ANNOUNCEMENTS
This study explores the solar hydroponic fodder unit as an income enhancement tool for communities heavily reliant on seasonal crop income. An adjunct mushroom unit and a vegetable greenhouse have been proposed as sequential additions for revenue enhancement, depending on supply chain maturity. The revenue models of sales of fodder and livestock products have also been quantified and compared. It is inferred that sale of fodder has a greater rate of revenue generation, however it is dependent on the presence of an established supply chain. Increased income through boosted livestock productivity is a more pragmatic approach for off-grid communities. The fodder unit has been designed to be affordable, reparable and DC-compatible to reduce the cost of an inverter. The automation is achieved through an Arduino based sensor-actuator network. LED power optimisation based on plant physiology has also been briefly discussed and a cost effective method for measuring photosynthetic active radiation (PAR) has been proposed.
