Cucumbers from the Daures desert

Director General of the National Planning Commission, Dr Kaire Mbuende and the Deputy Minister of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts and Culture, Dino Ballotti, were at the Daures Green Hydrogen Village in the Dorob National Park in the heart of the Namib Desert, last Thursday. Inside the state-of-the-art, automatically climate-regulated greenhouses, where cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes are grown, Mbuende and Ballotti planted seeds and transferred seedlings.Chief executive for the project, Jerome Namaseb, said, “Our facility is only six months old, but we already produce about 8 to 10 tons a week, with a capacity of up to 500 tons.”Eight boreholes, of which three are in use, ensure that the project design requirement of 90 000 litres of desalinated water a day is met, with the strongest of the boreholes able to supply 60 000 litres, while the smart pumping system only pumps when there is a need. Hydrogen production will require only 10 000 litres, while the village uses between 5 000 and 6 000 daily. Agriculture is responsible for 80% of the water use, according to water treatment operator Sidney de Klerk. The hydroponic system benefits from underground storage tanks, allowing for recycling rich and fertilised water. From the pump-house, all 22 000 irrigation drippers are regulated to ensure that each plant gets the right amount of water, according to agricultural analyst Jason Angula. Research and developmentHe says further research is being done in partnership with the University of Namibia and the University of Stuttgart at the R&D and nursery facility. The pump-house is also where the soluble fertiliser is mixed into the flow. Plants grow in neutral coconut shell substrate bags, with holes to allow the water to drip through and collect in gutters directed to storage for recycling. “We are in the desert, so we want to save water,” Angula said. The facility can grow 150 000 seedlings in one month and has already donated 50 000 seedlings to farmers in the surrounding area, he said. The smaller greenhouse is ventilated automatically with big fans that switch on as needed, electric curtains to dampen the sunlight, special heat-absorbing plastic coverings and a fog system to regulate humidity. The bigger greenhouse is naturally ventilated and can accommodate 300 to 400 tons of vegetable production in a year, housing 24 000 plants. The operation already supplies the Erongo region, where chain-store retail outlets and other shops sell the produce. Market research has shown good returns on peppers and cucumbers in particular. Daures plans to launch their brand by the beginning of August, he said.Namaseb confirmed that a new design on the plastic packaging of the Daures produce will soon be familiar in coastal shops, while there is gradual progress in efforts to supply the capital as well.

Cucumbers from the Daures desert

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Namibian Sun 2025-12-17

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Cucumbers from the Daures desert

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Namibian Sun 2025-12-17

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