US - NEW YORK: Yemi Amu’s Urban Farming Concept Takes Root In The Big Apple

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By Tony Binns | October 6, 2020 

Earth is the only home we have. If we don’t start now to turn around the environmental damage we have caused, we might not be around to save it and the plants and animals that we depend on. As a possible solution, many metropolitan cities are turning to urban farming and aquaponics. In Brooklyn, New York, Nigerian-born Yemi Amu has been a part of this movement by opening the city’s only teaching aquaponics farm, Oko Farms.

What is aquaponics and why is it important to the sustainability of our planet?

Aquaponics is farming in water. It is the cultivation of fish and plants together in a symbiotic aquatic ecosystem whereby fish waste provides nutrients for plants while plant roots filter the water for the fish. This farming method allows you to raise both fish and plants while using up to 80% less water than traditional farming. Aquaponics is also scalable and can occur both indoors and outdoors.

As we deal with the environmental impacts of climate change including soil erosion and drought, alternative growing methods like aquaponics can help create food security for vulnerable communities.

What is Oko Farms and how did it find a home in Brooklyn?

Oko Farms is an aquaponics farming and education company in Brooklyn. In 2013, we converted an abandoned lot in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn, into the Oko Farms Aquaponics Education center — NYC’s first outdoor — and only publicly accessible — aquatic farm. We were able to acquire the lot through a partnership with the Brooklyn Economic Development Corporation and GreenThumb NYC.

In addition to growing a wide variety of vegetables and fish, we provide workshops, tours, and support individuals and organizations with setting up their own aquaponics farms.

What type of produce and fish do you grow on your farm?

We grow a variety of vegetables on our farm, including leafy greens, herbs, onions, tomatoes, peppers, sweet potatoes, cabbage, sorghum, rice, millet, squash, etc. We also raise catfish, bluegill, tilapia, goldfish, and koi

How did you get into aquaponics?

I learned about aquaponics while I was managing a rooftop farm that I helped to create. The rooftop farm was located at a housing facility for formerly homeless adults in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, in 2011. One of the neighborhood volunteers introduced me to aquaponics and I was attracted to the fact that it saves water while producing both fish and vegetables. After that, I spent a couple of years studying and visiting aquaponics farms in Florida and the Midwest.

Are there career opportunities for people of color in the field?

Aquaponics farming is a great option for people of color interested in a career in farming, especially those living in urban areas. Access to land for farming can be challenging for people of color in the U.S, but some cities like Detroit, Philadelphia, and Atlanta have urban ag[riculture] policies that support farmers of color with land access.

For more information, visit www.okofarms.org.

Lead photo: Yemi Amu, director of Oko Farms (Photo courtesy of Harrison Chen)

MALAYSIA: Aquaponic Farming Promises Higher Yields For Kundasang Farmers

September 29th, 2020

Their ventures are proving to be lucrative and they encourage more young farmers to grow vegetables using these modern and more sustainable techniques

By MUHAMMAD BASIR ROSLAN

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Aquaponic vegetables are chemical-free as no other fertiliser is used with the exception of the fish waste (pic: Bernama)

IN THE cool, hilly area of Kundasang in Ranau, about 100km from Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, a small group of young farmers are trying their hand at cultivating vegetables using aquaponic and hydroponic techniques.

Under the guidance of the Kinabalu Area Farmers Organisation (PPK), the farmers based in Kampung Desa Aman in Kundasang have gone into aquaponics and hydroponics since December 2019.

Their ventures are proving to be lucrative and PPK Kinabalu intends to encourage more young farmers to grow vegetables using these modern and more sustainable techniques.

According to PPK Kinabalu GM Muhammad Irwan Maruji, in aquaponics, the whole cultivation process — starting from planting the seedlings until they are ready for harvesting — takes only about three to four weeks. And, he added, vegetables harvested from a 223 sq m block of aquaponic plants can rake in sales of around RM5,600 a month.

“The capital to start an aquaponic venture, including setting up the pond and a 223 sq m block and greenhouse, comes to about RM85,000. The investment, however, is worthwhile compared to the returns,” he told Bernama, adding that aquaponic farming is suitable for young entrepreneurs who want to get involved in agriculture.

In aquaponic farming, aquaculture (rearing of aquatic animals such as freshwater fish or prawns in tanks) is combined with hydroponics (cultivating plants without soil) in an integrated system where the aquatic waste serves as nutrients for the plants which, in turn, purifies the water in the tank.

Prihatin Aid

Pointing out that vegetable farmers in Kundasang and other parts of Sabah were badly hit during the initial stage of the Movement Control Order, Muhammad Irwan said under the federal government’s Prihatin Rakyat Economic Stimulus Plan, each PPK in Sabah was allocated RM100,000 to RM200,000 to revitalise the agricultural sector.

“We are grateful for the allocation as it will be very helpful to the farmers and agro entrepreneurs here,” he said, adding that PPK Kinabalu plans to use the funds to start an additional hydroponic venture involving the local farmers, as well as introduce maize cultivation and a hanging fertigation system next month.

He said courses on aquaponic and hydroponic farming will be conducted starting early next month, following which he hopes to rope in at least 20 young farmers a year to pursue aquaponic and hydroponic ventures. “PPK Kinabalu also plans to expand the market for their vegetable produce to outside of Sabah,” he added.

Free of Chemicals

In aquaponic farming, aquaculture (rearing of aquatic animals) is combined with hydroponics (cultivating plants without soil) in an integrated system

Elaborating on PPK Kinabalu’s aquaponic venture with local farmers on a 2.83ha site in Kampung Desa Aman, Muhammad Irwan said vegetables such as red coral lettuce, green coral lettuce, mustard plant and celery are being cultivated as they are suitable for aquaponic farming. As for the aquatic component, ikan tilapia and ikan keli are being reared.

“Aquaponic vegetables are chemical-free as no other fertiliser is used with the exception of the fish waste.

“For this farming technique, we need not use much water and the plants mature faster and yield higher quality produce,” he said, adding that they also plan to sell the ikan tilapia once they mature.

“So, eventually, this project will enable us to ‘kill two birds with one stone’.”

Cattle Project

Sabah State Farmers Organisation (PPN) acting GM Mohd Sabri Jalaludin, meanwhile, said with the allocation his agency received under Prihatin, they plan to implement a cattle fattening project which is expected to have a positive impact on the state’s economic cycle.

He said PPN Sabah has expertise in the livestock industry as it has been involved in it for over 10 years. For the new project, the agency plans to buy 40 head of cattle from cattle rearers within the state in a bid to support local businesses.

Under the first phase of the project, expected to kick off next month, the cows will be fed palm kernel cake or palm kernel expeller, wheat husk, and soy residue to fatten them. Once they attain a minimum weight of 320kg each, they will be sold at RM4,000 to RM5,000 each.

Mohd Sabri added that in view of the project’s potential to contribute to the growth of the state’s GDP, they plan to increase the cat- tle to 320 heads by 2021. — Bernama

Aquaponic Farming Promises Higher Yields For Kundasang Farmers

September 26, 2020

By: Bernama

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Green coral lettuce (left) and red coral lettuce thrive when cultivated using the hydroponic or aquaponic technique. Photo courtesy of Muhammad Irwan Maruji.

KOTA KINABALU: In the cool, hilly area of Kundasang in Ranau, about 100 kilometers from Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, a small group of young farmers are trying their hand at cultivating vegetables using aquaponic and hydroponic techniques.

Under the guidance of the Kinabalu Area Farmers Organisation (PPK), the farmers based in Kampung Desa Aman in Kundasang have gone into aquaponics and hydroponics since December 2019.

Their ventures are proving to be lucrative and PPK Kinabalu intends to encourage more young farmers to grow vegetables using these modern and more sustainable techniques.

According to PPK Kinabalu general manager Muhammad Irwan Maruji, in aquaponics the whole cultivation process, starting from planting the seedlings until they are ready for harvesting, takes only about three to four weeks. And, he added, vegetables harvested from a 223-square meter block of aquaponic plants can rake in sales of around RM5,600 a month.

“The capital to start an aquaponics venture, including setting up the pond and a 223-sq m block and greenhouse, comes to about RM85,000. The investment, however, is worthwhile when compared to the returns,” he told Bernama, adding that aquaponic farming is suitable for young entrepreneurs who want to get involved in agriculture.

In aquaponic farming, aquaculture (rearing of aquatic animals such as freshwater fish or prawns in tanks) is combined with hydroponics (cultivating plants without soil) in an integrated system where the aquatic waste serves as nutrients for the plants which, in turn, purifies the water in the tank.

Pointing out that vegetable farmers in Kundasang and other parts of Sabah were badly hit during the initial stage of the Movement Control Order, Muhammad Irwan said under the federal government’s Prihatin Rakyat Economic Stimulus Plan (Prihatin), each PPK in Sabah was allocated RM100,000 to RM200,000 to revitalise the agricultural sector.

“We are grateful for the allocation as it will be very helpful to the farmers and agro entrepreneurs here,” he said, adding that PPK Kinabalu plans to use the funds to start an additional hydroponic venture involving the local farmers, as well as introduce maize cultivation and a hanging fertigation system next month.

He said courses on aquaponic and hydroponic farming will be conducted starting early next month, following which he hopes to rope in at least 20 young farmers a year to pursue aquaponic and hydroponic ventures.

“PPK Kinabalu also plans to expand the market for their vegetable produce to the outside of Sabah,” he added.

