From farm to fork: bringing sustainable and organic farming to Lebanon’s agricultural scene

location
Lebanon

Programme
From Innovation to Creation

Ramy Bawadi is a young Lebanese farmer on a mission to promote sustainable agriculture, fight climate change and combat poverty in Lebanon. Having studied landscape architecture, with an expertise in environmental conservation and modern agriculture, Ramy had all the right tools to set up his ecological project. In 2019, he founded ‘Ramy's Ecological Farm’, becoming the first ecological farm in Lebanon.

The farm is located in Batloun, in the ‘Chouf’ region of Lebanon known for its fertile soil and beautiful scenery. To run his farm efficiently and sustainably, Ramy has combined land-respecting farming methods, such as crop rotation and rainwater harvesting, with intelligent technologies. This way, the farm produces an array of organic produce which visitors are able to savour at the farm’s restaurant.

Beyond these naturally grown goodies, Ramy has set up educational workshops for his visitors, in order to raise awareness on healthy eating and sustainable agricultural practices. The farm also provides touristic services, such as camping and hiking in the nearby mountains.

To further develop the farm, Ramy participated in ‘SCALE HUB’ initiative, which is part of the From Innovation to Creation programme funded by the European Union, in collaboration with SPARK and The Nawaya Network. The objective of the programme is to support pioneering entrepreneurs to lead the transition to a greener, more sustainable future.

Through the programme, Ramy and his team were trained in a variety of domains, such as exporting procedures, go-to-market strategies and the blue-print to develop a successful green business. SCALE HUB helped Ramy to consolidate and expand the farm’s activities as well as develop its productivity. According to Ramy, the programme helped the farm’s plant production rate increase by more than 45% , now producing up to 30,000 plants each season.

“SCALE HUB equipped us with all the training we needed to introduce our business to the local market”. Ramy, founder of Ramy’s Ecological Farm.

As tough economic conditions in Lebanon have shaken local businesses, Ramy is looking to further invest in autonomous and sustainable capital, and he hopes to introduce an ‘ecological building’ to his farm; an eco-friendly building that produces vegetables all year round. He is equally researching ways to reach new customers and offer new services to his visitors, in order to spread the green movement across the country and beyond.