Re: Question about intensive aquaculture (tilapia)

Libby J. Goldstein (libby@igc.apc.org)
19 May 1996 00:48:00 GMT

We grew tilapia here in Phila. on a few community gardens in the 80's.
We used 10-12' commercial wading pools with biofilters. The gardeners,
mostly low income people, learned to manage the pools, test the water,
work out the feed formulas fairly quickly, but it did take a full time
staff person to get the project up and running.

We managed to produce 150-200 lbs of fish in the same time it took to
grow sweet potatoes. There was a fish farming program at Walter Biddle
Saul Agricultural High School here during those years too. You might
want to see if they are still doing it.

Our project was run by Food & Energy Systems, Inc, an off-shoot of the
Penn State Urban Gardening Program. FES has since gone out of business.

Libby
(Former Phila County Extension Director and Director of FES)