Elaborating on PPK Kinabalu’s aquaponics venture with local farmers on a 2.83-hectare site in Kampung Desa Aman, Muhammad Irwan said vegetables such as red coral lettuce, green coral lettuce, mustard plant, and celery are being cultivated as they are suitable for aquaponic farming. As for the aquatic component, ikan tilapia and ikan keli are being reared.

“Aquaponic vegetables are chemical-free as no other fertilizer is used with the exception of the fish waste.

“For this farming technique, we need not use much water and the plants mature faster and yield higher quality produce,” he said, adding that they also plan to sell the ikan tilapia once they mature.

“So, eventually this project will enable us to ‘kill two birds with one stone’.”

Sabah State Farmers Organisation (PPN) acting general manager Mohd Sabri Jalaludin, meanwhile, said with the allocation his agency received under Prihatin, they plan to implement a cattle fattening project which is expected to have a positive impact on the state’s economic cycle.

He said Sabah PPN has expertise in the livestock industry as it has been involved in it for over 10 years. For the new project, the agency plans to buy 40 head of cattle from cattle rearers within the state in a bid to support local businesses.

Under the first phase of the project, expected to kick off next month, the cows will be fed palm kernel cake or palm kernel expeller, wheat husk, and soy residue to fatten them. Once they attain a minimum weight of 320 kilograms each, they will be sold at RM4,000 to RM5,000 each. 

Mohd Sabri added that in view of the project’s potential to contribute to the growth of the state’s Gross Domestic Product, they plan to increase the cattle to 320 heads by 2021. 

Conference Schedule; See All 80 Sessions!

Hello Aquaponics World,

We are so excited to publish our Agenda for The 2020 Aquaponics Conference, Cultivating the Future! The Conference features OVER EIGHTY SESSIONS from October 16-18. Brunno (pictured above) will be helping us unlock all that iron in our aquaponic water! Read more:

Friday Agenda

Saturday Agenda

Sunday Agenda

Early Bird Tix are only $149 and expire October 2, save $100!

Early Bird Tickets

Are you a K-12 teacher, home grower, or part of a small business or small farm? You may be eligible for STEM / Community Super-Saver Discount Tix! Learn more:

STEM / Community Ticket Info

All Conference tickets include:

• Access to all content in all four Learning Tracks – STEM Education, Commercial, Community, and Research

• Access to 100% of conference video files online through the end of 2020

• Access to all conference slide presentation files through the end of 2020

• Access to Aquaponics Virtual Vendors featuring the best products and services in the aquaponics industry

• Access to Direct Messaging, Chat Rooms, Live Polls, and Virtual Cocktail Hour to interact with growers from around the world!

• Ability to ask LIVE QUESTIONS to Aquaponics Experts!

We hope to see you there so we can advance aquaponics together!

Brian Filipowich, Chairman

Aquaponics Association

Basil Production In Horizontal or Vertical Aquaponic Systems

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Source: ECB

Aquaponic facilities allow the joint production of fish and plants in a reduced space. This hydroponic technique, combined with vertical farming, is not well studied. The main objective of a recent work was to compare basil production between horizontal and vertical decoupled aquaponic systems and assess the utilization of supplemental lighting in a greenhouse environment.

Six independent vertical racks were arranged with hydroponic trays at three heights. Three racks were affixed with LED lighting on the lowest levels and three with supplemental lighting on the intermediate level. Immediately adjacent to the vertical systems, two independent horizontal systems containing three trays were constructed to compare basil production.

After 35 days of growth post transplanting, the total production per tray and weight, height, number of leaves, and nodes of 20 selected plants per tray were determined. Records of the intensity of illumination photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD)) were recorded at dawn (8:00), noon (12:00), and dusk (18:00) at randomly predetermined positions associated with the 20 selected plants per tray.

The total basil production in the experiment was 58.79 kg, with an average production per unit area of 2.43 and 0.94 kg m−2 for vertical and horizontal systems, respectively. Productivity per unit area in the vertical systems was 160% greater than in horizontal systems. A significant effect of lighting, the height of the tray, and plant position inside the tray was found on plant growth parameters.

Optimization of light source distribution and tray orientation can enhance the productive performance in vertical aquaponic systems. Electricity cost associated with supplemental lighting per kg of production increment was 21.84 and 12.25 $ kg−1 for the bottom and intermediate levels of the vertical system, respectively, the latter being economically the most profitable.

Agronomy 2020, 10(9), 1414; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10091414

by Víctor M. Fernández-Cabanás 1,*,Luis Pérez-Urrestarazu 2,Alexes Juárez 3,Nathan T. Kaufman 3 andJackson A. Gross 3

1 Urban Greening and Biosystems Engineering Research Group, Departamento de Ciencias Agroforestales, Universidad de Sevilla, ETSIA, Ctra, Utrera km.1, 41013 Seville, Spain

2 Urban Greening and Biosystems Engineering Research Group, Area of Agro-Forestry Engineering, Universidad de Sevilla, ETSIA, Ctra, Utrera km.1, 41013 Seville, Spain

3 Department of Animal Sciences, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Received: 29 July 2020 / Revised: 10 September 2020 / Accepted: 14 September 2020 / Published: 17 September 2020

(This article belongs to the Section Horticultural and Floricultural Crops)

View Full-Text Download PDF Browse Figures Cite This Paper

Keywords: decoupled aquaponics; vertical farming; hydroponics; basil; artificial lighting

Source: MDPI.

Food Safety And E. coli in Aquaponic And Hydroponic Systems

This document is The Aquaponics Association’s response to a recent publication on E. coli in Aquaponic and Hydroponic systems.

PDF Version: Food Safety and E. Coli in Aquaponic and Hydroponic Systems

April 27, 2020

By Tawnya Sawyer; Nick Savidov, Ph.D.; George Pate; and Marc Laberge 

Overview of the Study

On April 6, 2020, Purdue Agriculture News published a story about a study related to the contamination risk of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) in Aquaponic and Hydroponic production. The full study was published in MDPI Journal Horticulturae in January 2020.

Researchers conducted the study from December 2017 through February 2018. The Study consisted of side-by-side aquaponic and hydroponic systems in a controlled environment lab growing lettuce, basil, and tomatoes with tilapia. The purpose of the study was to identify the food safety risks associated with soilless systems. The study indicates that both the aquaponic and hydroponic systems contained Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) at the time of sampling. It did not find the presence of Listeria spp., or Salmonella spp. 

The authors contend that the aquaponic system and specifically the fish feces were likely the sources of E. coli. However, we believe that there is no evidence to prove that this was the actual source of contamination since the authors admit traceback was not performed, and there were several other possible introductions.

The pathogen was present in the water and on the root system of the plants. The researchers did not detect it in the edible portion of the plants. However, if the water is positive for a contaminant, and it accidentally splashes onto the edible portion of the crop throughout its life, or during harvest, this could still result in a food safety concern.

History of E. coli in Soil-less growing systems 

Until now, researchers have only discovered environmental E. coli in soilless growing systems. It is essential to note that there are hundreds of types of non-fecal coliform bacteria in the air, water, soil, as well as the fecal coliform bacteria represented mostly by E.coli in the waste of all mammals, humans, and some birds. A vast majority of these coliforms are perfectly harmless.

The E. coli found in this Study — Shiga toxin-producing O157:H7 — historically has been associated with warm-blooded mammals, more specifically bovine fed corn in feedlots (Lim JY et al. 2007), as well as swine and turkeys. Further research must be performed to prove that cold-blooded, non-mammal aquatic species such as tilapia can harbor this strain of pathogenic E. coli. A wide group of studies, university professors, and industry professionals currently refute the possibility that tilapia can harbor this strain. The lack of evidence detailing the ability of aquatic animals to harbor E. coli makes the fish contaminated with this specific strain of bacteria very rare and suspect.

Many foodborne illnesses from fresh produce such as romaine lettuces, green onions, herbs, and sprouts, are traced back to the soil; the irrigation water used in these crops (Solomon et al. 2002); the seed stock; or poor sanitation in handling facilities.

There are a wide variety of community and commercial aquaponic and hydroponic growing facilities that routinely perform pathogen testing and have not identified this pathogen present. If it was present, traceback procedures would be followed to identify and remove the source, as well as any necessary food safety precautions and recalls performed.

Our Position

The Aquaponic Association and its members agree that food safety and proper handling practices are critical to commercializing our industry and the safety of our customers. One thing that the study points out is that a contaminant can occur in a soilless system, which creates a potential food safety concern. We agree on this; however, we have numerous concerns with the procedures and statements made in the publication.

We have reached out to the professional investigator on this study Hye-Ji Kim to get answers to essential questions that the study publication does not adequately address. There are significant gaps and questions with the study.

 Concerns About the Study Findings and Publication 

Lack of Traceability

The study group is unsure how the pathogen was introduced into the two systems. They admit that no traceback was performed to identify the source of contamination. They speculate both in the study and in their email response that this pathogen was:

1) Accidentally introduced

2) That it is from the fish feces in the aquaponics system that splashed into the hydroponic system through the open top of the fish tank during feeding,

3) that it was from contaminated fish stock (which were provided by the Purdue Animal Sciences Research and Education Center)

4) That it was human contamination from visitors or operator handling issues.

A traceback was not conducted as it was not within the scope of the study (Kim personal communications). We disagree; the discovery of O157:H7 strain in the university greenhouse with the suspicion of fish being contaminated should have resulted in immediate action in order to track down the source of contamination and prevent infection of the university students and staff. Outside of a University setting, traceback would have been mandatory in a commercial facility. It is questionable that the University did not perform these procedures because it was “out of the scope of the study”.

