EcoHydro

Sabza Hydroponics

EcoHydro

Leveraging agro-technology to provide sustainable and cost-effective solutions

Karachi, Pakistan

PAK

Not registered as any organization

Pakistan’s food systems are buckling under water scarcity, soil degradation, and inequitable supply chains. Agriculture monopolizes 93% of freshwater withdrawals, yet 70% is lost to leaky canals and flood irrigation, worsening urban water stress. Farmers, reliant on urea-DAP fertilizers (used by 95% with no micronutrient supplementation), deplete soils, while pesticide use—12,800 tons annually—contaminates aquifers and leaves 27% of produce with toxic residues. Fragmented supply chains then squander up to 50% of perishables as crops traverse arthi, mandi, and vendors over days, degrading nutrition and inflating carbon emissions. Paradoxically, Pakistan imports $3.5B in food yearly despite surplus wheat production, exposing systemic inefficiencies. Urban communities mirror these crises: 50% of Karachi households face daily water shortages, while unplanned sprawl erodes arable land. Current urban farming fails to address space constraints or technical barriers, perpetuating reliance on stale, chemically treated produce. Hydroponics—a potential solution—remains inaccessible due to high costs (upfront investments exceed $2,500/unit) and energy demands, locking out smallholders.

Sabza tackles Pakistan’s interconnected food, water, and climate crises by decentralizing agriculture through home-based hydroponic systems tailored for urban resilience. Unlike traditional farming—which wastes 70% of irrigation water, relies on pesticide-laden soils, and loses 50% of perishables in multi-day supply chains—Sabza enables households to grow hyper-local, nutrient-dense food in 1m² spaces, bypassing systemic failures. Our systems are engineered for Pakistan’s constraints: Water & Space Efficiency: Consuming 90% less water than soil farming, Sabza thrives in arid regions like Tharparkar and water-scarce cities like Karachi, where 50% of households face daily shortages. Modular vertical designs fit balconies or rooftops, repurposing underutilized urban spaces. Pesticide-Free & Nutrient-Optimized: By replacing degraded soils with precision nutrient solutions, we eliminate toxic pesticide use (12,800 tons/year nationally) while enhancing crop vitamin content—critical in a country where 38.7% of youth suffer dietary deficiencies. Supply Chain Disruption: Fresh produce reaches plates in hours, not days, slashing post-harvest waste and carbon-intensive “food miles” from arthi-mandi networks. Sabza democratizes access through plug-and-play kits (pre-assembled pumps, sensors, pH-balanced nutrients) and Urdu-language training apps that simplify hydroponics for novices. Partnering with microfinance institutions, we offset upfront costs, prioritizing low-income communities.

harparkar’s predominantly rural population comprises 96 % of inhabitants living under extreme poverty, with 87 % experiencing multidimensional deprivation and alarmingly high rates of child malnutrition—48 % of under‑fives suffer severe acute malnutrition and 60 % of paediatric admissions are malnourished—against a backdrop of scant annual rainfall (100–400 mm) and frequent drought declarations since 1968. Livestock constitutes the primary livelihood for 94 % of households, yet constrained grazing and low crop yields perpetuate food insecurity and limited cash income. omen and children routinely traverse long distances to collect dwindling water supplies, while administrative neglect and weak infrastructure hinder access to agricultural extension and force reliance on erratic monsoon‑fed farming and multi‑day supply chains. Sabza’s compact hydroponic modules deliver pesticide‑free vegetable production year‑round at up to ten‑fold higher yields per square metre and with 90 % less water through vertical stacking and closed‑loop recirculation.