The aquaculture club at Lake Superior State University is currently 13 members strong and a proud student subunit of the U.S Aquaculture Society. Our club started back in 2020 with 15 members. We have three deep water culture aquaponic systems, a recirculating aquaculture system, a vertical aeroponics system and zebra fish research tanks. Our aquaponic systems are growing Atlantic salmon, yellow perch, koi, and goldfish . We grow a variety of plants, anything from herbs and house plants to fruiting plants and trees.
T he club puts on plant sales every month to have a continuous fundraiser . This schedule allows us time between sales to empty out the grow beds, clean and sanitize, before moving the next set of sprouts into the systems. We hold a yearly tie dye event where community and club members get to tie dye their very own fishman shirt or tote bag. The club has also hosted cooking demonstrations and soap making events.
We hold numerous tours of our facility throughout the year for K-12 groups , campus events, and community outreach. Our goals as a club are to educate the club members and community about aquaculture and aquaponic systems and practices. We also love to tour other aquaculture or aquaponic facilities. These activities allow the club members to gain knowledge about how others run their systems.
The club sends members to different conferences each year. Five members attended the NCRAC/Wisconsin, Minnesota Aquaculture conference in Eau Claire, Wisconsin in February 2023. Those members were able to help with running the sessions and made connections with local industry workers. The members also got the opportunity to visit Jeremiah’s Bull Frog Farm before heading back to campus. A week later three members of the club attended the Aquaculture America Conference in New Orlean 2023; pr esenting their work on shrimp in brackish water aquaculture, heavy metals in aquaponics and growing Eastern White Cedars in aquaponics. The opportunity to go to the Aquaculture America Conference was an eye opening and educational experience. The club looks forward to new members and new experiences each year .