Questioning Fish Feces as the Source of Contamination

Blaming fish feces as the contaminating source seems incredibly misleading when so many other options exist, and no traceback proved that as the source. The contents of the fish intestines were tested for the presence of E. coli, and none was found (Kim personal communications). It seems that if the fish does not have STEC E. coli inside its gut, then it is more likely the fish feces being positive would be related to the contaminated water that the feces was floating in.

In wild fish species, levels of E. coli appear to follow trends similar to ambient water and sediment concentrations; as concentrations in their environments rise, so do concentrations within the fish (Guillen et al., 2010).

Furthermore, it seems very suspect that a two-month-old system in a controlled environment lab could have been so quickly contaminated. It is well-known that E.coli cannot survive in a biologically-active environment, such as an anaerobic digester or aquaponic system (T.Gao et al., 2011). E. coli are outcompeted by other microorganisms, which adapted to survive in the environment outside animal guts much better than E. coli. Thus, E. coli O157:H7, which is specially adapted to live in cattle guts, will inevitably be replaced by other microorganisms.

As for the hydroponic system showing positive results, this also seems suspect if the nutrients were synthetic, as there would be very little chance for the E. coli to survive without a biological host or continuous contamination source being present. An accidental exposure in the hydroponic system would have become diluted over time, or the pathogen died off to the point that they would have been undetectable. The fact is the organic matter in hydroponics is virtually absent and, therefore, provides a poor environment for E. coli growth and propagation (Dankwa, 2019). Therefore. one would need a continuous source, not an accidental one (like splashing), in order to maintain the E. coli population in hydroponics.

Since both systems were contaminated, we suggest that there is a more likely common pathogen source that the researchers did not correctly identify and remove. The source of contamination could be from source water, filtering system, repurposed equipment, airborne in the greenhouse or HVAC system, human vector, lab equipment, the seed stock, nutrients, or other inputs.

The Purdue Animal Research and Education Center, where the researchers sourced the fish, is an operation that also has swine, cattle, and poultry production. Research suggests that pathogenic E. coli can travel 180 m through airborne exposure (Berry et al., 2015). Airborne exposure poses a more significant risk to controlled environments as pathogens can persist in the HVAC system (Riggio et al., 2019). STEC has the potential to live in dust particles for up to 42 weeks, which can act as a possible vector of contamination if there is a continuous source. Therefore, even a slight possibility of the pathogenic Shiga-producing O157:H7 strain of E. coli transfer from the Animal Research and Education Center resulting in the uncontrolled cross-contamination of other research labs and facilities certified below Biosafety level 2 not designed to work with the pathogenic bacteria would raise a serious concern about the existing safety practices (Boston University).

Lack of 3rd Party or Peer University Test Verification

It has also been recognized that there is a high frequency of false-positive signals in a real-time PCR-based “Plus/Minus” assay (Nowrouzian FL, et al., 2009). Hence the possibility that the PCR verification method may have resulted in inaccurate results. The pathogen was not verified by a 3rd party lab to be actual STEC E.coli O157:H7. Only positive or negative results were obtained for this study.

We recommend several other universities and third-party labs to run samples and validate the results. However, no samples have been provided, which may be impossible to obtain based on the study being conducted in early 2018. Without this verification, there are questions about the possibility of false-positives due to the presence of environmental E.coli, fecal coliforms, or a wide variety of other bacteria commonly found in nutrient-rich environments (Konstantinidis et al., 2011).

Impact of Sterilization

The study conclusion suggests that sterilization efforts are critical. “Our results indicated that contamination with bacterial pathogens could likely be reduced in aquaponic and hydroponic systems if the entire systems were thoroughly sanitized before each use and pathogen-free fish were used for the operation.” This statement is inaccurate and could be detrimental to proper food safety practices. As the microflora of the system develops, it creates an environment that can suppress phytopathogens (Bartelme et al., 2018) and other zoonotic pathogens as a result of antibiotic compounds released by beneficial bacteria (Compant et al., 2005). In Recirculating Aquaculture Systems (RAS), some microbial communities take over 15 years to develop (Bartelme et al., 2017), resulting in greater stability over time.

Many papers support this hypothesis with regards to probiotics in wastewater treatment, aquaculture, and hydroponics. Microbial community analysis also depicts a greater microbial diversity in aquaponics over decoupled or aquaculture systems (Eck et al., 2019), indicating a more significant potential for suppression of pathogens in coupled aquaponic systems over RAS or decoupled aquaponic system. No pathogens were discovered in a mature coupled aquaponics system during 18 years of continuous research in Canada since 2002 (Savidov, personal communications).

These findings support the argument that more biologically mature systems are less likely to develop pathogens and that periodic sanitation should not be done outside of initial start-up unless a zoonotic pathogen (Henderson 2008), is detected. If a pathogen is found, producers should follow proper sanitation and recall procedures.

Conclusion

Overall, this and other research into food safety are ongoing, and new information becomes available continuously to help shape the best practices for proper greenhouse management. As the Aquaponic Association, we hope to provide the most accurate and reliable resources for this purpose. At the same time, we hope to reduce the possibility of studies like this creating unnecessary fear, or unsubstantiated claims that could harm the growth of the aquaponic (and hydroponic) industry. When a document like this is published, it will be quoted by the media, and referenced in other studies as if it is an absolute. Other research must be performed to validate or negate this study’s outcomes.

Our findings conclude that while there is a low chance of the persistence of a pathogen in properly designed aquaponic and hydroponic systems, there is still a potential concern. No agricultural system is immune to this. Compared to soil production, soil-less crops grown in a controlled environment are far less likely to become infected pathogens from mammals, birds, and other creatures which are difficult to prevent in field crop production. Human contamination or poor handling practices are of significant concern (Pattillo et al., 2015). The best way to avoid risk is to adhere to food safety guidelines set forth by the USDA, GlobalGAPs, the Aquaponic Association, and other accredited organizations.

contact: info@aquaponicsassociation.org

References

Bartelme, R.P., McLellan, S.L., Newton, R.J., 2017. Freshwater Recirculating Aquaculture System Operations Drive Biofilter Bacterial Community Shifts around a Stable Nitrifying Consortium of Ammonia-Oxidizing Archaea and Comammox Nitrospira. Front. Microbiol. 8. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2017.00101

Bartelme, R.P., Oyserman, B.O., Blom, J.E., Sepulveda-Villet, O.J., Newton, R.J., 2018. Stripping Away the Soil: Plant Growth Promoting Microbiology Opportunities in Aquaponics. Front. Microbiol. 9, 8. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2018.00008

Berry, E.D., Wells, J.E., Bono, J.L., Woodbury, B.L., Kalchayanand, N., Norman, K.N., Suslow, T.V., López-Velasco, G., Millner, P.D., 2015. Effect of Proximity to a Cattle Feedlot on Escherichia coli O157:H7 Contamination of Leafy Greens and Evaluation of the Potential for Airborne Transmission. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 81, 1101–1110. https://doi.org/10.1128/AEM.02998-14

Compant, S., Duffy, B., Nowak, J., Clément, C., Barka, E.A., 2005. Use of Plant Growth-Promoting Bacteria for Biocontrol of Plant Diseases: Principles, Mechanisms of Action, and Future Prospects. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 71, 4951–4959. https://doi.org/10.1128/AEM.71.9.4951-4959.2005

Dankwa, A.S., 2019. Safety  Assessment of Hydroponic Closed System 127. https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4052&context=etd

Eck, M., Sare, A., Massart, S., Schmautz, Z., Junge, R., Smits, T., Jijakli, M., 2019. Exploring Bacterial Communities in Aquaponic Systems. Water 11, 260. https://doi.org/10.3390/w11020260

Guillen, Wrast, Environmental Institute of Houston, 2010, Fishes as Sources of E. coli Bacteria in Warm Water Streams, https://www.uhcl.edu/environmental-institute/research/publications/documents/10-015guillenetalfishreport.pdf

Henderson, H., 2008. Direct and indirect zoonotic transmission of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli. J. Am. Vet. Med. Assoc. 232, 848–859. https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.232.6.848

Konstantinidis, Chengwei Luo, 2011. Georgia Tech Institute, Environmental E. coli: New way to classify E. coli bacteria and test for fecal contamination, https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110411152527.htm

Lim JY et al., Escherichia coli O157:H7 colonization at the rectoanal junction of long-duration culture-positive cattle. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2007;73:1380–1382 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1828644/

Boston University Agent Sheet E.coli EHEC or STEC) (https://www.bu.edu/researchsupport/safety/rohp/agent-information-sheets/e-coli-0157h7-agent-information-sheet/).

Nowrouzian FL1, Adlerberth I, Wold AE., 2009 High frequency of false-positive signals in a real-time PCR-based “Plus/Minus” assay. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19161539

Riggio, G., Jones, S., Gibson, K., 2019. Risk of Human Pathogen Internalization in Leafy Vegetables During Lab-Scale Hydroponic Cultivation. Horticulturae 5, 25. https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae5010025

Solomon et al., Effect of Irrigation Method on Transmission to and Persistence

of Escherichia coli O157:H7 on Lettuce Journal of Food Protection, Vol. 65, No. 4, 2002, Pages 673–676 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11952218

1. Gao*, T. Haine,  A. Chen,  Y. Tong, and X. Li, 2011, 7 logs of toxic strain of E. coli  were removed by mesophilic AD process while ~ 5 logs increase of the strain were seen in water control with the same condition for 7 days

Pattillo*, Shaw, Currey, Xie, Rosentrater, 2015, Aquaponics Food Safety and Human Health, https://southcenters.osu.edu/sites/southc/files/site-library/site-documents/abc/aquaponics_workshop/AquaponicsFoodSafetyandHumanHealthAllenPatillo.pdf

Lawsuit Threatens Aquaponics Organic Eligibility

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The Center for Food Safety (CFS), along with a coalition of organic farms and stakeholders, filed a lawsuit challenging the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) decision to allow hydroponic operations to be certified organic. The Court has set a hearing date for June 11, 2020.

