Lebanon’s Dooda puts earthworms at the centre of sustainable farming
▶ Agriculture technology start-up seeks expansion across GCC and Mena, writes Aarti Nagraj
supplies its products only in Lebanon, but is in the process of gaining export licences to send its products to other countries in the Mena region in the next three months.
The expansion comes after the start-up won PepsiCo’s Mena greenhouse accelerator programme, which took place in partnership with the UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment and Food Tech Valley, in November.
Dooda Solutions was chosen from 180 applicants after a multi-stage selection process and six months of mentorship, and was awarded a $100,000 grant, along with opportunities to scale its business.
“With the support of PepsiCo we were able to access several markets in the region, for example, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE, and we’re working on materialising these partnerships with some of the biggest farms in the region,” Ms Ghanem says. “We also aim to go further and establish Dooda farms across the region. And the main idea behind our business is to support local food security, and support and enhance climate resilience.
“We want to be located in each country to provide a localised fertiliser solution that can support food security when all the borders are closed, when there are political challenges or environmental challenges or natural challenges.”
The region’s agriculture sector needs products specialised for its needs, says Ms Ghanem.
The dominant soil is sandy, with low nutrients, zero water-holding capacity and high salinity, which makes it challenging for farmers to grow produce, especially in hot climates. This makes them heavily dependant on chemical fertilisers, which are more expensive, Ms Ghanem says.
But switching to organic fertilisers will improve yield, she stresses.
Countries across the region, particularly the UAE and Saudi Arabia, have been prioritising food security as a key part of their national strategies.
The UAE’s National Food Security Strategy 2051 aims to put the country at the top of the Global Food Security Index by the middle of the century.
It sets out plans to develop a national system based on enabling sustainable food production by using modern technology, while enhancing local production.
The country aims to boost the contribution of food and agriculture to its economy by $10 billion and create 20,000 jobs in the next five years, Minister of Economy Abdulla bin Touq said in September.
He highlighted measures being taken to transform the food and agriculture sector with an emphasis on domestic innovation, a UAE-first culture and food supply chain, and giving farmers the necessary support and resources to make the country a global leader in agriculture technology and sustainability.
Saudi Arabia is also investing heavily in developing the local agriculture sector as part of its Vision 2030 diversification agenda. In line with that, the AgriTech industry in the Mena region attracted about $250 million in funding last year.
In June, Emirates Development Bank, the UAE stateowned lender that provides financing for the country’s priority sectors, also introduced an AgriTech loans programme, with plans to allocate Dh100 million ($27.2 million) in financing support for the country’s food security sector.
Dooda Solutions, which was bootstrapped by Ms Ghanem, has so far raised $300,000 in equity-free funding.
“We did break even, but we are reinvesting our profits back into the company because we still want to improve further,” she says.
“For example, in the coming few months, we will be introducing pelletised vermicompost. This will allow us to have a bigger share in the market, addressing potato farms and large-scale farms.”
While the company has big plans, Ms Ghanem admits that the journey so far has not been easy, especially as a female entrepreneur in a male-dominated industry.
“It was very challenging, especially that I am a lady in agriculture and waste management … So it took time for people to take me seriously.
“And the entire concept of earthworms was mocked. But this did not affect my will and my efforts because I knew exactly what I was doing. And I knew that with time people will realise the significance of the work I’m doing,” she says.
“I wanted to do everything to make it happen, so for me, I enjoyed the process … because I was creating something out of nothing. It was a personal choice and personal commitment to make it happen.”