Aquaponic production provides many benefits to some of the shortcomings of traditional agriculture (soil-based; wild caught), especially when considering the future effects of climate change. For example, aquaponic production can be located anywhere (indoors, rooftops, abandoned buildings, etc.) with access to electricity and freshwater, allowing for year-round production of both aquatic organisms and organic plants . Additionally, aquaponic systems are extremely efficient in terms of resource usage (freshwater, arable land, nutrients), where in some cases these systems can produce 30x more food per acre of land and consume 90% less freshwater than traditional soil-based agriculture. Currently there is a large economic push and incentivization for CEA operations in Virginia, making this is an opportunistic time for short- and long-term development of aquaponic programming at Virginia State University and Virginia Cooperative Extension.
When considering how to develop VSU’s aquaponic programming, four main program pillar areas were considered that include: 1) Public perception (marketing, surveys, resource usage metrics, etc.), 2) Farmer support (stocking programs, workforce development, educational videos/offerings, producer guides, etc.), 3) Innovation (vertical designs, alternative designs, nanobubbles, alternative species, etc.), and 4) Value- add (freeze drying, mineralization/ emulsion, compost, etc.). Using these four program pillar areas short- (1-3 years) and long-term (3-5+ years) programming was developed to support existing aquaponic producers within VA as well as create a landscape that stimulates further development of the industry within VA and the US.
Examples of short-term programming include pilot-scale replicated research systems (Figure 1), Mobile Aquaponic Demonstration and Education Unit (MADE-U ), nanobubble integration into aquaponic design, vertical/alternative system design , multi-state collaborations (KYSU, UA, VT, etc.), continuous generation of producer educational materials (production guides, factsheets, etc.), and annual extension agent training and public workshops. Examples of long-term programming include f ish stocking and plant genetic program s, establishment of workforce pipeline with industry partners , mass archive of educational materials, and a VSU Aquaponic Center of Excellence.