Microgreens a growing market
Ten years ago, Scott Brindle and Bianca Kampshof never would have thought there would be a big market for tiny greens in New Zealand.
Microgreens, which are seedling vegetables or herbs packed with nutrients, have long been used in lavish restaurants overseas, but they are now becoming increasingly popular.
Brindle, owner of Kaimai Greens, says they began growing the ‘‘tiny powerhouses of goodness’’ six years ago in their own vegetable patch, in a bid to be healthier.
Now the couple are one of the country’s largest suppliers of microgreens, selling 28 types to supermarkets and restaurants around the country.
‘‘Microgreens have long been underrated,’’ he says.
The Matamata man, whose background is in landscaping, says that in the early days the couple began growing things such as radishes and coriander micro as an experiment, hoping to add more flavour and nutrients to their dinner dishes.
But the benefits of their miniature vegetables didn’t stay a secret for long, after the couple began giving away produce to family and friends to try.
‘‘There was a lot of interest from the people around us. They didn’t really know much about microgreens, but loved the taste.
‘‘This gave us the confidence to approach local restaurants nearby, and the business just snowballed from there.’’
Microgreens, which are smaller than baby greens yet larger than sprouts, can produce between four- and 40 times the nutrients of a mature plant, he says.
Considered a speciality genre of greens, they are mainly used for garnishing salads, soups, smoothies, sandwiches, and plates, but can be used as a main vegetable in certain recipes for intense flavour and nutrition.
While their nutrient content varies slightly depending on the plant, most varieties tend to be rich in potassium, iron, zinc, calcium, and magnesium.
Some people even go as far as claiming adding microgreens to your daily diet can reduce the risks of heart disease, diabetes, and Alzheimer’s disease. However,
more studies are needed to prove this is the case, Brindle says.
‘‘More research is coming out every year to suggest they should be a staple item in everyone’s fridge.’’
As well as the health benefits, growing microgreens at home has its rewards.
Brindle says that on a large scale, they are hard to manage, but growing a few options doesn’t require much care or space. A lot of people like to grow microgreens as hydroponics, he says, but putting them in punnets on a window sill also works well.
‘‘For beginners, I’d say some of the easiest greens to grow as microgreens are radishes and pea tendrils, because they’re both hardy plants, but it’s all about trial and error.’’
Many salad greens, leafy vegetables, herbs, edible flowers, and even some grains, can be grown as microgreens.
However, vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and potatoes are not sustainable as they aren’t edible at the seedling stage, containing toxic alkaloids early on.
The only difference in the germination process is that, unlike traditional vegetable gardens where seeds are planted beneath the soil, seeds for microgreen production should be placed on top and not covered.
Most seeds will germinate in 3-7 days. and will be ready for harvest in 2-3 weeks.