ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada — On a small family farm in southern Grenada, husband-and-wife team Roger and Josanne “Candy” Benjamin are quietly demonstrating what climate-resilient agriculture looks like in practice. Inside their solar-powered greenhouse, lettuce grows without a single grain of soil, fed by a steady flow of nutrient-rich water moving through narrow pipes — and producing more than two-and-a-half times what they once managed in open ground.
Their story, profiled by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), offers a glimpse of what is possible when small Caribbean farmers are equipped with the right tools to adapt to a changing climate. It also carries clear lessons for St. Vincent and the Grenadines, where farmers face similar climate pressures.
From Trial and Error to a Working System
Roger, 41, and Candy, 38, did not set out to pioneer anything. They were trying to solve a problem familiar to small farmers across the Eastern Caribbean: rainfall arriving in unpredictable bursts, long dry stretches in between, and the growing certainty that each season carried more risk than the last.
Roger spent evenings watching online videos and reading whatever he could find on hydroponics. The couple’s first attempt was modest — a basic shade house, a set of pipes, and a simple monitoring setup. They learned by adjusting as they went.
The breakthrough came through a readiness project implemented by FAO and funded by the Green Climate Fund (GCF). The initiative is part of a series of project pilots in Grenada designed to generate evidence for national adaptation planning.
Through the project, the Benjamins received a fully equipped greenhouse, a robust hydroponic system, a solar pump with panels and batteries, and training on operating the technology. The result was striking: production climbed from roughly 500 heads of lettuce per cycle to approximately 1,300 — a 160 percent increase.
Why Hydroponics Matters for Climate Adaptation
Compared to conventional cultivation, hydroponics uses up to 90 percent less water — a significant saving in a region where prolonged dry periods are becoming more frequent. The technology also reduces exposure to soil-borne pests, allows more efficient use of space, inputs, and labour, and supports more frequent harvests of fast-growing, high-value crops such as lettuce, kale, spinach, herbs, peppers, and tomatoes.
But the system demands precision. The Benjamins use a method in which a thin layer of nutrient-rich water flows continuously through the pipes, feeding the plants as it passes. Getting the gradient of those pipes right took considerable trial and error.
Too steep, and the water flows too fast for the roots to absorb nutrients. Too flat, and the water pools and starves the roots of oxygen. The couple also had to adapt to using hydroponic-specific fertilisers, which cost more upfront but last longer than conventional inputs.
Stability in a Changing Climate
What the covered hydroponic system offers, above all, is stability. In Grenada, heavy rainfall can destroy crops through rot and fungus, while heat dries out soils and slashes yields. Inside the ventilated greenhouse, those pressures are dramatically reduced. The metal-frame structure allows hot air to escape while shielding plants from excessive rain, creating a controlled environment where production can continue even when weather conditions outside are unfavourable.
Solar power is central to keeping the operation viable. The pumps must run continuously to circulate water, air, and nutrients — an electricity demand that would be prohibitive on the grid. The project’s provision of solar panels, a solar pump, and batteries means high initial capital cost but manageable running costs, and the system also reduces emissions.
Day-to-day maintenance is relatively light. Monitoring the system takes about 30 minutes daily, and the work itself is less physically punishing than traditional farming — no tilling, no extended bending, no heavy lifting.
Finding the Market
For the Benjamins, growing the lettuce is only half the challenge. Finding consistent buyers in a competitive market is the other.
The farm now sells most of its lettuce to supermarkets, while using social media to reach customers directly. Candy says repeat customers come back because they notice the consistency and freshness — a pattern familiar to any Caribbean farmer who has tried to break into supermarket supply chains, where reliability often matters as much as price.
The couple is already planning to expand. Tomatoes, cabbage, and cauliflower are next on the list, though those crops require larger pipes to accommodate bigger root structures, meaning further adaptation of the existing system.
A Ripple Effect Across the Community
Word travels fast on a small island. Other farmers have begun experimenting with hydroponics, and the Benjamins have welcomed visits to their farm and shared what they have learned, helping several neighbours build similar systems of their own.
Looking ahead, Roger and Candy are exploring a farm-to-table model that would let customers buy directly from the farm. They also want to continue sharing their experience more widely.
The Bigger Picture: Building Climate-Resilient Agriculture
Beyond the individual pilots, FAO has worked with the Government of Grenada to strengthen the country’s broader capacity for climate adaptation planning. That support has included the development of a knowledge management portal, a Climate Risk Atlas, a Standard Precipitation Index, a National Food Security Index, and a Food and Nutrition Policy and Action Plan — instruments designed to give policymakers better data on which to base agricultural and food security decisions.
For St. Vincent and the Grenadines, where smallholder farming remains a backbone of rural livelihoods and where climate variability is reshaping growing seasons, the Benjamin family’s experience is more than a feel-good story. It is a working model — one that combines appropriate technology, targeted training, and renewable energy to make small-scale agriculture viable in a hotter, more unpredictable climate.
The lessons travel well. The greenhouse is small. The water-saving is enormous. The yield is more than double. And the path that got them there — curiosity, trial and error, and access to a well-designed support programme — is one that Vincentian farmers and policymakers may want to study closely.