knowledge to help communities in Bhutan become more independent. "The pandemic showed us how important self-sufficiency is."

She’s been a passionate advocate for increasing the use of hydroponics in the country, offering her expertise in setting up systems and selling her adapted hydroponics system at a cost that’s highly favourable compared with imported equipment.

About one-third of Bhutan’s population faces food insecurity. With shrinking, fragmented land holdings and many working-age adults moving from rural to urban areas, labor-intensive agriculture is becoming increasingly challenging.

The pandemic also showed the reliance of urban areas on food imported from abroad or from rural areas. In this, Bhutan’s Department of Agriculture has been pushing ahead with its strategy to promote urban farming.

Kinley also advocates for self-sufficiency and safe food in urban areas, like the capital in which she lives.

"In urban areas where food security is a pressing issue, I am dedicated to making freshly harvested, nutritious food accessible to everyone. Amidst busy lifestyles and the challenge of accessing quality food, we aim to reduce food waste and promote healthier eating habits,” says Kinley.

Bhutan's economy relies heavily on agriculture, livestock and forests; this sector supports about 57 percent of the population. Even though the agriculture sector is growing in absolute terms, the share of the national Gross Domestic Product has been steadily decreasing due to rapid growth in other economic sectors.

On top of that, agricultural productivity is being undermined by an array of factors including urbanization and rapid development, crop damage by wild animals, land fragmentation, pests and diseases, rising temperatures and a shortage of agricultural inputs. As a result, Bhutan's goals of food security and self-sufficiency are becoming harder to achieve.

FAO’s project is addressing these issues by helping to move crop production closer to consumers and meeting growing demand in urban areas while showcasing new technologies for transforming agrifood systems, as well as creating more jobs and income opportunities especially for women and young people.

Now, Kinley employs nine people, mostly single mothers and youth. Her current focus is on growing lettuce, which her team has harvested three times in five months and supplied to chain of hotels in the country. She currently grows two lettuce varieties and plans to cultivate three more types and recruit more staff in the future as her business continues to grow.

"Despite the challenges, I promote technology to inspire young people and women in agriculture because it's simple," Kinley says, adding that technology makes agriculture more appealing because it is less physically arduous and cleaner than conventional farming.

Since she expanded her business early this year, she has been selling lettuce and salads in the capital and nearby towns. She says that if she can further expand the business, she would be able to meet the rapidly growing market demand.

With her initiative full of innovative promise, Kinley is making an important contribution to the future of food, inspiring others and forging a new agricultural development model for Bhutan.

The Right to Food is a universal human right. This year, we are advocating for that and more. The foods that feed us need to take into account diversity, nutrition, affordability, accessibility as well as safety and sustainability. Over 2.8 billion people are still unable to afford a healthy diet. As we move toward World Food Day on October 16, FAO is emphasizing that the right to the foods, which meet all of these pillars, is crucial for a better life and a better future for all.

Related links

Learn more

• Website: FAO country profile: Bhutan
• Website: World Food Day