The Future of Aquaponics And The Need For Certification

Trinidad State College And Future Aquaponic Classes

With the USDA now looking into the certification of classifying aquaponics an organic food, there are also other questions being raised whether or not the legalities can actually be changed. 

You see aquaponics is not just about growing organic foods but also raising healthy fish. While there are some fantastic teachers in the aquaponics industry how many of them actually have a certification in fish diseases and or the proper care and treatment for sick fish?

For many people this might seem like we are splitting hairs but if you do not go to school to get a degree-certification in aquaculture, the disease issue could become a real problem at some point.

Stress is still the biggest contributor to disease forming in fish and people in the aquaculture industry who are breeding, raising and farming fish are already aware of these problems.

USDA Taskforce

A task force has now been assigned from USDA and they will be looking into every aspect of the aquaponics industry. Does this mean there will be certifications, licensing and more restrictions once everything is reviewed? The fact is people might have to get ready for some big industry changes and once the new regulations are set in place, that could mean good news or not for current aquaponic farms. 

My thoughts are if the USDA was to give an organic certification to the aquaponics industry, it should include a good knowledge base concerning some of the diseases fish can carry onto humans. 

Picture Source Mad Fish Disease: 

http://journal.bdfish.org/index.php/fisheries/article/viewFile/28/53/246 

Fish TB (MYCOBACTERIUM MARINUM), also called fish tuberculosis, fish tank granuloma, swimming pool granuloma. Related to human TB and leprosy.

MAD FISH DISEASE ... caused by STREPTOCOCCUS INIAE.

Recently reported from handling tilapia. Infection via puncture wounds.

SALMONELLA... over 1600 serotypes identified.

Infection by ingestion. Carried by many types of animals.

ERYSIPELOTHRIX RHUSIOPATHIAE, also known as erythema migrans, fish-handler's disease, fish poisoning, fish hand, sealer's finger, whale finger, blubber finger, etc.

VIBRIO infections. Several species can infect humans: V. ALGINOLYTICUS (wound infections), V.DAMSELA (wound/systemic infections), V. PARAHAEMOLYTICUS (gastroenteritis/wound infections),V.VULNIFICUS (wound/gastroenteritis/systemic infections). 

Source for disease: http://www.fishlore.com/Articles/DiseasesTransmittedToHumans.htm

The below points are valid causes for concern for the USDA and why we believe that colleges will eventually play a more significant role in the certification and education process of aquaponics.

• Careful selection of sites for aquaculture farms. 

• Protection of adjacent ecosystems. 

• Active avoidance of conflicts with other users of the aquatic resources (e.g., fishermen) 

• Prohibition of chemicals (e.g.. as anti-fouling agents in net pens) . 

• Natural remedies and treatments in the case of disease. 

• Feedstuff from organic agriculture. 

• Fishmeal and - oil in feed derived from by-products of fish processed for human consumption (no dedicated "feed fishery"). 

• Prohibition of GMOs, neither in feedstuff, nor in the stock itself. 

• Processing according to organic standards. 

"According to a Consumer Reports magazine food labeling poll, some 74 percent of consumers are concerned about environmental pollution from “organic” fish. The poll also showed that 91 percent of consumers want contaminants in fish to be absent or present only at very low levels." See more information at the link below... 

https://afsic.nal.usda.gov/aquaculture-and-soilless-farming/aquaculture/organic-aquaculture

Trinidad State College

The Trinidad State College in Colorado has a fantastic aquaculture program running, where they offer a 2 year accredited degree. They now want to expand their curriculum into an aquaponics certification and the ASC Magazine has been asked to contribute coursework to this process. We have a team of great writers who will be helping out and making suggestions to aid in the perfection of this aquaponic coursework. 

http://www.trinidadstate.edu/programs/career-and-technical/aquaculture

We are proud and happy to help out the college and we believe this is the right course of action in furthering the education process regarding the future of aquaponics.

If you would like to join the magazine please check out our main subscription page below: 

http://aquaponics-how-to-guide.info/aquanewsletter/

Cheers 

Victoria

pH Levels in Aquaponics

Over the next few weeks the ASC Magazine will be posting sections of articles written by our writers and businesses who have contributed to the aquaponics industry and the ASC Magazine. 

This article comes from our February 2015 Edition of the magazine, Written by Vlad Jovanovic: 

Matt Bell Asked:

Hello everyone, I'm fairly new to aquaponics I just ran my tests and here are my results.

