Piloting an Integrated, de-coupled aquaponics system for sustainable feed production.

Project Overview

FW24-012
Project Type: Farmer/Rancher
Funds awarded in 2024: $23,814.00
Projected End Date: 03/30/2025
Host Institution Award ID: G277-24-WA507
Grant Recipient: Honest Greens
Region: Western
State: Hawaii
Principal Investigator:
Elko Evans
Honest Greens

Commodities

  • Vegetables: sweet potatoes, taro
  • Animals: fish

Practices

  • Animal Production: aquaculture, feed/forage
  • Production Systems: aquaponics

    Proposal summary:

    Aquaculture producers in Hawaii
    face high costs of feed and electricity. This project aims to
    address these challenges by researching locally produced fish
    feed using ideal carbohydrate components and growing root crop
    starches from excess water in a de-coupled aquaponics system
    (DAPS). In summary, this project aims to develop sustainable
    aquaculture feed, reduce energy costs, and promote local food
    production in Hawai'i and elsewhere in the tropics. It will
    benefit aquaculture producers by providing locally grown feed and
    decreasing dependence on imported resources. Dissemination
    efforts will ensure widespread adoption.

    The project objectives are
    to

    1. Determine the yield of taro,
      sweet potato and cassava using effluent water from adjacent
      fish systems as the sole fertilizer source, 
    2. Compare fish growth rates in a
      commercial scale DAP system versus a closed-loop aquaponics
      system,
    3. Assess costs of production in a
      commercial scale DAP system relative to closed loop systems,
      and
    4. Increase the awareness of 150 producers of recent innovations
      in aquaculture and aquaponics to improve on-farm profitability.

     Outcomes from successfully completing these
    objectives are expected to include reduced feed costs for local
    aquaculture producers, decreased dependence on imported feed
    ingredients, and lower energy expenses.

    Dissemination of the project's
    findings (education component)  will be done through
    workshops, online resources, podcasts, and newsletters to reach
    agricultural stakeholders. The technique of using excess
    nutrient-rich water from a DAPS can be adopted by other farmers
    to grow various crops, reducing fertilizer costs and providing
    additional revenue streams.

    The project team, led by Elko
    Evans, will install and maintain 15 tanks, monitor water quality,
    and plant sweet potato, taro, and cassava. Catfish growth rates
    will be compared between a DAPS and a closed-loop system. The
    educational plan includes workshops, articles, and a GoFish
    curriculum.

    Project objectives from proposal:

    The project objectives are
    to

    1. Determine the yield of taro,
      sweet potato and cassava using effluent water from adjacent
      fish systems as the sole fertilizer source, 
    2. Compare fish growth rates in a
      commercial scale DAP system versus a closed-loop aquaponics
      system,
    3. Assess costs of production in a
      commercial scale DAP system relative to closed loop systems,
      and
    4. Increase the awareness of 150 producers of recent innovations
      in aquaculture and aquaponics to improve on-farm profitability.
    Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or SARE.