The lawsuit claims that hydroponic operations do not comply with the Organic Food Production Act because they do not foster soil fertility, as required in the Act. The lawsuit mentions aquaponics but does not make a legal distinction between aquaponics and hydroponics. A decision against the USDA would likely have the same effect for aquaponics as hydroponics. See the lawsuit.

Aquaponic, hydroponic, and controlled-environment growers must fight to ensure our crops stay Organic-eligible!

Aquaponics is Organic with a Capital “O”!

Aquaponics fits the Organic mission. The Organic label is about empowering consumers to identify products that match their values. Consumers do not prefer organic because it is grown in soil; they prefer it because it is pesticide-free, environmentally sustainable, and relies on natural ecosystems for plant growth. So the question is: does aquaponics align with what the consumer expects when they purchase Organic? YES!

“Organic” is perceived by consumers to mean:

Production without prohibited chemicals — the NOSB publishes a list of banned substances that are not allowed in production. Aquaponic systems are able to flourish without these chemicals. Aquaponic systems rely on Organic materials and a robust microbial ecosystem for natural system immunity.

Production that fosters the cycling of resources, ecological balance, and biodiversity conservation — Aquaponics can be constructed as closed-loop ecosystems in which only the minimum required water and nutrients are added and with minimal or no discharge. Aquaponics has also proven it can produce more food than soil culture per land area, thus saving more of the natural environment from the toll of agriculture.

Production that relies on biological ecosystems to support plant health — Aquaponic production relies on a robust microflora in the root zone—made of the same types and numbers of bacteria and fungi that thrive in soil. This flora converts nutrients into forms available to plants and maintains plant health by reinforcing naturally-occurring mechanisms of disease resistance—just as in a healthy soil. (see Soil Food Web Report)

Production that responds to site-specific conditions by integrating cultural, biological, and mechanical practices — Consumers expect that organic produce has been grown with a healthy human element, where local customs, expertise, and ingenuity can overcome droughts, concrete jungles, and climate changes. Aquaponics allows environmentally-sensitive agriculture where growing in soil isn’t possible and dramatically expands the market of Organic produce.

Aquaponics is Essential for the Sustainability of Our Food System

Aquaponics is critical to improving the sustainability of our agricultural system, but revoking Organic eligibility would move this industry backwards.

The benefits of aquaponics include: dramatic water savings, reduced resource inputs, less fertilizer runoff that causes toxic dead zones, shorter supply chains and carbon emissions, greater food safety with controlled-environment growing, and greater production per land area.

In an era of climate change, resource depletion, and rapid population growth, the Organic price premium is a critical incentive to draw more aquaponic growers into the industry. If this lawsuit revokes aquaponics’ Organic eligibility, this vital industry will not grow as quickly and our environment, health, and economy will suffer.

Background Info

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The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) voted 8 to 7 in 2018 to continue the Organic eligibility of aquaponic and hydroponic operations. The Aquaponics Association fought to maintain aquaponics’ organic eligibility by submitting written comments for NOSB meetings; collecting and delivering over 200 signatures in favor of organic aquaponics; providing in-person statements and answering panel questions at NOSB meetings; and by taking Members of the NOSB to a tour of Flourish Farms, a commercial aquaponic farm and Aquaponics Association Affiliate Member in Denver, Colorado.

Aquaponics aligns with the values of Organic that consumers expect. Rather than placing a greater toll on our environment and health, we should reject this lawsuit and support Organic Aquaponics.

contact: info@aquaponicsassociation.org

Do you want to help the Aquaponics Association Fight for Aquaponics?

The Aquaponics Association is a nonprofit that connects growers and works to increase aquaponic production.

Please consider a General Membership to support this cause.

Benefits of Membership include:

• Regular newsletters

• Access to Aquaponics Association Members Forum with chat groups and direct messages

• Ability to participate in working groups to move aquaponics forward: 1) Commercial Aquaponics; 2) Community Aquaponics; 3) Aquaponics in STEM Education; and 4) Aquaponics Research

• Exclusive web content like checklists, best practices, conference presentations and full conference videos from top experts

• Legislative & Regulatory Updates

• Special Member Discounts

Membership fees also support:

• Development and promotion of materials to educate the public about the benefits and opportunities of aquaponics!

• Development of industry standards and best practices

• Infrastructure to connect aquaponic growers from around the world

• Strategic partnerships to expand aquaponics into new fields

• Ability to speak with one voice to policy-makers and regulators on issues like Organic certification, food safety certification, and agriculture policy

• Resources to improve aquaponic growers’ skills, growing capacity, and business opportunities

• Resources to cultivate and develop aquaponics as an emerging green industry

Learn more: General Membership

Fireside Chat With Square Roots CEO & Co-Founder Tobias Peggs: Scaling Indoor Farming At Speed

Square Roots Co-Founders Tobias Peggs and Kimbal Musk Empowering Next-Gen Farmers

Indoor Ag-Con is excited to announce that Square Roots Co-Founder & CEO Tobias Peggs has joined our conference line-up for the May 18-20, 2020 edition!  Tobias will join Nicola Kerslake, Indoor Ag-Con Founder and Co-Founder, Contain, for the afternoon Fireside Chat: Scaling Indoor Farming At Speed. If our industry is to bring high-quality, local produce to customers all year round, we must collectively understand how to scale farming at speed to reach as many people as possible. Using a unique and scalable ‘farmer-first’ technology platform, Square Roots is doing just that. Tobias will share how this tech-enabled urban farming company is training and empowering the next generation of leaders in urban agriculture to grow local food that is delicious, responsible, nutritious, and profitable. And, be sure to check out the story further down in this issue highlighting our special guest blog post from Square Roots Co-Founder Kimbal Musk, too! 

CHECK OUT FULL CONFERENCE SCHEDULE >>> 

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During Indoor Ag-Con, we’ll be featuring the panel presentation, What Is the Next Technical Frontier for LED Lighting” on Monday, May 18 from 10 – 10:45 am. Moderated by Dr. Morgan Pattison, SSLS, Inc., the panel will include Blake Lange, Signify, formerly Philips Lighting – City Farming; Brandon Newkirk, LumiGrow; and Xander Yang, Sananbio.

Ahead of the session, we reached out to our participants to find out, from an LED perspective, what is the next hot thing in lighting? 

WHAT'S THE NEXT HOT THING IN LED LIGHTING? >>> 

KIMBAL MUSK: 10 WAYS SQUARE ROOTS' FARM-TECH PLATFORM EMPOWERS THE NEXT GENERATION OF FARMERS 

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Ahead of Square Roots CEO & Co-Founder Tobias Peggs' Fireside Chat at Indoor Ag-Con, Co-Founder & Exec Chairman Kimbal Musk has shared a guest blog post with us.

"There are a lot of smart people in this industry, many with different visions for the optimum architecture and model for indoor farming (e.g. plant factories)," says Musk. "But all working hard to bring better food to market — which, given our wider vision to bring real food to everyone, is wonderful to see. The more of us working on the real food revolution the better — and we want all of these systems to flourish. But here are 10 reasons why we think container farming rocks.....”

10 WAYS SQUARE ROOTS' FARM-TECH PLATFORM EMPOWERS NEXT-GEN FARMERS>>>

YOU COULD WIN 2 TICKETS TO BIOSPHERE 2!

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When you arrive at Indoor Ag-Con, be sure to enter for your chance to win two general admission tickets to Biosphere 2 and an overnight stay at B2 cabanas!

The winners will get to tour one of the world’s most unique facilities dedicated to the research and understanding of global scientific issues. The Biosphere 2 facility serves as a laboratory for controlled scientific studies, an arena for scientific discovery and discussion, and a far-reaching provider of public education.

What’s more, as part of the package, the University of Arizona Controlled Environment Agriculture Center (UA-CEAC) would like to also extend an invitation for the recipients to its vertical farm research and educational facility (UAgFarm) at UA-CEAC and other UA-CEAC projects/facilities as an additional welcome!

SEE WHO'S SPEAKING  |   SEE WHO'S EXHIBITING   

INSIDE INDOOR AG |  INDUSTRY NEWS HARVEST

PRODUCE GROWER:   Elevate Farms Closes on $1.8 Million In Round Of Funding
GREENHOUSE GROWER:   Gotham Greens Opens Another Massive Greenhouse
NEW YORK POST:  I Tasted A Bug Diet, the Sustainable Protein That Could Save The WorldIGROW NEWS --CubicFarm Systems Announces Largest Sale To Date

SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR GROWING ROSTER OF
SPONSORS, MEDIA ALLIES & INDUSTRY PARTNERS

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In addition, Indoor Ag-Con is proud to be a member of the Hemp Industries Association.

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L'Occitane-Backed Group To Open Europe's Largest Aquaponic Farm in 2022

The AMP Saumon de France Project is Backed by The Financial Muscle of Fragrance Products Company L'Occitane.

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16 January 2020

By John Evans

France's Aquaponic Management Project Group (AMP) said it expects to open Europe's largest Aquaponic farm in 2022.

