For a long time, horseradish was grown on farms in small quantities and mainly for their own use. However, nowadays horseradish is gradually becoming a fairly profitable niche crop, not requiring large investments in its cultivation.

Horseradish, what a plant

Horseradish is a perennial spicy-aromatic herb from the cabbage family with a height of 40-150 cm of the aerial part and with a thick fleshy root up to 3 m long.

Raw horseradish contains about 16% carbohydrates, up to 3% nitrogenous substances, as well as some fat. In terms of vitamin C content, horseradish is ahead of lemon and loses only to rose hips and black currants.

Horseradish also contains phytoncides, saponins, flavonoids, thioglycosides, essential mustard oils, sugar, starch, resinous substances, fiber, vitamins of group B, PP.

Horseradish is rich in potassium, calcium, sodium, sulfur, phosphorus, iron and other minerals. Fresh horseradish leaves contain a lot of carotene.

Horseradish is useful for improving digestion, function of the gallbladder, pancreas, kidneys, hematopoietic organs and for vitamin deficiency, pleurisy, high blood pressure. Horseradish delays the development of Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, the causative agent of tuberculosis, interferes with the multiplication of the influenza virus from group A.

Drinking water, in which 1-2 horseradish roots float, stays fresh for a long time, has a pleasant taste and healing properties. It promotes the elimination of excess fluid and uric acid from the body.

Benefits of growing horseradish as a business:

• fast return on investment;
• small initial investment;
• low labor intensity of production;
• simple agrotechnics of cultivation;
• the presence of a "free niche" in this area in the agricultural market.

Disadvantages of a horseradish business:

• there is not a very large demand for this product, although it is popular with people;
• at the initial stage, it is difficult to find a reliable supplier of planting material;
• the need to cultivate and fertilize the soil;
• In the absence of wholesale buyers, sales difficulties may arise.

How profitable is this business

Horseradish looks like a good niche business. The profit gained from growing horseradish roots, as evidenced by various business calculations, can be two to three times higher than the costs.

This type of business is profitable and pays off in the first year. On average, the profitability will be about 70%.

Sale is possible both to wholesale buyers and retail. Selling to wholesalers is better as it will reduce shipping costs and speed up the sales process.

From a land plot of about 100 sq. m you can get up to 150-200 kg of quality roots. At a price of 12-40 UAH. for 1 kg you can get from 1800 to 8000 UAH.

When growing horseradish on an industrial scale, up to 20,000 kg of finished rhizomes can be grown per 100 hectares.

The largest horseradish processor in Ukraine is the Vinnytsia food flavoring factory. The Veres group of companies is also involved in horseradish processing.

If you grow organic horseradish according to all the requirements, with an average yield of 5-6 t / ha, you can get from 7 to 108 thousand dollars in income. It all depends on the growing conditions and the type in which the harvested crop is sold.

After all, 1 ton of organic horseradish costs $ 13-18 thousand. Inorganic horseradish is bought at $ 0.8-1.2 thousand / t. Horseradish plates can be sold at $ 2-4 thousand / ton, dry - at $ 34 thousand / ton.

By the way, the leaves also have nutritional value and can be sold as well.

In Ukraine, there are entire villages where people grow horseradish, for example, the village of Novoye Davydkovo, Mukachevo region of Transcarpathia. Local residents, even at the entrance to the village, are going to erect a horseradish monument.

Horseradish is grown on an industrial scale in the village of Podkamen, Lviv region. Also in Europe there are specialized farms for the cultivation of this crop. For example, the Chroner business is a family business of the fifth generation of the Chamel family of German farmers.