Growing in a greenhouse as a business: pitfalls, subtleties and nuances

Growing and selling vegetables and herbs in the winter season is a great business where you can make good money. In addition to the fact that the first vegetables are always 50-100% more expensive, in winter this figure almost doubles.

In order to implement such a task, first of all, it is necessary to take care of the quality of the shelter, where the vegetation will actually be grown. A winter greenhouse as a business must be thought out to the smallest detail. And how to build this business so that in the first 2-3 seasons to go to the "plus" - in our article.

Disadvantages and advantages of the idea

Since growing vegetables in a greenhouse requires not only special endurance, but also the creation of suitable conditions, understanding the principles of agriculture, you should be prepared for the fact that you will have to spend a lot of effort and money on the implementation of such a task in order to get the desired profit ... Just like any business plan, growing vegetation and vegetables in a winter greenhouse has its own advantages and disadvantages. But above all, you need to love and understand this matter so that the minuses turn into pluses.

Any assortment can be. The main thing is to determine the sales market

The main benefits of getting vegetables in a greenhouse are:

• Minimum costs in the first stages. Starting such a business is possible even from scratch, with a very limited budget. Thanks to this, there is an opportunity to raise their business to almost everyone who wants to make money on the greenhouse business. This is provided that there is a plot and it is possible to build a greenhouse on it, even from scrap materials.

In order for this idea not to be covered with frost in winter, there must be a spacious room with heating, high-quality coating and the ability to ventilate without the risk of destroying the growth.

In addition to the fact that you have the opportunity to sell products that are grown in the greenhouse in winter, you can also use it yourself, being content with homemade and very cheap, compared to purchased vegetables. Firstly, this is a quality that you have followed yourself, and secondly, it helps to save a lot of money on the purchase of expensive vegetables and herbs.

You can even grow grapes, if it will bring income in your region

Where and how to buy a greenhouse facility

There are several options: - You can buy part of the business from a large farm. Sometimes secondary production is implemented, the content of which is impractical for large volumes of the main activity. For example, farmers selling nightshade crops may sell part of a plant that grows and rears seeds. Such proposals must be seriously analyzed. They can be both the most profitable and the most risky in terms of investments; - Buy a ready-made greenhouse business on portals engaged in the creation of a turnkey agricultural (and not only) business. Ideal for beginners in terms of organization and management at the first stage.

Initial investment and costs

The total cost of entering the greenhouse business is at least 650-700 thousand rubles.

Important! The markup for products can range from 10 to 40-50%, depending on how expensive crops will be grown in the greenhouse.

At the same time, dill, green onions, and cilantro, which do not have a high price, can be grown almost all year round, harvesting throughout the year. Whereas tomatoes, strawberries, zucchini, other fruit and berry crops provide a maximum of 2-3 harvests per year, subject to high costs for maintaining the desired temperature and lighting in the cold season.

This video shows an example of a ready-made greenhouse for sale:

And in this video, tips and tricks from professional manufacturers on which and from what material to choose a greenhouse:

Official registration

Important! In order to open your own business - a greenhouse farm, it is better to register as a peasant farm - a peasant farm by issuing an individual entrepreneur.

This will allow you to receive official benefits, for example, to use the beneficial simplified tax regime for agricultural enterprises - the Unified Agricultural Taxation. True, for this it is necessary that the share of proceeds from the sale of agricultural products should be at least 70% of the total income. The sale consists in the re-registration of the business into an open private individual farm.

Challenges and business prospects

The production of polycarbonate greenhouses as a business can have a great return, the profitability indicators of finished structures exceed 100%. The advantage lies in the fact that small businesses are also interested in purchasing them, due to the increasing demand of the population for natural products, and business of an industrial scale.

It is not difficult to set up work in this direction, having the skills to work with the material, two people are enough for a start, and for a good start you need to develop a business plan.

Niche analysis and target audience

Target audience of polycarbonate greenhouse business:

• Owners of summer cottages, residents of rural areas who grow vegetables and fruits for their own needs or small sales.
• Farmers with greenhouse complexes, small businesses, horticultural associations.
• Large industrial greenhouse companies with high turnover.

Depending on the application, the types of greenhouses and their equipment differ, and these factors alone increase or minimize the cost of manufacturing polycarbonate greenhouses.

Types of greenhouses

• Amateur. It is characterized by seasonality of use, has a simple design, which can be dismantled if necessary. It is used for growing vegetables and fruits in minimal volumes; internal equipment, including automatic irrigation, is usually absent.
• Farm. It is intended for use in small businesses, has a larger volume, is operated all year round and can have internal equipment according to the wishes of the buyer.
• Industrial. A large-scale structure, often several tens of hectares, which can be used all year round and contains maximum equipment: automatic watering, LED bulbs, thermal actuators, pressure sensors, steam generators and a heating system.

Regardless of the volume of production, it is necessary to purchase raw materials for the manufacture of polycarbonate greenhouses.

