Greenhouses are good for farming in Oman

Muscat: A team of agriculture experts is conducting a research funded by the Research Council to develop greenhouses in the Sultanate.
The researchers are led by Dr. Abdul Raheem bin Mohammed Al Ismaili, Researcher and Assistant Professor at the College of Agriculture and Marine Sciences at Sultan Qaboos University (SQU)
Greenhouses, especially plastic ones have been an option in the Sultanate due to climate condition, high temperature and water scarcity.
A study conducted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries found that production increased by 12 times at the greenhouses and water productivity increased by two times. This encouraged farmers to use the technology.
The number of greenhouses in the Sultanate increased from 782 to 2,491 between 2001 and 2003. The number also increased to 4,740 in 2010; a 40 per cent accumulated annual growth rate.
Despite the many benefits greenhouses bring, farmers still face difficulties in marketing their products and competition at foreign markets.
Dr Al Ismaili said that the research project, conducted, in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, aims at collecting accurate and reliable data on greenhouses in the Sultanate, analysing such data and providing proposals, strategic plans and methods that increase the production of greenhouses and enhance water use efficiency.