Projects Smart WorkPlace Social Improvement
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For small and relatively remote islands like those pertaining to the Caribbean Netherlands, self-sustainment is one of the most important pillars of any kind of sustainable economic and social development. As long as local populations in the region remain largely dependent on imports for their everyday lives, their livelihoods will continue to be extra vulnerable to external supply shocks and other major risks, such as global warming. That’s why we at Future Islands are always looking for projects aimed at making their community more self-sustainable, even if it’s just a little bit. The construction of the new solar park by The Green World Company in Curaçao, about which we wrote a piece last month, is a good example of such a project, just like Bon Hydroponics is. The latter project is all about, you guessed it, hydroponics and its team has managed to raise € 400.000 in investments for its first greenhouse in Curaçao after appearing on the Growth Accelerator live show “Angels & Dragons” on Youtube.
For Curaçao, in Curaçao
“Whatever we grow locally, we don’t need to import. For Curaçao, in Curaçao!”
That’s the motto that jumps onto your screen when you visit the official website of Bon Hydroponics, the latest hydroponics project in the Caribbean Netherlands. The initiative was started by Mariëlle Leo and Edward van Wonderen, and focuses on the importance of self-sustainment for Curaçao, where both founders primarily reside. Everything they do is based on the conviction that Curaçao must strive to provide for its own primary life needs, as can be read on Bon Hydroponics Instagram account. In that sense, the project concentrates on healthy food on Curaçao, where most of the basic ingredients for a healthy diet are the result of import.
Mariëlle and Edward want to contribute to Curaçao’s ongoing quest for a more self-sustaining economic model by building about 5000m² of greenhouses on the island. These are to be used for the cultivation of leafy vegetables and herbs, with the help of so-called deep water hydroponics. Where regular hydroponics facilitate a process of growing produce in sand, gravel or liquid, with added nutrients but without any soil, deep water hydroponics take it one step further. At Bon Hydroponics, the produce will be grown in pots filled with a few pebbles, while the roots of the plants are completely immersed in a solution of nutrient-rich, oxygenated water. This method greatly improves the plants’ capacity to absorb nutrients, which in turn leads to quicker harvesting, it requires almost no fertilizer, most of which would need to be imported, and maintenance is relatively simple, especially in comparison to more traditional cultivation in soil. On top of that, it’s a very environmentally friendly form of agriculture, as it requires little energy, saves on water consumption, and is free of pesticides.
Starting capital covered
Mariëlle and Edward appeared on the Angels & Dragons show on Youtube in September 2022 to present their Bon Hydroponics with the goal of raising the first € 400.000 needed to start greenhouse construction in Curaçao. The show’s creators, Edwin Schaafsma and Julia Kizimenko, help Dutch start-ups and starting entrepreneurs that are looking for starting capital. This can be cash, but also in the form of knowledge of networking contributions, for example. They helped Bon Hydroponics with the creation of a pitch and also gave the project’s founders a platform on their show to deliver that pitch. The result? A fully funded round worth € 400.000, closed in one week.
“We’re very proud of Bon Hydroponics’ enormous development”, says Edwin from Growth Accelerator, “We have invested in the project as well, because we feel it’s a shame that almost every vegetable in Curaçao is flown in from the European Netherlands. They are showing that there are more sustainable ways to do this, which represents a big step towards a more sustainable island economy at the same time”.
Want to know more about Bon Hydroponics? Whether it’s to make a contribution, discuss an investment, or just to obtain more information about the project, you can always get in touch with us at Future Islands! We’ll be happy to help you and provide you with a referral if so desired!
The basis for this article was originally published on www.emerce.nl and others in January 2023.
