Discover Aquaponics Seminar

Kim Koch, Ph.D., NCI Feed Center Manager, spoke at the Discover Aquaponics Seminar on Sept. 5 at Lake Area Technical Institute (LATI) Student Center, Watertown, SD. The event attracted over 150 students, faculty and the public.  Koch, an expert on animal nutrition, spoke on aquaculture and types of fish feed.  Other speakers included Sylvia Bernstein, president and founder of the Aquaponic Source; Ron Johnson, University of Wisconsin Extension Aquaculture Outreach Specialist; and Laura Tiu, Ph.D., Aquaculture Extension Specialist with the Ohio Center for Aquaculture Research and Development at The Ohio State University. The event was sponsored by South Dakota State University, North Central Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education, and LATI. Aquaponics is a sustainable food production system that combines conventional aquaculture, (raising aquatic animals such as snails, fish, crayfish or prawns in tanks), with hydroponics (cultivating plants in water) in a symbiotic environment.