A food distribution point in Moria Camp, Greece (2020). // Photo: MOTG
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Outline
Problem
Food accessible to refugees is often sub-standard, and this is causing serious health impacts amongst displaced communities.
Mission
To make nutritious diets reliably accessible for forcibly displaced individuals.
Central thesis
Food solutions outside of the humanitarian food system are necessary - a reliance on these systems has been to the detriment of displaced populations.
Our guiding belief is that refuge should be a safe place, where people heal and rebuild.
No one should have to exist in a system where it is impossible to look after one's health.
Proposal
Pilot concept
To trial local microgreen production in refugee camps to improve overall nutrition and increase food security.
Method
Supporting camp residents to start businesses that germinate trays of microgreen produce in compact facilities (4 days), and selling these trays to residents who can complete the growing and harvesting process (4 days) themselves.
Early estimate
A 40-foot container facility (30 sqm) can produce germinated microgreens that will grow to amount to 2700kg per month, providing 100g of produce to 900 camp residents per day.
Source: All That Grows
Why microgreens?
Microgreens are fast-growing and vitamin-dense, making them ideal for supplementing and diversifying diets in humanitarian settings.
FSTS has selected 3 crops for their nutritional properties, resilience, and grow-time: sunflower, green pea, and radish microgreens.
Nutritional content
A 100g mixture of sunflower, green pea, and radish microgreens will achieve the following proportions of the minimal daily nutritional requirements (SPHERE):
Vit A: 64% // Vit C: 175% // Vit E: 167% // Vit K: 478% // Selenium: 83%
Rough costs
Set-up capital: one-time $10,000
Set-up can be relocated when new humanitarian needs emerge
Running cost: $5000 per month (85% seeds, 15% utilities)
Approx. $0.19 per 100g of microgreens // $5.70 per camp resident per month
*These figures exclude real estate costs, which may be waived in humanitarian contexts
In the ideal scaling scenario,
set-up capital can be raised through philanthropic giving,
seeds can be provided by humanitarian agencies,
and refugee business owners can incur the utility expenses and sell at an affordable rate ($0.25 per tray, or $0.05 per 100g)
Humanitarian supply chains are adept at transporting dry foods. Microgreen farming can leverage this and have seeds transported through the existing supply chains, before germinating these seeds to reap an increased nutritional content.
Rationale for 'split-growing model'
The 'split growing model' entails two components:
Germination in facility (4 days)
Home grow-out (4 days)
Why not run the entire grow process in the facility?
By splitting the process,
the facility is responsible for the most fragile phase in the plants' growth (germination needs controlled temperature and humidity, as well as pressure applied and black-out);
the facility is able to operate at a much higher capacity (3.5x) due to the ability to stack more trays (no need for light absorption) and faster turnover (4 days instead of 8);
the facility incurs lower utility costs owing to the redundancy of grow-lights in the facility. Instead, it maintains a small footprint (floorspace and electricity usage) while residents harness sunlight to grow the crops. This reduces the cost of the product for camp residents;
*Microgreen farming is also an extremely water-efficient method of farming, making this solution viable in environments with little access to water and electricity;
camp residents benefit from the mental health benefits of gardening, without the risk of germination-failure, as well as shortened 'time to harvest'.
Rationale for refugee ownership
FSTS aims to enable camp residents to run microgreen-farming businesses that support their community's nutritional health.
This mode of distribution serves several purposes:
it creates entrepreneurship and work opportunities for camp residents in contexts where these opportunities are in short supply;
the small fee this entails reduces inefficiencies by ensuring that the product is actually desired and will be consumed by families that it is distributed to;
it respects the agency of camp residents to choose what they want to consume, while serving as a healthy option that is available to them.
*The latter two purposes only work insofar as the cost of the microgreens is set at a rate that is affordable for families. It will be necessary to test what that rate might be in different contexts, and if subsidising can make this cost achievable.
Why does FSTS exist?
Undernutrition impacts refugee camps worldwide
2 in 3 refugee camps globally have high rates of stunting
WFP reports that only 1.4% of the in-kind food it provides is 'nutritionally adequate'
Existing solutions are not solving the issue
Humanitarian agencies have experimented with a host of different solutions, yet a lasting and satisfactory solution remains elusive - there is a gap
A pilot can test a novel approach...
A rethink of how food reaches communities in humanitarian contexts is needed, and a pilot can test how localising food production can be a resilient and nutritious means of filling this gap
... and strengthen the humanitarian toolkit
Advocacy coming out of a successful pilot can build evidence for localised food production & provide technical know-how for institutions to adopt these solutions
The ask:
From Seed to Shelter is looking to raise $30,000 from funding partners to launch an initial pilot to determine the feasibility and efficacy of microgreen farming in humanitarian contexts.
If successful, From Seed to Shelter will focus on making it (or components of it) an adoptable solution for more communities in need.
If you would consider contributing to this mission, or if you would like to get involved, please don't hesitate to reach out to me via ben@fromseedtoshelter.com
Or, arrange a chat with me here:
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