Bahamas receives Aquaponics Training Seminar

A three day Aquaponics Training Seminar was recently completed in Nassau, Bahamas for Bahamians that are interested in Non-traditional Agriculture and alternative backyard organic farming techniques.

For the aquaponic enthusiast that has never put a system together, it is imperative that they understand how aquaponic systems function. Additionally, their biggest obstacle to success is getting started to build their own system. By attending this seminar, attendees are guided through the building process so that they fully understand all aspects of putting a system together, which counts as their first aquaponic system. When they go to build one for themselves, it will essentially be the second aquaponic system that they put together so they won’t have any fear and will be confident in their decision making processes.

The first day and a half were spent in the classroom, learning about aquaponic systems, how they worked and their benefits for backyard food production. The primary speaker was Jon Chaiton, an aquacultural engineer and practising aquaponic instructor who teaches aquaponics and is also a fisheries/aquaculture biologist. Topics included: The History of Aquaponics, The Benefits of Aquaponics Over Other Growing Systems, Types of Aquaponic Systems, Aquaponic Components, The Importance of Bio-Filtration and Solids Removal, Fish Biology, Fish Nutrition and Species Selection, Commercial Aquaponics, Advanced Aquaponics: Aeroponics, Pest Control in Aquaponic Systems, Water Quality Dynamics and Evaluation, Good Agricultural Practices, Aquaponic Start-Up and Business Planning, Seed Propagation, Avoidence of Plant Diseases and Pests, Harvesting and Marketing and Water Flow Dynamics, and other topics.

There were field trips to view two aquaponic systems located in Nassau (one backyard system and one commercial system). The last one and a half days of the seminar were spent building an actual aquaponic system. The aquaponic build-out was a huge success and many of the students/attendees have already begun building an aquponic system of their own.

The Aquaponic Seminar was sponsored by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA Bahamas) and the Bahamas Agri Business Co-Operative (BABCO).

For more information
Jon Chaiton
Aquaponics Training Seminar Instructor
emeraldpartners@yahoo.com

Publication date: Fri 11 Jul 2014