Around €12 million ($13.4 million) is being plowed into the project, which is at the study stage with work beginning.

AMP unveiled the venture in conjunction with agricultural cooperative Scael last year.

The site is expected to annually produce 1,000 metric tons of trout.

The Olis Les Jardins du Saumonier Chartres, southwest of Paris, is backed by funding from investment bank Alantra.

The project is led by Aquaculture Operations Director and Designer Olivier Soulas who joined last August from Building Integrated GreenHouses (BIGH), which bills itself a developer of sustainable aquaponics urban farms operating under the principles of the circular economy.

AMP, led by businessman Pascal Goumain, operates France's largest sea-based farm with an annual 3,000 metric tons salmon and trout producing capacity off the coast of Cherbourg in the north of the country.

It operates six salmon farms in Normandy capable of producing 1,200 metric tons annually.

The company also operates two aquaponic urban farms under the brand name Les Jardins du Saumonier in Cherbourg and Asnieres sur Seine.

AMP Saumon de France is backed by the financial muscle of the international body, face, and fragrance products company L'Occitane, which has some 1,500 stores in 90 countries.

Lead photo: L'Occitane, French body, face, and perfume products giant. Photo: Flickr / @MichelCuri

• Aquaponics Aquaponic Management Project Group (AMP) Scael

• Olis Les Jardins Du Saumonier Chartres Olivier Soulas

Eastgate’s Aquaponic Farm District A First For Shopping Centers In Africa

Eastgate’s Aquaponic Farm District utilizes smart new technologies to provide sustainable solutions to food production and food security for customers, offering 100 percent natural and fresh produce at the source.

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January 23, 2020

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Justin Hess with organic basil produced in the aquaponic farm district at Eastgate.

Eastgate Shopping Centre has become trailblazers by being the first center to have a rooftop Aquaponic Farm District in Africa.

The farm is in partnership with influential aquaponic company Ichthys.

Produce from the farm has been on sale since December 2019.

Ichthys managing director and Eastgate farm manager, Justin Hess, said aquaponic farming is one of the recent innovations in agriculture.

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Eastgate’s Aquaponic Farm District is situated on the rooftop at entrance 10 of the center.

“The basic idea is combining hydroponic farming, where you grow plants without soil, which is a nutrients solution, with a fish farm known as an aquaculture farm. Aquaponics comes from combining aquaculture and hydroponics,” said Hess.

He said it’s one of the only organic ways to hydroponically grow vegetables.

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The aquaponic farm district at Eastgate has three 10 000 liter fish tanks with 200 Pangasius fish.

Hess said this method has been around for the past 25 years, although in Africa it is still very new, with only a handful of farms adopting this method.

“The biggest advantage of aquaponic farming is it 100 percent recycles all water used. The water from the fish tanks is circulated between all our plants and is returned again,” said Hess.

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Justin Hess with produce grown via the hydroponic deep water method.

Hess said the fish becomes the fertilizer as they eat and excrete in the water and that nutrients run through the system.

He said the nutrients become toxic for the fish if you do not clean it, but the plants clean the nutrients in that water, which never has to be replaced.

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Justin Hess with organic basil produced in the aquaponic farm district at Eastgate.

“We have three 10 000 liter fish tanks with 200 Pangasius fish which are from Thailand originally. If you are eating the fish in a restaurant it is called Basa,” said Hess.

He said it’s one of the nicest fish to eat and this is one of the first aquaponic Pangasius farms in South Africa.

“There is a main commercial farm in Midrand, which is the largest aquaponics farm in Africa. There is about six other commercial farms in South Africa which is adopting this method and a handful in Africa,” said Hess.

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Alana Hoskins enjoying an organic grown tomatoe from Eastgate’s Aquaponic Farm District.

He said the district includes a fish farm and a hydroponic section.

Hess said there are three methods of growing in the hydroponic section of the farm namely stone and drain, deep water and vertical.

The farm grows tomatoes, cucumber, letters, chili peppers, basil, chives, spring onion, mint, and spinach, among others.

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Tomatoes grown at he aquaponic farm district at Eastgate shopping center.

Alana Hoskin, marketing manager for Eastgate Shopping Centre, said the center was introduced to the concept a year ago.

“One of the focuses for the center in 2020 is sustainability and how we can make a difference within our own community and for our customers. We felt like this was the right direction. We are the first shopping center to have a rooftop aquaponic farm,” said Hoskins.

She said the center turned 40 last year, and now wanted to think differently and do something that will set the center away from any other.

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Organically grown basil at Eastgate’s Aquaponic Farm District.

“We want shoppers to consciously choose Eastgate for a reason, and the aquaponic farming is a good reason,” said Hoskins.

Hoskins said aquaponic farming is a sustainable solution for the east rand as there is a need to have an organic offering.

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The hydroponic section at the aquaponic farm district at Eastgate Shopping Centre.

In the future, Hoskins said the center is looking at offering a few courses for the community on how to start their own aquaponic farms.

Fresh produce from the farm is sold from 9 am to 12 pm every Saturday at Entrance 10 at the rooftop entrance where the farm is located.

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Alana Hoskins and Justin Hess.

“We will extend the time once we harvest more. We have also incorporated our recycling bins such as glass, general waste, and paper at the farm district, as it gives into the sustainable lifestyle as a whole. Thinking organic is thinking about recycling as well. We made it easier for customers to come and do their recycling and then purchase organic produce.

“In 2020 our motto is ‘be the change’. We have done a number of eco-friendly projects at the center and will continue to do so to create a better environment,” said Hoskins.

For more information contact center management or visit www.eastgatemall.co.za.

PixzAR

Singapore Hotel’s Aquaponic Rooftop Farm To Produce Vegetables And Fish

Aquaponics involves growing plants without soil, a process that saves resources including water, land, and manpower

By August, the rooftop farm will supply 30 percent of the vegetable and fish requirements for two neighboring hotels

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Mavis Teo

27 December 2019

This is not a new hotel, why are we featuring it now? True, a hotel has stood here since 1986, when it opened as the Westin Plaza, but now it has an aquaponics farm. Repeat, an aquaponics farm!

What on earth is an aquaponics farm, and why is it exciting news? Aquaponics is a combination of aqua­culture and hydroponics; in simple terms, growing plants without soil. It employs a closed, circular system that channels the waste from living fish to fertilize plants, which in turn filter and clean the water for the fish. This process saves resources and reduces the need for water, land, and manpower.

A first for hotels in the city-state, the Fairmont Singapore’s aquaponics farm was launched in late October. The fact the farm is in Singapore – a concrete jungle that imports more than 90 percent of its food – while there’s a growing realization our fragile environment must be protected is inspirational for densely built cities.

Is it one of those “show and tell” herb gardens that resorts create as a talking point but supply only a tiny proportion of the property’s needs? Granted, at just 450 square metres, wedged between the roof­tops of the Fairmont Singapore and sister property Swissôtel The Stamford, the “farm” is not large. But through clever configuration, once it’s fully operational in August 2020, it will yield an estimated 2,200kg of vegetables and 350kg of fish monthly for both hotels, or about 30 percent of their needs.

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The hotel’s Aquaponics Salad.

More than 40 varieties of vegetables and herbs, including spinach, kang kong, lettuce, and mint, are being grown in com­pact beds and towers, and about 16,000 tilapia fish are being raised in huge contain­ers at the back of the farm. The first fish will be ready for the dining table in March.

The plan is to plant and harvest in batches so a constant supply is available. To trick the plants into giving healthy yields in unfavour­able conditions, they are sheltered from sun­light, kept at 24 to 25 degrees Celsius and exposed to LED lighting.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating. How does the produce taste? My salad at modern grill Skai contained oak leaf, red chard, mizuna, rocket leaves, baby kale and Japanese Pentas flowers, all fresh from the farm, the leaves still luscious and crisp – proof that the less distance your food travels, the better it tastes.

Currently, the farm supplies five of the hotels’ 13 food outlets. The jewel in the crown, Michelin-starred JAAN by British chef Kirk Westaway, will soon incorporate some of the farm’s output in its menu of reinvented British classics.

What is Fairmont doing about food waste? Through the Treatsure app, leftovers from buffets are sold to the public at S$10 (US$7) per box – biodegradable, of course – just before closing. Treatsure users are updated on which member hotels have leftovers up for grabs and can take as much food as they can pack into the provided box. This has reduced Fairmont’s buffet wastage by 40 to 60 percent.

What­ever cannot be sold is fed into the Eco-Wizz digester, together with leftovers from other outlets, to be turned into water and compost. Local charity Food from the Heart collects left­over bread baskets from the breakfast service for distribution to impoverished families.

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A Deluxe Harbour View Room.

What else is the hotel doing to make travel less destructive to the environment? Although you’ll still find single-use plastics in your room – laundry bags and slipper wrappers, for instance – the move towards eliminating their use is ongoing, the hotel assures us. Each revamped room and suite in Fairmont’s new South Tower has a nifty Swisspro tap, which dispenses filtered hot and cold water, so no more plastic bottles.

My conscience feels lighter, now what about location? The building was designed more than 30 years ago by the late I.M. Pei, of Hong Kong’s Bank of China Tower fame. The hotel has taken on various guises under different owners, but remains in demand for its location, in the city’s cultural and historical heart. It is within walking distance of the Singapore Art Museum and the National Gallery Singapore.

And the view! Centrally located beds give guests panoramas of the city’s spectacular skyline, an effect heightened by the building’s circular design.

