Download our 2024 Impact Report and dive into the details of what our global community has achieved to date.
Of the world’s 570 million farms, over 80 percent cover less than two hectares, the size of three football pitches. Together, these small-hold farms produce a third of our food, but those who farm them are amongst the poorest people on the planet and the most affected by climate change.
India is home to 100 million small-hold farmers and the nation is one of the most climate-affected in the world. This year it recorded its earliest and one of its fiercest heatwaves on record, slashing harvests when the world was already beset by food shortages.
Kheyti, an Indian startup, has developed a simple solution that is already having a considerable impact. Its Greenhouse-in-a-Box is designed for small-hold farmers and the crops they grow, offering shelter from unpredictable elements and destructive pests. Kheyti also trains and supports farmers to ensure their greenhouse is as effective as possible.
The results are dramatic. Plants in the greenhouse require 98 percent less water than those outdoors and yields are seven-times higher. Ninety percent cheaper than a standard greenhouse, they are more than doubling farmers’ incomes, helping them invest more in their farms and their children’s education. Using less water and fewer pesticides, they are protecting the planet too.
Today, 1,000 farms have a Kheyti greenhouse, but this is just the start. By 2027, Kheyti wants 50,000 farmers to have a Greenhouse-in-a-Box.
Since winning the 2022 Earthshot Prize to Protect and Restore Nature, Kheyti have doubled their team and now have access to hundreds of thousands of farmers.
To scale its solutions to reach 10,000 farmers over the next two years, Kheyti has invested The Earthshot Prize money into its product, technology, market and service strategy. This includes projects to further reduce the cost of the greenhouse and improve its efficiency, create a marketing function, build a sales channel and set up a franchise model
In 2023, Kheyti installed five times the number of greenhouses than the previous year, the size of the team has doubled, and income has almost doubled alongside that. Part of this growth is due to its new partnership strategy. Beginning with no partners last year, Kheyti is now working with 16 NGO partners in India, with access to over 200,000 farmers.
Kheyti greenhouses saved 2.5 million tonnes of water in 2023 compared to conventional farming methods. This is over three times more than they saved in 2022 and over six times more than in 2021. It has also reached almost 1,700 new small-hold farmers, more than three times the number reached across 2021 and 2022 combined.
Arup is supporting the Kheyti team with product design to reduce the capital cost of the greenhouses while Deloitte has provided advice on strategy development. The Aga Khan Foundation is bringing the solutions to farmers it works with in India and subsidising the project. Thanks partly to the support received, Kheyti has launched its cheapest greenhouse yet.
Download our 2024 Impact Report and dive into the details of what our global community has achieved to date.