Ammonia level = .25ppm

Nitrite level = 0ppm

Nitrate level = 160 ppm

PH = 7.5

Are these levels normal, or even the ballpark?

Well Matt, I suppose that would depend on what inning you are in :-) But yeah, you are definitely in the ball park. It's good that your Nitrite and Ammonia levels are at or near Zero. You may (or may not, depending on how hard your top off water is) see your pH slowly start to come down. It'll be good to get the pH below 7.

 It might also be wise to figure out what your Nitrate level actually is. By that I mean, the API Nitrate test only reads up to 160 ppm. Everything above 160 ppm pretty much reads as being 160. So your Nitrate level may actually be 240 or 500 and you wouldn't really know it, it would just read 160. 

What you can do is perform the test with twice the amount of water (10 ml instead of 5 ml). Or use the standard 5 ml of system water in the test tube, but only add half the amount of the reagents. Meaning, 5 drops from each bottle (per 5 ml of water) instead of 10 drops from each bottle. 

With either of these two methods, you are in essence doubling the upper readable limit of the nitrate tests to 320 ppm. If you perform this 'diluted version' of the Nitrate test, and you compare the color of the test tube, to the chart...and it looks like 100ppm (for instance) this would translate to actually having Nitrates present to the tune of 200 ppm (make sense everyone?).

You can move this upper readable limit even further than 320 ppm, if need be, just by further dilutions (but hopefully that won't be necessary). Excessive nitrates are neither very healthy for our plants, or for us human to consume. 

As far as levels being normal...If we were to define what is "normal" as a matter of prevalence, or statistical occurrence; then yes, having excessive Nitrates in an AP system could be said to be "normal". It seems fairly common from what I've seen, for AP systems to have an excess of nitrogen (and at the same time be deficient in other plant essential elements). But let us, for a moment, step away from defining what is normal only by what is common, or prevalent. Otherwise, we may say things like "obesity is normal" (because it is so prevalent), or "having heart disease is normal" (because it is so common), or "it is normal for our food to be made and modified by the world's largest pesticide maker" (because it happens to be the condition that we find ourselves in)...and other statements like that.  

Let us instead define what is normal in terms of what would provide conditions for "normal" plant growth/health, and "normal" fish growth and health. In this case, what I think would be "normal" for an AP system to do, is to provide the conditions necessary for the near optimal genetic expression of our plants and fish (in terms of fecundity or productiveness). 

Plants Need These Things To Grow Healthy

I. What do plants need to grow?

a). Water

b). Air

c). Nutrients

d). Structure (root anchor)

e). Light

f). Adequate temperatures (both root and leaf)

g). pH at root zone (slightly acidic) 

h). *Soil *? (equates to substrate)

II. What comprises good soil (or substrate)?

a). 25% Water 

b). 25% Air

c). 45% Mineral Matter (rock, sand, silt, clay)

d). 3% - 5% Organic Matter (at various stages of decomposition)

III. Plant Essential Elements

a). Major Elements - N, P, K, Ca, Mg, S (expressed in percent %)

b). Micro Elements - Fe, Zn, Cu, Mn, B, Mo, Cl, (expressed in ppm, or mc/kg)

c). Beneficial Elements Si, Ni etc...

d). Organic molecules vs. mineral ions (microbial action vs. ionic dissociation)

e). Cations vs. Anions-Soil offers greater buffer for imbalance than water culture (show pH chart)

IV. The Role of Microbes in freeing up different plant essential elements from organic molecules...

Learn more...

If you would like to read more of this article, please consider subscribing to the ASC Magazine: http://aquaponics-how-to-guide.info/aquanewsletter/

OR 

You can purchase back issues of the ASC Magazine here: http://aquaponics-how-to-guide.info/magazine_back_issues/

Energy Efficient Greenhouses For Growing Food

What Kind of Greenhouse Do You Want To Build?

There are all kinds of different styled greenhouses people can build to house their aquaponics systems and grow healthy foods. Winter can be a challenging time for many people who live in the Northern Hemisphere. We have to deal with maintaining a good water temperature, heating the greenhouse and keeping the cold out to grow food. 

Our family live at 8000 feet in the Colorado mountains. That means freezing temperatures and high winds during winter. In our area we need a greenhouse that can take the winds and believe me it can get pretty rough here at times. Our family already tried the hoop house build (below) and the wind tore it to shreds after a few months. 