What’s the bottom line? Rates start at S$399 (excluding service charge and tax). A two-course set lunch at Italian restaurant Prego costs about S$30, excluding taxes and service charge. The cost savings from the aquaponics products have yet to be factored into menu prices.

US: Pennsylvania - Indoor Aquaponics Farm To Bring Jobs (Plus Fresh Fish And Veggies) To Duquesne

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Aquaponics farm. Rendering courtesy of In City Farms.

Michael Machosky

November 13, 2019

Pittsburgh isn’t exactly known for its seafood. Not having a sea nearby slows us down a bit in that regard.

This could change (well, no, we’re not getting a sea) if all goes according to plan for a new aquaponics farm in Duquesne.

“I’ve raised fish since I was a 12-year-old kid,” explains entrepreneur Glenn Ford, the Minnesota-based founder of In City Farms. What attracted Ford to aquaponics was the need for a different kind of food system that can reliably provide food in the year 2050 and beyond — no small challenge, given the potential impacts of climate change.

Ford plans to open his new indoor farm on vacant industrial land within Duquesne’s riverfront, and he expects to employ 130 people in the first phase. The second phase will employ 100 more, and a third phase is being planned.

In City’s building will be 180,000 square feet, and cost $30 million for the first phase.

“It’s going through permitting now,” says Ford. “We estimate that we’ll have this thing started in the spring.”

Here’s how it works: Aquaponics begins with raising edible fish (the Duquesne farm will likely include trout and Arctic char) in indoor pools. The fish are then sold commercially, and the waste stream from the water then fertilizes vegetables that are also grown indoors.

“Essentially, it takes the nutrient stream from fish and runs it through a biological filter which has a bunch of positive bacteria in it, much like the soil has,” Ford says. In the process, he explains, the bacteria eat away all the ammonia and turn it into nitrates that plants can consume.

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Aquaponics farm in Duquesne. Rendering courtesy of In City Farms.

“There is a balance between the amount of fish you can raise and the plants that can be supported,” he says. “It’s a mathematical and scientific loop.”

Growing plants indoors under optimal conditions gives the region a source of produce all year long, beyond the typical outdoor growing season. Traditionally, restaurants that want to source ingredients locally have few options in the winter.

“We are predominantly focused on the wholesale trade,” Ford says. “But we’ll also sell to restaurants directly if they come to us with requests for things they can’t find in the market.”

Ideally, he says, the plants will be consumed within 20 or 30 miles from where they’re grown, lowering the carbon footprint.

The former Duquesne Steel Works site was chosen because it fits a profile of a community that industry has largely left behind. In City Farms has also purchased land in five other cities, says Ford.

“I come from inner cities and so do several of the people on my management team,” says Ford. “We’re looking at ways to give back. We’ll hire as many people as we can to fill those jobs from the community. There’s a pretty high percentage that can come from directly from Duquesne.”

The jobs will start at about $35,000 for entry-level and will include management positions.

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Aquaponics farm in Duquesne. Rendering courtesy of In City Farms.

This is just one part of an effort called Food21, which imagines creating a thriving economy based around food in the region. It could involve creating jobs through food production and logistics.

The jobs aren’t the byproduct of this venture — they’re the whole point: “This is a catalyst to use food to employ people and give them jobs,” says Ford.

“Obviously we have to run a successful business to keep employing people and keep the business growing,” he says. “In order to do that, products have to be produced that have market value at market rates. But it’s really an opportunity to look at the resources that are present inside a community, and to figure out how to turn those resources into opportunities.”

This isn’t the only high-tech non-traditional farm startup in the Mon Valley. Braddock has a robotic vertical farm in the works from tech firm Fifth Season.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Michael Machosky

City Design editor

Michael Machosky is a writer and journalist with 18 years of experience writing about everything from development news, food and film to art, travel, books and music. He lives in Greenfield with his wife, Shaunna, and 8-year old son.

City Design, Environment

Research Into The Combination of Geothermal Heat, Lettuce Cultivation And Fish Farming Started

Under great interest, the project Geofood has been started. The aim of Geofood is to investigate whether geothermal heating can not only be used to heat greenhouses, but also to breed fish. As a symbol for opening the new aquaponic facilities, a floater with lettuce plants was placed on an aquarium with tilapia during the opening operation. Geofood is a collaboration between the Business Unit Greenhouse Horticulture of Wageningen University & Research and partners from Iceland, Slovenia, and the Netherlands.

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A constant water temperature is required for fish farming all year round. Supply and demand are less constant in greenhouse horticulture: relatively much is heated in the winter and hardly ever in the summer. In addition, there are more and more cultivation companies with a geothermal source. This creates a surplus in the summer. Selling geothermal heat could be another revenue model for geothermal resources.

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To this end, WUR developed an energy model for the combination of geothermal-greenhouse horticulture-aquaculture. To validate this model, an advanced fish farming system was installed at WUR in Bleiswijk in early 2019. It is a so-called recirculating aquaculture system (RAS). The largest tanks in this system contain around 10,000 liters of water containing thousands of fish. Data is collected from, among other things, the water quality, temperature, water consumption and CO2 produced by the fish.

WUR carries out this research in collaboration with partners from Iceland, Slovenia and the Netherlands. Algae production and food processing processes are also being investigated as potential applications for circular food systems that run on geothermal energy. Funding for the research comes from the European GEOTHERMICA - ERA NET Cofund Geothermal. Dutch participation in the project is supported by RVO and Top Sector Horticulture & Propagation Materials.

Source: Wageningen University & Research

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Publication date: Wed, 23 Oct 2019

How Does Tilapia Help Produce Organic Vege? This Ampang Aquaponic Farm Blooms Because of It

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20 September 2019

BY TAN MEI ZI

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(From left) Shum Chong Bon, Yoon Wong, and Chin Kwe Fok began cultivating the farm last year. — Pictures by Firdaus Latif

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 20 — For Chin Kwe Fok, the motivation behind setting up an aquaponic farm was simple: A desire to eat healthily.

After speaking with friends at church, he soon realized he wasn’t the only one on the lookout for organic, pesticide-free produce.

The growing demand for clean eating eventually led to the birth of Urban Greenlife farm, run by Chin and six other shareholders including the farm’s co-director Shum Chong Bon and Aquaponics Hardware Asia business development manager Yoon Wong.

Tucked away in a quiet street in Ampang, the farm spans over 3,000 square feet and currently houses a variety of greens including basil, kale, watercress, Japanese cucumber, and Brazilian spinach.

It runs on an aquaponic system where nutrient-rich water produced by tilapia is fed to the plants before being recirculated back into the fish tanks.

Crops from ancient civilizations as early as the Aztec Empire are said to have flourished thanks to this method, now used by Chin to grow vegetables without the need for pesticides or chemical fertilisers.

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The farm’s success is a result of the mutual health between the plants and the aquatic animals.

As consumer awareness about organic produce improves, Chin and his co-directors hope to establish working relationships with nearby restaurants and supply fresh vegetables straight to their kitchens.

“When we talk to people, we see that there is a market out there for organic food.

“People from the church I attend have expressed interest when I told them about the farm and asked if they could buy directly from us. 

“Now we are trying to make the system stable so we can maintain supply to keep up with the demand,” Chin told Malay Mail.

It’s been an uphill battle working on the farm as the balance is of utmost importance; if one element falters, the rest of the operation soon follows.

The farm has a strict rule on avoiding chemicals as they can seep into the water and pose a fatal risk to the fish once the fluid recirculates back into their tanks.

Similarly, the tilapia need to be fed and monitored with meticulous care to ensure the health of the plants is not compromised. 

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The roots of the plant are immersed in nutrient-rich water that gets fed to them from the tilapia tank.

It currently costs around RM4,000 per month to maintain the farm, a bargain considering its proximity to the city center.

Aquaponic farming also saves water and produces minimal waste, making it cost-efficient in the long run.

By chance, the landowner happened to be a fish lover, making it easier for the Urban Greenlife team to get a headstart when with rearing tilapia.

“We were lucky because the owner of the lot likes to keep fish, so the place came with a pond already built inside.

“He did all the renovations and didn’t charge anything,” said Chin.

As Urban Greenlife continues to sprout new opportunities for its owners, Chin hopes to inspire Malaysians to move towards healthier eating by making aquaponic produce more accessible and affordable.

To find out more about Urban Greenlife, surf over to their Facebook page.

Resetting The Table: An Aquaponic Farm Rooted In Community

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ELAZAR SONTAG

Elazar and the camera crew head to Bushwick, New York to meet the woman behind New York City's largest outdoor aquaponic farm

August 27, 2019

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To View The Video, Please Click Here

[Photographs: Vicky Wasik. Video: Serious Eats Video.]

Editor's note: Resetting the Table is a monthly Serious Eats video series celebrating the diverse foodways that inform the way we eat in America. In each segment, Elazar Sontag cooks and talks with someone whose work in food, farming, or social justice is making a difference.

The sun is beating down on Oko Farms, and goldfish the size of sandals swim lazy circles through a tank of water shaded by a tarp-covered tent. Sunflowers sway in the wind, a light breeze rustles through planter beds, and bees hum as they move between clusters of bright little flowers. It’s not the kind of scene you expect to find in noisy, traffic-jammed Brooklyn, squeezed between a pizza shop and a banner promising "Fast & Professional!!" tax preparation services. But on this plot of land in Bushwick, Yemi Amu has transformed an abandoned concrete lot into New York City’s largest outdoor aquaponic farm.