Raw materials for greenhouse production

Polycarbonate is a material that is respected by both businessmen and consumers. What are its advantages, why exactly it, and not glass or film:

• Durability. The service life of the material is 30-35 years, which makes it practically irreplaceable.
• Density, the ability to transmit "useful" light for plants and vegetables.
• Ease of use, resistance of the material to external damage make it irreplaceable in gardening.
• Low cost is pleasant not only for gardeners, but also for businessmen.

Do you dream of building a greenhouse and growing it for sale? This is completely possible, no matter where you are and whatever your starting budget is. It is easy to build, cover and sow, but to grow correctly and sell successfully and on time - that's where science is. Let's take a look at all the intricacies of this business: how to learn how to find good seeds, successfully select a crop, organize seasonal cultivation and find buyers. And what specific concerns await you in the flower and vegetable business.

Greenhouse business pitfalls

In Russia, the growing business is developing steadily mainly on the basis of large greenhouses. Let us explain why now.

The fact is that growing in greenhouses significantly increases the cost of production. In addition, in the same summer, the market is packed with cheap vegetables from open beds and cheaper imports. And not all buyers try to study quality. That is why, without understanding the intricacies of this business, buying an industrial greenhouse with equipment and starting to actively grow cucumber-tomatoes in it is an absolutely losing option.

Stone Poor business plan

As for financial investments in this business, there will be a lot of them. You need to purchase a large greenhouse (or even several), good equipment and automation. Perhaps even hiring people - after all, you will not be able to sell products if you constantly work with the land. And this is another significant cost item.

We advise you to start with a small greenhouse made from scrap materials, where you can harvest a good harvest. You better first try to grow not for sale, but for yourself, study the market, fill cones and find your niche, optimize the implementation and the growing process. During this time, you will already help out something and will be able to purchase an already industrial greenhouse. It is better to raise this business like this, than immediately go into a big loan and suddenly realize that your entire crop has unexpectedly died or a hundredweight of champignons did not work out quickly, and they deteriorated. Indeed, for a quick and big profit, you will need to build a greenhouse economy. Can you imagine the cost of such a construction?

That is why our site is always full of such detailed articles with many step-by-step photos - so that you know all the subtleties! Master the skill first, learn what will grow better in your climate and what will be taken away for sale without any problems - and only then proceed to industrial-scale cultivation. Note that in Russia there are special programs to support entrepreneurs.

Here are the most proven greenhouse growing technologies for sale in terms of economy so far:

Stone No Demand

The current economic situation is forcing more and more people to become entrepreneurs. Trying to find a suitable niche, they try different options. The internet is rife with ideas and business plans. But people living in rural areas or the private sector of a small city are not suitable for most projects for megacities. It's worth switching to the available options. When choosing a vegetable growing business, you should minimize the seasonality factor in order to get stable income.

Advantages and disadvantages of growing vegetables in a greenhouse

Using greenhouses, you can completely reverse the seasonality of your business. The main advantage of greenhouses is the ability to supply fresh vegetables to the market in cold weather. By choosing adherents of proper nutrition as the target audience, high profit margins are achieved. In the summer, it is not difficult to find cucumbers or tomatoes, and in the winter, prices rise significantly, but consumers are ready to purchase products.

Growing any kind of plant in a greenhouse all year round is not expensive. The main costs are for land lease. The construction of a building does not require special knowledge and expensive materials. Due to this, the project will quickly pay off and begin to bring good profits. As a rule, the first income comes a year after starting a business. Farmers consume the products on their own, guaranteeing the quality and safety of food.

As far as possible disadvantages are concerned, a lot of costs are spent on the constant payment of electricity bills. Greenhouses should be well lit for most of the day. During the summer months you will have to try hard to find a free market with a good price. Often, customers cannot pick up vegetables and fruits on their own, so they often have to take delivery on themselves.

The financial component of the greenhouse business

It is worth figuring out how much you need to invest and how quickly it will pay off before starting any work. Keep in mind that the ratio of income and expenses is highly dependent on the area occupied by the greenhouse. As an example, consider an option of 300 m 2.

Initially, the question arises about the need to rent or purchase a territory for a greenhouse. The cheapest option is to search for a place outside the city, because it is cheaper there, and you need to take into account the delivery costs. It is important to find a "middle ground" in terms of distance from the city. Further spending on building materials and construction. Initial purchase of soil and seedlings. This includes costs and legal issues. On average, this comes out to 500,000 rubles.

When the building is ready, you can hire employees who will guard the premises and look after the vegetables. The salary fund varies depending on the qualifications of the workers. For a construction of 300 m 2, 3 people are enough, a month - about 70 thousand rubles. Associated expenses require about 40,000 rubles. And the income is obtained starting from 400,000 rubles. per month. Depending on the season, the figure may increase or decrease.

How to choose what to grow in a greenhouse

Having gone through the first steps, a reasonable question arises about which plants bring the most profit. It is also important to understand where it is easier to start and what requires a minimum of maintenance. It is important to consider the shelf life of the product.

The possibility of choice forces us to consider in detail all options, as well as third-party factors, in order to conduct business as efficiently as possible. The level of competition in the market you are going to enter is being studied. It is important to understand what entrepreneurs are currently offering. Not only are the competitors owning greenhouses taken into account, but also the number of plants offered from conventional fields.