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On the Dutch Caribbean island of Curaçao, securing a steady supply of fresh produce is becoming increasingly crucial. Often reliant on imports, the island faces high prices and frequent shortages of fresh vegetables. CurHydro, an innovative agricultural company founded in 2018, is answering this challenge with high-tech farming solutions. With support from Green Assist, CurHydro is set to expand its project to provide a sustainable food source for the island community.

In the past years, CurHydro has successfully produced fresh lettuce on 300 m² of land, using solar-powered systems and a method known as hydroponics (growing plants in nutrient-rich water without soil). CurHydro currently supplies its produce to local foodservice and retail partners, but growing demand starts to exceed supply. With local interest booming and its commitment to sustainability, CurHydro is ready to expand.

The company has secured a building permit for a new 6-hectare site and is planning the construction of a 1.5 hectare high-tech greenhouse, in partnership with the Spanish manufacturer Rufepa Tecnoagro. This new facility will allow to grow vegetables that are well-suited to hydroponic farming – such as lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers and bell peppers. This greenhouse will maintain high efficiency and low water consumption, providing a steady supply of fresh, affordable produce grown locally. This helps to reduce imports, boost food resilience on the island, support the local economy by creating jobs, and increase health awareness.

But scaling up this advanced farming model requires strong planning and significant financing. To design a solid business model and attract investors, CurHydro sought tailored support from Green Assist.

From September to December 2024, the company worked with a Green Assist expert to refine its financial strategy, assess funding options, and improve the project’s investment appeal. This included detailed financial modelling, market analysis, and support with identifying public and private sources of funding.

The expert guidance also helped to define a clear implementation roadmap. With land secured, technical feasibility achieved and partnerships in place, the project is now preparing for fundraising, procurement and further construction. The new greenhouse is expected to be operational within two years, creating new local jobs and strengthening food access in Curaçao.

“Thanks to Green Assist, we now have a robust financing roadmap and a sharper investment case. That support accelerated our path to scale so we can deliver reliable, local produce while cutting water use and emissions for a healthier, more resilient Curaçao.” — Shurhensley Thielman Quirindoongo, President & CEO, CurHydro.

The long-term vision is to develop all 6 hectares into a modern agricultural hub, helping build a more self-sufficient, healthy and resilient island food system.

Green Assist aims to build a pipeline for high-impact green investment projects in sectors related to biodiversity, natural capital and circular economy, as well as in non-environmental sectors. 

Learn more about how Green Assist can help you get free tailored support for your green project or contact us at cinea-green-assistec [dot] europa [dot] eu (cinea-green-assist[at]ec[dot]europa[dot]eu). To request advisory services from Green Assist, simply fill out this short form.

A new Ookla report found that the digital divide has narrowed in 33 states during the first half of 2025.

Key Takeaways

• The number of states with 60% or more of Speedtest users experiencing the FCC’s minimum standard for fixed broadband speeds of 100 Mbps downstream and 20 Mbps upstream jumped from 22 states and the District of Columbia in the 2H of 2024 to 38 states and the District of Columbia in 1H of 2025.
• The digital divide between urban and rural users improved in the first half of 2025 with 33 states seeing the gap between the percentage of fixed urban users and fixed rural users that receive the minimum required FCC broadband speeds lessen during that time while 17 states saw that gap grow in the first half of 2025 compared to the second half of 2024. Ookla uses the Census Bureau’s urban-rural classification to determine which users are urban vs. rural. 
• The digital divide doesn’t exist for many Starlink users. In26 out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, rural users get better broadband speeds than their urban counterparts. This is likely due to Starlink’s ability to overcome the geographic and cost barriers that make delivering fixed rural broadband so difficult. 

U.S. broadband speeds are on the uptick, and more users are getting better performance than ever from their broadband connectivity. However, there are still some states (particularly those with lower population density and vast terrain) that are struggling to deliver broadband services to their residents. 

Ookla Speedtest Intelligence® data found that the number of states that are able to deliver fixed broadband services (fiber, cable and DSL) to the minimum standard of broadband speeds (100 Mbps download and 20 Mbps upload) to 60% or more of Speedtest users in their state grew dramatically from 22 states and the District of Columbia in the second half of 2024 to 38 states and the District of Columbia in the first half of 2025. 

In addition, there are now five states—Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, North Dakota and Rhode Island —delivering speeds of 100/20 Mbps to more than 70% of their users.

Not only are broadband speeds improving, Speedtest data from the first half of 2025 also revealed that 33 states narrowed the gap between how many rural users vs. urban users were able to achieve the FCC’s minimum broadband speeds of 100/20 Mbps.

This is a fairly dramatic turnaround from the second half of 2024 when Speedtest data showed that 32 states had increased their digital divide instead of decreasing it. Ookla uses the Census Bureau’s urban-rural classification to determine which users are urban vs. rural. 

South Dakota No. 1 in Starlink-delivered broadband speeds

As a result of NTIA’s June decision to allow other technologies such as LEO satellites to compete for BEAD funding, at least 32 states and territories have decided to include LEO satellite systems in their final proposals (not all final BEAD proposals have been submitted as some states received extensions). While many states are still prioritizing fiber, LEO services such as SpaceX’s Starlink and Amazon’s Kuiper are appearing in many of the revised proposals. 

We looked at Speedtest data on SpaceX’s Starlink service in every state and the District of Columbia to see what percentage of Starlink users received the FCC’s minimum standard for broadband of 100/20 Mbps. South Dakota is the No. 1 state with 37.1% of Starlink users getting access to 100/20 Mbps speeds followed by Maine with 35.3% of users and Wyoming with 34.5% of users.

Download the full report

To find your state’s standing and how it compares to the rest of the country in broadband connectivity, download this free report here.

Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.