Yemi utilizes the space on her farm to grow many of the vegetables she ate growing up in the coastal city of Lagos, Nigeria. Alongside onions and kale, she also grows gburé (water leaf), clove basil, several varieties of rice, sorghum, and other hard-to-find vegetables and herbs for Nigerian chef friends to incorporate into their cooking.

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[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Aquaponic farming is a sustainable method of growing plants and raising fish simultaneously, perfect for areas like this one, where a fire hydrant is the most accessible source of water. In aquaponics, water from a large freshwater fish tank is filtered to remove solid waste, then it's pumped through pipes into plant beds, providing the plants with nutrient-dense fertilizer. The plants filter out any toxic waste from the water, so that it’s clean when it returns to the fish tank, and the cycle repeats. This method of farming uses just a fraction of the water that conventional methods use.

Other farmers turned the Bushwick lot down, since without a water source it wasn’t farmable land. But Yemi saw the empty lot’s potential for aquaponic farming, and got to work.

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Oko Farms before and during the building process. [Photographs: Courtesy of Yemi Amu.]

The 2,500-square-foot farm she has created acts as a community space of sorts. Students regularly visit Oko Farms to learn about aquaponic farming, and Yemi welcomes anyone in the community to wander through and learn more about what she’s doing. When she's not tending to her own farm, Yemi helps build aquaponic farms throughout New York.

Early one morning, I headed to Oko with the Serious Eats camera crew to meet Yemi, learn about aquaponic farming and the incredible work she’s doing in her community, and to cook lunch on the beautiful farm.

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ELAZAR SONTAG ASSISTANT EDITOR

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Elazar Sontag is a writer from Oakland, California, living in Brooklyn. He’s the author of Flavors of Oakland: A Cookbook in 20 Stories, a book about home cooks and their food cultures. He's written for the Washington Post, New York Magazine, Vice, and this excellent website. Find him on Instagram: e_zar

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OId MacDonald Had A Farm…And A Robot, And Racks of plants, And Lots of Plastic To grow Plants In…

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The future of farming?

How about farms that go up vertically – measured in stories high, instead of in acres wide?  How about farms that are inside buildings, instead of outdoors?  How about farms that are in a city, instead of out in the country?  How about farms that use water, instead of dirt?  How about farms that use plastic, instead of dirt?  Not to mention robots and drones working the crops.

All possible.  All happening, in fact.  And perhaps, the future of farming.

Over the year to come, we’ll tell you more in detail about these innovations, and other changes in how we grow our food.  But the future of farming has more in common with the past and the present than you might think.  Petrochemicals, for instance.  Past, present or future, you can’t farm without the products made from them:  from the strong, lightweight plastics used to build the racks (and even the “ground”) plants grow on, to the carbon fiber-reinforced resin used to make many of those drones and robots and other equipment used on the indoor farms of the future – to the fuels that move the tractors, combines and other equipment used on the outdoor farms of today, as well as the fuels that move the food those farms grow to us – farming has deep petrochemical roots.

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Today, we’ll start with an introduction, and we’ll start in – in San Carlos, California.

That’s where Iron Ox has turned a warehouse into a grow house:  a dirt-free indoor farm growing romaine lettuce, kale and other leafy greens.  What replaces dirt at Iron Ox, is water (water supercharged with nutrients) – and racks, rows and rows of horizontal and vertical racks of plants…

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(Photo from Iron Ox)

…fresh food grown for people living in cities (like so many of us), grown in the cities where we live, and grown year round (which even in California, isn’t possible outdoors).

And the “Iron Ox”?  Much of the work on this farm is done by robots (like the one in that picture, lifting and moving racks of plants). Those robots can move in any direction, so they can place those racks closer together and get the most out of those indoor spaces.  The robots move on Mecanum wheels made from a high-tech synthetic rubber derived from petrochemicals like ethylene, propylene and toluene.  Even the robot arm that plants seeds and transfers plants?  That bends and flexes thanks to polypropylene joints.

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In Houston, Moonflower Farms has replaced the dirt with vermiculite that contains a mineral blend.  In their mini-warehouse (more of a shack really), their micro-greens are racked vertically…

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(Photo from Moonflower Farms)

…under hot pink lights.

That meant, after Hurricane Harvey swept over the Gulf Coast, Moonflower had 10 inches of water on the floor – but almost all of their crop was just fine (since it was up above the ground, and the flood water).

(Those racks, by the way, must be light-weight and strong, which requires engineered polymers like high-density polyethylene, ABS and HIPS.  And yes, those high-tech polymers are made from petrochemicals such as ethylene, propylene, butadiene and benzene.)

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Also in Houston is Acre in a Box.  In this case, the “box” is an old shipping container.  And inside that 320 square feet, is an acre (and a half, actually) of produce…

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(Photo from Acre in a Box)

…growing hydroponically day and night, come rain or come shine, or even come hurricane.

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At Urban Organics, in St. Paul, Minnesota – it’s easy to see one advantage of indoor farming.  The average high temperature in January is 23 degrees.  And unless you like a hot bowl of pine needle soup (think Euell Gibbons), there’s not much of anything growing fresh in that weather.

Urban Organics is an aquaponics farm – meaning they also grow their plants in a nutrient-rich water – but in this case, the fertilizer comes from fish (fish poop, that is).  In turn, the plants filter the water as they absorb those nutrients, the clean water goes back to the fish, and round and round the system goes.

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(Photo from Urban Organics)

And this type of advanced agriculture wouldn’t be possible without the engineered plastics made from petrochemicals.  Companies like Pentair Aquatic Eco-Systems use polyethene and fiber-reinforced resins, made from the petrochemical ethylene, to make fish tanks and filter tanks.  Ethylene is also used in the polyethylene and vinyl liners.  And the advanced membrane technology that allows for water recycling depends on petrochemicals as well (like the xylene, that makes the polyamide, that makes those membranes).

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But maybe the most far-out farming is going on in Japan – where Mebiol Research and Development is growing tomatoes – indoors – on a plastic sheet.

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(Photo from Mebiol)

This plastic (polymer) sheet is a hydrogel called polyvinyl acetate – a material like a super sponge which soaks up water and nutrients.  The tomatoes (and there are other plants too), grow ON the polymer, spreading their roots across the surface, and absorbing the nutrient-steeped water. That polymer starts with ethylene, again – which as you know by now, is a critical part of future farming.

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Oh, and those drones?  Drones nowadays inspect crops – check for plants that are underwatered – spot diseased plants – evaluate smoke contamination after a fire.  And after a fire, drones can plant new trees (as seeds), to help restore burned-over wilderness areas (and since they are drones, getting into a wilderness to plant is not a problem).

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(Photo from DroneSeed)

The drones, by the way, don’t dig holes and plant seeds – these drones “shoot” seed pods into the ground.  The pods are packed with nutrients, and coated with capsaicin (the stuff in chili peppers), to keep animals from eating the seeds.

(These sophisticated, seed-planting drones have to be tough, to withstand a wide variety of weather conditions and constant stress from the multiple blades – so fiber-reinforced resins are used because they are as strong as steel and much lighter in weight.  The resins are a special type of plastic called epoxy, and the petrochemical propylene is their foundation.)

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All of these methods of farming use far less water (as much as 90 percent less water) as conventional farming – they take up far less land – they can grow food year round – and they can grow food in the same place where most of it is being eaten, our cities.  All good, and all important at a time when there is less and less good farmland, and more and more of us needing to be fed.  And as we told you at the beginning of this peek at the future, all of this depends on farming’s deep petrochemical roots.

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Right after World War I, there was a hit song:  “How ya gonna keep ‘em down on the farm (after they’ve seen Paree)?”

Millions of American soldiers came home after the war, having left their home town for the first time, their state for the first time, their country for the first time – and maybe, so the song went, soldiers who’d left small towns across America, might have a taste now for big city life, and wouldn’t want to go home.

That might be different in years to come though.  Because “down on the farm” might be very much a part of big city life.  And it won’t be “down” on the farm anyhow.  Those future farms will go up, up into the air.  Skyscrapers filled with vegetables?  Stay tuned throughout the year as we follow this story.

Controlled Environmental Farming Inc - Provides True Urban Farming In Tucson, AZ

07/07/19

Controlled Environmental Farming Inc (CEF) has released the initial Site Plan for an urban farm to be located inside the city limits of Tucson, AZ.

The proposed location, 4431 E 22nd Street, has received preliminary approval from the City of Tucson Planning Department. This location in the heart of Tucson will provide locally grown fruits, vegetables, herbs, shrimp and fish at an affordable price. 

The facility of approximately 40,000 square feet will house a closed loop aquaponic method of production that uses patented technology to provide for vertical cultivation. This vertical integration allows CEF to reduce land and capital construction costs and provides operation cost reduction through production density. “Our philosophy is to make every cubic inch count in product production,” states Bruce Carman, Director of Technology / Owner of CEF. 

CEF intends to use direct distribution to the consumer to ensure product quality, freshness and food safety.

The all-inclusive, highly efficient facility will provide cultivation, processing, packaging and distribution to all clientele which are modeled to be private individuals and restaurants. This model helps to keep consumer costs down.

According to a report released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service (ERS), for every consumer dollar spent on food, the farm-share average is approximately $0.15 cents meaning that $0.85 cents is spent toward distribution, marketing and retail of the product. “Our direct-to-consumer model, will allow CEF to maintain and control costs for our customers while also allowing us to provide the freshest quality produce. Consumers increasingly want to know where their food is coming from, how it’s being grown, and who their farmer is. Local urban farming responds to those questions,” said Kristen Osgood, CEF’s CEO. 

