Santhosh Kumar S’ farm is in a 100 sq. foot room. The crops, one to a few inches tall, shine brilliant in shades of inexperienced, pink, yellow and purple. This is Santhosh’s microgreen farm, the place he grows totally different varieties of greens.
Although many had tried their hand at it throughout the lockdown, Santhosh is among the many handful of folks in Thiruvananthapuram who’ve taken to industrial cultivation of microgreens, that are the primary true edible leaves produced from seedlings of greens and herbs. It is the section between sprouts and child vegetation.
Four-day previous bok choy microgreen at Chew Fresh
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Hailed as a superfood as a result of of the richness in vitamins, microgreens are eaten uncooked; added to salads and sandwiches; and blended to make smoothies. Flavours of these greens fluctuate from candy to bitter and even tangy, relying on the range that’s used to reinforce flavour, texture and even the look of a dish.
Ananthu Raj RC and Rahul GB are additionally microgreen farmers who run their enterprise, Chew Fresh, at Chavadimukku close to Sreekariyam; Sunesan Ok’s model, Nutrigreens Microgreens, is at Pravachambalam.
Santhosh Kumar S with white radish microgreens
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Microgreens are produced from edible plant species and over 100 microgreen varieties can be found the world over of which 12 to 15 varieties are generally grown. This contains purple and white radish, broccoli, sunflower, arugula, yellow and inexperienced mustard, bok choy, fenugreek, beetroot, candy corn, and amaranthus. The uncommon ones embrace kohlrabi purple, purple sango radish, Swiss chard, purple purple cabbage and so forth.
White radish microgreens
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“I have orders for 80 grams each of arugula microgreens and mustard microgreens from a cafe at Ambalamukku every week. In addition, I have subscription-based orders for four boxes per month from employees in Technopark,” says Santhosh. He grows the greens at a pal’s home at Chandavila, 20 kilometres from Thiruvananthapuram metropolis. A software program engineer with an MNC in Technopark, Thiruvananthapuram, he has been working a hydroponics farm for the final 9 years at his home at Karyavattam and began rising microgreens eight months in the past. His produce is offered underneath the model, Fresh Leaves.
(From left) Rahul GB and Ananthu Raj RC in the room the place they develop microgreens
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In the case of school mates Ananthu and Rahul, microgreens farming was an choice they tried out when their plan to begin a hydroponics farm didn’t materialise. “We tried producing microgreens on a small scale a year ago and now we grow over a dozen varieties in a 100-square foot room,” says Ananthu, who used to work as a logistics government with an organization. Rahul is employed in Technopark.
“Besides a couple of hypermarkets and supermarkets in the city, we deliver them regularly to restaurants and cafes in Kazhakkoottam and Kowdiar. We started the venture by targetting the hotels because they are more familiar with microgreens as they use them for garnishing,” Ananthu provides.
Sunesan Ok and spouse, Shaikath Majeed with the microgreens
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Sunesan was launched to microgreens by his spouse, Shaikath Majeed. “She showed me a lot of videos about growing microgreens. Initially, I had no interest. But eventually I enjoyed it, especially when our first attempt succeeded. We failed a couple of times after that. So we had to study more about the temperature, humidity, the PH content of the water etc before we were on track,” says Sunesan.
Beetroot microgreens
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Microgreens are normally grown in trays in a room. Temperature, gentle, humidity and air circulation have an effect on the expansion of these mini vegetation. Sunesan sells over a dozen varieties, together with 4 varieties of radish and purple cabbage to some five-star resorts in the town. They additionally promote stay trays. “That is, the customers can buy the tray laden with microgreens and harvest them when needed. However, microgreens have a short lifespan, and can’t be kept for a longer period,” explains Sunesan.
Amaranth microgreens
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The microgreens can be found in packets of 80 grams and 100 grams and are priced from ₹150 onwards.
According to Beela GK, professor and head, Department of Community Science, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, Thiruvananthapuram, microgreens might include 4 to 40 instances the vitamins of mature plant leaves. “Their nutrient content is concentrated, which means that they often contain higher vitamin, mineral and antioxidant levels than the same quantity of mature green. If you want to get the most nutritional benefit, you should eat them raw. Just be sure to wash them to remove any bacteria.” She provides that analysis students in the Department are at present engaged on the standard evaluation of microgreens.
Seeds for microgreens are sourced from Karnataka, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and so forth. “Some of the seeds are costly — for example, the seeds of beetroot cost ₹2,000 per kilogram. Therefore, the beetroot microgreens are also priced more (₹250 to 280 per pack) compared to other varieties,” says Santhosh.
Growing microgreens is a low-cost enterprise, because it requires minimal house and gear. “The initial investment would come to around ₹20,000 to ₹25,000. The first two months didn’t go well for us. But now we sell around 40 kilograms a month,” says Ananthu.
Microgreens cultivation of Chew Fresh
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However, the growers stress that microgreens should not everybody’s cup of tea. “They have to be eaten raw and not all might like the taste. So it is difficult to market them. It is important to create awareness about the benefits of microgreens,” sums up Sunesan.