Hydroponics Market - Forecasts from 2023 to 2028

The hydroponics market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 8.70% to reach US$17.815 billion by 2028 from US$9.936 billion in 2021.

Hydroponic farming is a method of cultivating crops without soil, where soil by replaced with a mineral solution and is inserted around plant roots. The plant roots are submerged in the solution and get necessary nutrients from it also, hydroponic farming removes the risk of disease which are caused by soil organisms. This new method of farming is gaining popularity as the population around the world is increasing and so is the demand for food is expected to rise in the coming years. For instance, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), estimates show that by 2050 there will be 9.1 billion feeding population in the world, and to feed such a huge population food production has to be increased by 70 percent between 2005-2007 and 2050.

Furthermore, taking advantage of the increased demand companies are launching hydroponic farming that will increase their presence. For instance, in September 2022, GrowGeneration, which has hydroponic and organic centers in 60 locations across 15 states, announced the planned opening of a new hydroponic garden center in Richmond, Virginia. Along with this, the company has signed two new leases in Mount Holly, New Jersey, and Hazelwood, Missouri. Hence, such increasing development in the field of hydroponic farming is anticipated to boost the demand for the same in the projected period.

Reduction in arable land and increasing investments

The land dedicated to agriculture is decreasing in many developed and developing countries as there is increasing construction for commercial and residential projects. Across the globe, urbanization, competing land use, and land degradation are increasing the demand for farming that uses less land and gives more output. For instance, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), National Agricultural Statistics Services the number of farms in the United States for 2021 was estimated to be 20,12,050 down 6,950 farms from 2020. Such a decrease in farm areas is one of the major drivers propelling the market growth for hydroponics farming.

Major investments are happening in the hydroponic market which is further fueling the market. For instance, in July 2022, the joint corporation of Emirates Flight Catering (EKFC) and Crop One, which is named Bustanica unveiled its 3,30,000 square feet, which is the world's largest hydroponic farm. The farm is backed with an investment of US$40 million. The facility is anticipated to produce more than 10,00,000 kilograms of high-quality leafy greens annually, which would require 95% less water compared to conventional agriculture.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the total land in farms reduced from 9,02,680 thousand acres in 2016 to 8,95,300 thousand acres in 2021. With the reduction in cultivable land crop production is expected to suffer in the coming years. Moreover, the increasing demand for food and the less cultivable area is demanding to come up with solutions that take less land and help in more crop production. Hence, in the forecasted period the demand for hydroponic farming is expected to be driven due to these factors.

It is projected that the hydroponics market in the USA will grow steadily.

Hydroponics are a subset of hydroculture where instead of soil, water-based nutrient solutions are used for plant growing. Such technique in comparison to conventional farming is much easier and cost-effective owing to which it is majorly applied in growing crops such as strawberries, tomato, cucumber, pepper, and lettuce. The growing demand for fresh market vegetables and peppers in the USA coupled with the increasing salad and leafy vegetables consumption has provided a positive market outlook for hydroponics in the country. For instance, according to the “Vegetables and Pulses Outlook” report by USDA, in 2022, bell-pepper production stood at 1,041 million pounds which signified an increase of 7.1% over 2021’s production volume of 972 million pounds. Also, as per the same source in 2019, two-thirds of the 55.2 million pounds of lettuce produced in the USA were from hydroponic systems.

Besides increasing crop production, the favorable research & development activities undertaken by the physiologist to study plant nutrition coupled with the establishment of hydroponics farms in the USA are also propelling the market growth at the country level. Moreover, the constant population growth has increased food demand in the USA which has increased the requirement of modern technologies that take less time in crop production. Furthermore, the growing shift towards vertical and profit farming is acting as an additional driving factor for market growth.

Segmentation:

By Type

• Liquid Hydroponic System
• Aggregate Hydroponic System
• Closed System
• Open System

By Input

• Growth Medium
• Nutrients

By Crop

• Strawberry
• Pepper
• Lettuce & Leafy Vegetables
• Tomato
• Cucumber
• Other

By Geography

• North America
• USA
• Canada
• Mexico
• South America
• Brazil
• Argentina
• Others
• Europe
• Germany
• United Kingdom
• France
• Others
• Middle East and Africa
• Saudi Arabia
• UAE
• Others
• Asia Pacific
• China
• Japan
• India
• South Korea
• Thailand
• Indonesia
• Taiwan
• Others