Spain · Almeria
Almeria’s sea of greenhouses
Low-cost plastic-film greenhouses on 31,000 hectares, drip, and beneficial insects instead of most of the chemicals. This model is closer to Southern Russia and Vietnam than Dutch glass.
Numbers
- Greenhouses: 31,614 ha (2018 mapping); they are visible from space.
- Fruit and vegetable exports: €4,148.5 million and 2.76 million t (08.2024–07.2025, a record).
- Biological control with beneficial insects: on 28,647 ha of greenhouses (2023/24 season).
What to learn
Garden
Film, drip and mulch put warmth and water where they are needed — without expensive glass.
Farm
Beneficial insects in place of some chemicals: a cleaner crop, and buyers value that.
Agribusiness
A low-cost greenhouse run well beats an expensive one run badly: what matters most is the agronomist and the water.
Video
A video search on third-party platforms — it opens in a new tab.
Other farms
Netherlands · Westland
Dutch greenhouses
×13tomato yield vs. the world average
Read more Photo: Rob Oo from NL · CC BY 2.0
Israel · Arava and Negev
Israel’s water
≈90%of treated wastewater goes to irrigation
Read more Photo: Eddau · CC BY-SA 3.0
Russia · South, Center, Volga region, Siberia
Russia’s grain
No. 1in world wheat exports
Read more Photo: Ростсельмаш СМИ · CC BY-SA 4.0