Maintaining natural heat throughout the greenhouse is also important. I want to have a greenhouse that will not break the bank but allow me to grow throughout the year. The picture below shows the winter sun position in our area. As you can see the sun is fairly low in the sky on a southerly aspect. We took this picture in January when the lake was totally frozen over.

If you live in the Northern Hemisphere growers will need a Southerly aspect for their greenhouse position to maintain the best heating. The longest side of the greenhouse should get the most exposure. For anyone living in the Southern Hemisphere, you will want to place the greenhouse towards the North. 

The graphic image above gives people a good idea of the sun's position during winter months in the Northern Hemisphere. 

Walipini's And Earth Sheltered Greenhouses

Walipini means place of warmth and these types of natural earth style Greenhouses have been built in South America where people were growing bananas at 14,000 feet. That's quite an amazing achievement when you think about it. 

A Walipini is build inside the earth and you may need to hire someone to excavate the long trench. Walipini's are usually built 6 to 8 feet down into the ground and can be as long or short as you need them to be. You can re-use the excavated dirt to create earthbags to reinforce the side walls if you want a secure bunker style.

If you build your walipini correctly it should maintain a healthy temperature of approximately 70 degrees even on those cold wintery days. If you live in an area where space is not a problem check the position of the sun first, then build the length of the Walipini facing the winter sun. The more sun exposure the better it will be for heating purposes. 

Will your Walipini have a plastic or polycarbonate roof? Plastic is obviously cheaper but it will not last as long, so do you put most of your money into a good roof and framework or wait a few years to change it out? I guess that will depend on you and the amount of money you have to spend. I know of a family who used Dura-skrim as a cover for their roofing materials.

In my area of CO, I would much rather go for the secure roof materials (polycarbonate) and framework rather than have a disaster happen and lose plants due to flooding or a cave in.  

Placing a walipini on sloped land is a better idea because it will allow for any rainfall to run away from the walipini instead of flooding it out. Walipini's are ideal builds for people who live in Semi-arid desert conditions like Texas, Utah, New Mexico, California and Colorado. Lower rainfall areas work better because too much water can be a problem. If you live in Florida a walipini is probably not going to work for you. 

I have some plans here for you to keep which will teach you to build a Walipini: 

http://www.the-meal.net/graph/manuel_walipina_benson.pdf

ALSO

Take a look at this great PDF created by the University of Minnesota Extension Service 

On cold climate greenhouses: 

http://www.extension.umn.edu/rsdp/community-and-local-food/production-resources/docs/cold-climate-greenhouse-resource.pdf

Passive Solar Heated Design Greenhouse

Saving money on heating any greenhouse throughout the winter is crucial especially when millions of people are financially strapped for cash. Having a reliable greenhouse to grow food during the cold months is even more important. I would like to offer people the below plans which comes with building materials needed for the above passive solar heated greenhouse design. 

It was put together by the Bradford Research Center College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources and I love this design because black water barrels are used to heat this particular greenhouse. 

This type of greenhouse is ideal for people who cannot dig down to build a Walipini but want a passive solar greenhouse. Check out the below link for the plans: 

http://bradford.cafnr.org/passive-solar-greenhouse/

Having an energy efficient greenhouse to grow food can be a lifesaver for a family who wants a more sustainable lifestyle. It can house your AP System, grow smaller tropical plants you normally couldn't grow in the North and even offer a warm shelter for animals.

Warmest Regards

Victoria

Ethoxyquin In Animal, Fish and Human Food

Ethoxyquin Is Actually A Registered Pesticide

For a long time people may have looked at their fish food ingredients and noticed the word 'antibiotic' on the packet and never really given it a second thought. Most will think it's there because of the fishmeal in the food and antibiotics help to keep the food safe.

The 'antibiotics' are just there to preserve the shelf life of the product and to stop the food from going rancid. The actual truth of Ethoxyquin is something a bit different. This chemical is actually a registered pesticide on the EPA website and is owned by Monsanto. The beginnings of the chemical Ethoxyquin is even more interesting; as it started life out to prevent rubber from cracking because of antioxidant efficiency and stability properties. The chemical was then refined down and added in food as an antibiotic.

People really should be asking why is a pesticide being used in ANIMAL, FISH and HUMAN Food? 

“Ethoxyquin is rapidly absorbed from gastrointestinal tract of laboratory animals like rats and mice. Peak blood concentration of the compound is observed within 1 h. Distribution of EQ in animal body is similar when it is administered orally and intravenously." 

