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Kuwait's desert nurseries
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Saturday, 31 July 2010 09:49
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KUWAIT CITY – Much of Kuwait lies on flat, sandy desert but visitors to Alraii near the capital city will be awed by the amount of greenery there.
 There are plants everywhere and they are in the 20 over Almashatel, literally meaning nurseries in Arabic. Locals flock to make orders, or landscaping arrangement for their gardens in their villas or humble apartments.
The nurseries are actually air-conditioned greenhouses, and are thriving as a result of the efforts of the Agriculture Development Company (ADC), one of the early pioneers in the business.
The plants are imported from all over the world. Flowers are sourced from the Netherlands, while other plant species come from the United States, Australia and Asia.
Bonsais, imported from China, are currently the rage in Kuwait.
"We were the first ones in the business," said Hussam Zafar Al-Huneidi, the managing director of ADC.
"My dad started the company in 1960. Due to our passion for the trade, the Agriculture Development Company (ADC) kept on expanding."
Hussam, 50, has a finance and banking degree from George Washington University in the United States and inherited the business from his late father Zafar Al-Huniedi, a Palestinian who made Kuwait his home in the 1950s.
Hussam's innate passion for the flora and fauna was dampened when his father insisted he worked in the financial sector first.
"So I balanced my time. From 9am to 5pm, I was working at a bank and after office hours, I was here at the nursery," he said of his early years in the family business.
"I enjoyed being with the plants, sourcing new varieties from other parts of the world and looking into the cultivation of our 100,000 square metres of land in Wafra, near the border with Saudi Arabia,.
"That is where our new green houses are located," said Hussam, breaking into a smile each time he spoke of his plants and agricultural investment.
"Because of the dry weather outside, our nurseries are in fact greenhouses and air-conditioned boutique-type indoor nurseries. They attract different types of customers. Some come in just to buy potted plants for their limited indoor space while others want us to design a garden in their apartments or sprawling villas.
"Kuwaitis are getting more competitive now, they are even looking at each other's garden," Hussam said while drinking Arabic coffee 'gahwa,' in his office.
ADC is also involved in irrigation systems that are part and parcel of its horticultural operations.
The company employs about 80 workers, many of them foreigners.
"The workers today have less knowledge," lamented Hussam.
But technology has come to the rescue.
"Processes are fully automated now," said Hussam.
"Besides that, the clients are more knowledgeable today. They know what the current trends are and the cost s. Clients want us to make their dream gardens come true so we use a 3D system and walk them through their gardens virtually," he added.
The trend in agriculture in the Middle East especially Kuwait is gaining sophistication, a trend also observed in neighbouring Saudi Arabia.
Hussam expressed relief that the Kuwaiti government is taking pro-active steps to encourage the younger generation to pursue a career in agriculture.
Grants are offered to those seeking to gain more knowledge in cultivating land with the latest technology.
"It is definitely a good sign. We have more locals taking up agriculture as a career upon graduating," Hussam told Bernama in a recent interview.
He is keen to do business with Malaysians as he finds that Malaysia offers a good variety of plants he could import.
"However, the plants need to be packed in special wrappers to ensure almost immediate shelf display and sales. We hope to minimise further fertilising and caring before delivery.
"Time lost is cost. We cannot afford to do that for large consignments.
"New technology in packing these plants will certainly be necessary."
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Last Updated on Saturday, 31 July 2010 10:00 |
