When you consider the fact that the USA produces some of the best organic food in the world, it makes absolutely no sense that we continue to import these foods during peak season. As the demand increases for locally grown organic foods, more people are constructing aquaponics models of all sizes to grow their own food. It is not only healthier and more economic but enables people to stop contributing to the monoculture environments that industrial agriculture thrives in which has been producing nothing more than low quality, chemical laden foods.

So, what exactly is aquaponics? It is not necessarily a new method but one that has been around for a very long time. Aquaponics is the cultivation of fish and plants together in a constructed, re-circulating ecosystem utilizing natural bacterial cycles to convert fish wastes to plant nutrients. It is the only modern agricultural technique that isn’t dependent upon fossil fuels to be fully operational. Even conventional agriculture cannot operate without cheap oil, because all of the farm equipment depends upon it.

This demand for locally grown organic food is not just a fad, it is a necessity. Even in places like Hawaii where it would be assumed that food would be plentiful, it is not. Hawaii imports 94% of its food. Hawaiians are literally 9 meals away from hunger and 20 meals away from starvation. The most logical preventative solution is for people to take action by growing their own food. Friendly Aquaponics is an organization that is helping people to do this by becoming fully sustainable. The founders, Susanne Friend and Tim Mann, have a vision. They want to share their knowledge about aquaponics with the world in order to help people reconnect with nature by reconnecting with their food. Tune in to this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, as host, June Stoyer is joined by special guest, Susanne Friend! Stay tuned!