The facility will provide direct sales through an on-line ordering system that can also arrange delivery if desired. Customers will be able to shop on site at the “Farm Market” or use the drive through to pick-up their orders, including complete meal-kits, salads, whole shrimp, fish and raw veggies.

In each area CEF locates, it intends to create local partnerships with other farmers and producers who share in the same food ethos as CEF. It is through these partnerships CEF hopes to integrate and promote local food economies. This will allow CEF customers to have the very best the local foodshed has to offer. 

Controlled Environmental Farming Inc. Advances Urban Farming in Tucson, AZ

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 Controlled Environmental Farming Inc. (CEF), Carlton, MN is advancing its concept of local, organic product cultivation within the city limits of a municipality through its recent preliminary site plan review success in Tucson, AZ. Making use of the highly progressive Urban Farming Zoning Regulations that the City of Tucson has, CEF presented a site plan that works well with the existing infrastructure, provides a beneficial, sustainable business to the Tucson community and is providing positive development to an odd shaped piece of property, increasing the City’s tax base. “We feel a very strong local connection when we can partner with progressive communities like Tucson.

We are highly appreciative to the City for their forward-thinking Urban Farming Zoning Regulations. Tucson’s focus on food accessibility aligns well with CEF’s mission to offer healthy, affordable, fresh local food to the community as well as providing purposeful employment,” said CEO Kristen Osgood

CEF intends to address the demand for locally grown, year-round nutritious quality food at competitive and consistent pricing through the construction of a new, patent pending, organic food production facility. The facility, engineered as a kit, can be placed anywhere geographically and permits the cultivation of a wide range of fruits, vegetables, herbs, shrimp and fish.

Ric Espiriti, the project’s Site Plan Architect noted, “Tucson’s progressive Urban Farming regulations recognize the nutritional and environmental benefits of local, Urban Farming and the benefit to the community.” In CEF facilities, product cultivation occurs through a proprietary closed loop, aquaponic water flow system that uses fish waste to provide nutrients (food) to the fruits, vegetables and herbs. The system is contained in a controlled environment facility, which has the benefit of consolidating and intensifying sustainable product growth while eliminating the risk factors that affect product quality, quantity and pricing. Processing and distribution operations are also contained within the facility which has the benefit of streamlining operations and increasing food safety.

 “This concept, in the City, could be the start of something big for Tucson,” said Barrie Herr, their land Broker, at Long Reality, “I can see business and educational expansion resulting from this concept”. In spring 2020, CEF plans to start building the 40,000-square foot facility which will produce annually, 480,000 pounds of fruits, vegetables and herbs to schools, hospitals, food distributors restaurants and grocery stores. Sales will also be available directly to individuals. The project also calls for a drive – up lane, using on-line ordering and payment methods. CEF will also cultivate 48,000 pounds of tilapia and 10,000 lbs of fresh shrimp.

“I very happy with the results of our first, proposed, large city placement of one of our facilities. The City of Tucson should be commended for their advanced ideology on inner city land usage development,” remarked Bruce Carman, Owner and Director of Technology of CEF.

For more information on Controlled Environmental Farming Inc.

And its Urban Farming Model:

Bruce Carman: conenvfarm@gmail.com

In A Basement in Stockholm, The Inhabitants Grow Their Own Fish and Vegetables - Cycling Cultivation Provides Extremely Grown Food

PUBLISHED FÖR 14 DAGAR SEDAN.

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Different forms of urban cultivation are becoming increasingly popular and Dag-Tore Johannessen from the Circulation Company is testing aquaponics in a basement room. Photo: Yle / Linda Söderlund

LINDA  SÖDERLUND

In a few months the residents of Solberga in Stockholm can go and catch the dinner fish in the basement. At the same time, they can harvest salad, tomatoes and herbs. The cycling plant is tested to get locally produced food in town.

You first go through a bicycle cellar and then you come to a basement room, where the former storehouse was kept. An aquaponic cultivation has now been built, which provides both the fish and vegetables for the needs of the tenants.

THIS IS HOW AQUAPONI WORKS

- I jumped on the project right away. I am interested in food production and I also work with it. It seemed interesting to have friends with neighbors and raise fish and plants in the basement, says Markus Jantunen, one of the tenants in Solberga.

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Torbjörn Frisö and Markus Jantunen read about the various hydroponic cultivation techniques. Photo: Yle / Linda Söderlund

The entire plant is a biological system that works with bacteria. The plants get nourishment from the fish bait, and at the same time the plants help to clean the water so that it can return to the fish farm.

In two open tanks, tilapia swims, one of the world's most cultured fish. Tilapia grows fast and thrives on a small surface and one expects to get 200 kg of fish a year from here.

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Tilapia is an African fish that is grown a lot in especially Asia and the USA. Photo: Yle / Linda Söderlund

The fishermen sprinkle and swim up to the surface when Torbjörn Frisö pours half a cup of fish feed into the water.

- The only thing we add to the culture is oxygen and fish food, says Frisö.

Frisö founded Kretsloppsbolaget and he and Dag-Tore Johannessen have built the cultivation plant in the basement. Cultivation is part of the EU project Green Solberga and here in southern Stockholm several different climate-smart and sustainable innovations are tested.

The cultivation can provide 1500 basil pots per year

In the basement, three different hydroponic cultivation beds are tested, where one grows in water. Here grow lush basil, tomatoes, sugar peas, fennel and chili.

Basil is the main product right now and one expects 1500 basil pots per year.

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The NFT technology with pipes is especially suitable for growing herbs. Photo: Yle / Linda Söderlund

THREE DIFFERENT HYDROPONIC CROPS

The big challenge is to maintain the balance in the biological system.

- Secondly, it is important to raise the level of bacteria, which converts the fish's poo ammonium to nitrite and then to nitrate. The pH value is important, as is the alkalinity, says Torbjörn Frisö.

With climate change, interest in urban cultivation is growing

Markus Jantunen believes that in the future it will become increasingly important that one can also produce their own food in the cities.

- We city dwellers do not have many options, compared to people living in rural areas. Then such solutions are needed to become self-sufficient in food.

He also appreciates the social part, to do something for the climate together with the neighbors.

- We are destroying our soil, we are depleting the soil and surpassing them elsewhere and we are fishing out of the sea. Then it is this that will be the future.

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Ebb and river technology are suitable for different types of perennials, such as tomatoes. Photo: Yle / Linda Söderlund

The ecocycle company also believes that interest in urban cultivation continues to grow. People are becoming increasingly aware of climate change and want to influence themselves with active choices.

It is hoped that this type of aquaponic plant will be built in several basements around Stockholm. According to the circuit company, the plant has many advantages.

- This food is extremely popular if you think of the tenants living in Solberga. Water consumption is smaller than in normal cultivation and so we have the premises that are already heated, says Dag-Tore Johannesson.

The cultivation requires supervision a few times a week

Now the inhabitants are learning how to manage the cultivation. It is a group of about ten people who have been allowed to register and eventually they take over the responsibility for the cultivation from the Circulation Company.

- It requires supervision two or three times a week, depending on how the plant has been set up. It takes some time, but at the same time it is fun, so I think it will be fine, ”says Jantunen.

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Photo: Yle / Linda Söderlund

Torbjörn shows Markus how to best sow basil. He uses regular seed soil and seeds sold for commercial use, they have much better germination than regular seeds.

- The first pots we put - oh, oh, as soon as it grew! It is amazing !, describes Torbjörn and shows with his hands how quickly the basilica grew.

"So the problem is that it gets so much that you don't know what to do about it?" Asks Markus.

- No, it's just eating it! We usually make pesto at home, it will be fine, Torbjörn tips and laughs.

The Green Solberga project also includes cultivation in pallet collars, a project with water stairs that can take advantage of stormwater and to test a biotechnology that removes bad odor during waste sorting. The project is run by IVL Svenska Miljöinstitutet and Stockholmshem.

US (AZ): Farming Sustainably With Aquaponic Produce

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It began years ago with a pledge from Chef Ken Harvey to provide his guests at Loews Ventana Canyon with food made from the freshest possible ingredients, and Harvey hasn’t cut any corners in sourcing his meats, cheeses, breads and produce from sustainable purveyors. 

But it was his first meeting with the founders of Merchant’s Garden, a local aquaponics farm, which put his nearly pathological commitment to the principle of sustainability on an exciting new path. This ultimately resulted in his vow to grow and harvest onsite enough lettuce to serve his tens of thousands of guests per month, year-round, with only one percent of the water that’s used in conventional farming.

Occupying a climate-controlled storage space that wasn’t being fully utilized, the new hydroponic garden is the last stop on the lettuce’s journey before it lands on a guest’s plate. That journey begins aquaponically at Merchant’s Garden, where the lettuce spends its newborn month being fed through its young root system by water enriched by nutrients from biofiltered tilapia waste. It’s then transported live to Loews Ventana Canyon, 7000 N. Resort Drive, in floating containers, with its roots still submersed in the nutrient-rich water, for a subsequent cycle of hydroponic growing prior to harvest.

Harvey is currently growing Bibb and Red Cherokee lettuces, as well as three varieties of Romaine. His garden system’s capacity is nearly 300 heads per harvest, with multiple harvests per month, which equates to a full acre of farming if the lettuce was grown in the ground. And he tells me that he’s only using 200 gallons of water per month in a recirculating system that only loses water through evaporation and transpiration.

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Merchant’s Garden

Read more at Inside Tucson Business (Matt Russell)

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Publication date: 5/9/2019