"Do your own": Kyiv residents have strengthened their microgreens business by growing peas, sunflowers, and radishes

The vertical microgreens farm, maintained by partners Oleksandr Bilyak and Roman Mykhalevych in Kyiv, started operating with the onset of the full-scale invasion. They rented the premises on November 1, 2022, and assembled their first shelf mostly by the light of lanterns. Over three years, its capacity has grown to over 50,000 trays, or 2,500 kg of greens per month. The partners continue to actively work on increasing production capacity. They were also able to strengthen their business thanks to winning the business idea competition "Do Your Own" from the Charitable Foundation "MHP to the Community". They spent 100,000 UAH of grant funds on equipment that facilitates work on the farm, reports UNN.

Details

Effectively running a business is aided by relevant education and experience with seeds. Oleksandr Bilyak is an agronomist by education and also graduated from the Faculty of Electronics. Roman worked in business development for various projects and lending. Therefore, in their business, the partners apply the knowledge gained during their studies and experience from previous jobs. Today, Oleksandr and Roman's microgreens farm has its own brand "Green Vitamin CityFarm" and, in their opinion, is one of the largest in Ukraine.

As the popularity of healthy and proper nutrition continues to grow, the demand for microgreens is also increasing. This greenery not only has beneficial properties but is also grown without the use of pesticides, only from untreated seeds, light, and water, and a small amount of organic fertilizers

Among the assortment offered by the farm are microgreens of peas, sunflowers, and radishes. These three main crops are the most popular among consumers. The most aromatic is the pea; the microgreens from it are tasty and sweet. Although Oleksandr and Roman once tried to work with about 15 types of crops, they chose the most popular among consumers. The products of "Green Vitamin CityFarm", as its owners indicate, retain their marketable appearance for a long time and do not spoil, and also do not bloom, which can deteriorate their quality.

Since the farm is located in a basement with a height of 4.5 meters, this helps avoid many plant diseases and pests that simply do not survive at such depth.

"Microgreens are also called superfood in the world, as they contain up to 100 times more enzymes than the fruit that grows from the seed, because it is in an active growth stage. Microgreens are part of my daily diet, and my children and wife also love this product," explains Bilyak.

To obtain microgreens, seeds need to be soaked, sown, warmed, given light, cut, packaged, and delivered to a supermarket or restaurant. This is quite a complex technology that requires appropriate knowledge and significant investments.

"According to the UNDP report, there is no sustainable technology for growing microgreens in urban farms worldwide; it cannot simply be bought. We managed to create and refine an economically efficient and ecological technology for growing microgreens. Our next steps plan to develop this technology towards its maximum automation, not only regarding cultivation but also concerning the entire cycle – from purchasing consumables to receiving orders and supplying to end consumers," adds Mykhalevych.

Currently, the partners are contemplating further development of the technology and want to reach a level where most processes on the vertical farm are managed by artificial intelligence, and a person could only control and make certain adjustments to its operation.

Reference

The "Do Your Own" competition is held to create conditions for the sustainable development of entrepreneurship, including as a response to the negative economic and social consequences of the war, in cities and villages by providing microgrants for further establishment, scaling, and/or relocation of existing micro-enterprises and medium-sized businesses.

Geography of the competition:

Vinnytsia, Volyn, Dnipropetrovsk, Zhytomyr, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kyiv, Lviv, Poltava, Sumy, Ternopil, Khmelnytskyi, Cherkasy, and Chernihiv regions and the city of Kyiv.

"MHP to the Community" is a Ukrainian charitable foundation that began its activities in 2015. Its main mission is the comprehensive development of communities.

The geography of its activities covers 13 regions of Ukraine: over 700 towns and villages. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Russia into Ukraine, the Foundation has systematically supported people in combat regions, Ukrainian defenders and rescuers, communities, hospitals, and maternity homes, charitable institutions that care for orphans and the elderly, as well as people who have lost their homes and livelihoods due to the war.