Other names for Ethoxyquin are: Stop Scold,  Santoflex, Quinol and Santoquin. Monsanto uses it because it’s cheap to produce and because it protects lipid peroxidation and stabilizes fat soluble vitamins (A, E) in animal feed. 

“Small amounts of parent EQ were detected in liver, kidney, and adipose tissue and fish muscles. It is excreted predominantly as metabolites via urine.”

The above quote is something people in the AP industry will be more interested in because the produce is grown in water and the fish urine-poop helps everything work in the symbiotic cycle. You can download the below PDFs for more information on the studies regarding Ethoxyquin.  I have more science studies but this is a good start.  

http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ijfs/2013/585931/

http://digital.csic.es/bitstream/10261/78828/1/Effect_antioxidant_Aubourg.pdf

http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/reregistration/status_page_e.htm

Download The PDF regarding Ethoxyquin here:

http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/reregistration/REDs/factsheets/0003fact.pdf

http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/reregistration/REDs/0003red.pdf

Aquaponics can be a very healthy way to grow food and I totally support growers and farmers who are producing this way. However can we still say the produce grown in AP is totally organic when pesticides are being found in fish food?  It's obvious from the above links Ethoxyquin is a registered pesticide and that alone is cause to question what fish are eating.

Anyone who is growing food in Aquaponics needs to look more closely at the food they are feeding fish. Check the labels on the back of commercial food packets and look at ALL the ingredients which should include preservatives and antibiotics. 

There are some good brands of fish food out there but you have to look around. The Aquaponic Source sells a pretty good brand and they have all their ingredients listed on the website.

If you are selling fish food online or in a store, it is your responsibility to be posting ALL the ingredients. The EPA has guidelines they expect sellers to follow so checking out their website might be in order. Consumers have the right to know what they are buying and feeding to their animals. If you do not see these two ingredients listed on a seller's website, don't buy the food until you know what type of chemicals are being used as antibiotics. 

My Questions Regarding Ethoxyquin Are These:  

Can this pesticide be found in produce being grown in aquaponic systems? The roots intake the much needed nutrients from the water, so it stands to reason the plants may also be ingesting Ethoxyquin. That sounds reasonable don't you think? After all Glyphosate from Roundup is now being found in waterways, drinking water, breast milk, food and soil. So can the same be said about Ethoxyquin?

Could Ethoxyquin be a good reason why some people have problems with their fish health? Some people have complained in the ASC community their fish just up and died for no particular reason. Could it be the fish are ingesting Ethoxyquin from the food and over time the chemical build up in their bodies, causes them to die? Most of us already know fish are extremely sensitive to chemicals so this could be a valid point. 

Can a pesticide like Ethoxyquin affect the water in the AP fish tank? Could this also be the reason why so many people become frustrated with high pH problems? If a person has to rely on city water for their fish, there are already chemicals in the water but could Ethoxyquin affect pH? Has anyone ever questioned this or done testing on this pesticide? 

These are good questions to ask because more people are becoming painfully aware of the amount of chemicals in water and food. Not everything we have been told is the truth and sometimes bait and switch tactics are used on the public to convince them pesticides, additives and antibiotics are safe for human consumption. 

"How could we have ever believed that it was a good idea to grow our food with poisons?" -Jane Goodall

Over a year ago I wrote a book called "Essential Healthy Fish Food In Aquaponics" where I named many different chemicals, used in fish food and other animal products.  For instance SOY and CORN added into fish food; do you know about these two foods your fish are consuming?

Nearly 97% of Corn and Soy being grown in America is GMO. If you consider the Glyphosate from Roundup on the seed itself and then look at the ingredients in your fish food, this might be one of the reasons your fish become sick or die off occasionally.  Think in terms of long term chemical build-up and not so much about the fact it's GMO then you get what I'm saying here. 

Soy is also washed in a petro-chemical called Hexane 

n-Hexane is a chemical made from crude oil. Pure n-hexane is a colorless liquid with a slightly disagreeable odor. It evaporates very easily into the air and dissolves only slightly in water.

n-Hexane is highly flammable, and its vapors can be explosive.  

Makes you think about what you are eating now doesn't it....check your labels before buying fish food because that old saying of Buyer Beware is also true about the food we may be feeding the fish. 

Warmest Regards 

Victoria