What requirements must an Aquaponics Farmer/Entrepreneur meet to grow Aquaganic™ food? If you remember our poster at the top of this page, it says that Aquaganic™ food is “Beyond Organic”. So at the very least, to grow Aquaganic™ food means to meet the minimum Organic Food Requirements. That means the following:

     •no human sewage sludge fertilizer used in cultivation of plants or feed of animals


          •avoidance of synthetic chemical inputs


          •no genetically modified organisms, irradiation


          •no fertilizer, pesticides, antibiotics, food additives, etc.


          •keeping detailed written production and sales records (audit trail)


          •maintaining strict physical separation of organic products from non-certified products


          •undergoing periodic on-site inspections


          •maintaining strict food handling and packaging standards


Because fish are the drivers of an Aquaponics system, Aquaponics farmers can’t help but be purists when it comes to synthetic chemical inputs like fertilizers and pesticides. So for Aquaganic™ Certification, there is no “National List” of approved items. The fish cannot handle even a drop of these toxic ingredients. They can’t even handle metal in their systems (except for stainless steel) because of metal toxicity.

Other than a little iron, potassium or calcium, some Microbe-Lift and Photosynthesis Plus that we sell on our sister site, Aquaponics USA, there are no additives in an Aquaponics system except for Fish Food; and that’s where an Aquaponics Farmer/Entrpreneur can get in trouble if he/she is not careful. There are lots of brands of fish food being imported into major world markets that would never pass the Aquaganic™ Certification requirements. This low quality fish food is stuffed full of dead cow, pig, chicken and other terrestrial animal parts to make up important protein requirements. Dead cow parts could actually contain mad cow disease and be transferred to a human who gave up eating cows when that disease became big news. So the last item on our list of certification requirements is this:

        •no fish food that contains terrestrial animal parts


        •recommended use of organic fish food
            

As we develop this Certification process further, get our Certification Board in place and complete our Aquaganic Certification website, which is parked at www.certifiedaquaganic.com we will undoubtedly adjust these or add more requirements for Aquaponics Food Growing companies to become certified with the Aquaganic™ Certification Label.

Above you see one of our hungry Tilapia eating his floating pellets, the Ultimate Growout Pellet, we sell at our sister site, Aquaponics USA. But this conversation about fish food would not be complete without addressing the obvious. Fish food utilizes fish meal as a protein source for the food; and there has been much discussion about the use of fish meal in fish feed. The critics point out that aquaculture, of which aquaponics is an off-shoot, is harming wild fish populations because fish are being taken from the ocean to feed farmed fish. The following are some important things to understand when engaging in this debate:

1. Fish meal is not only used in fish feed. It’s also being used in swine, poultry and even pet food. No one has been arguing that we stop eating pork or chicken or that we stop feeding our pets to save fish. Nevertheless, we know we have to start taking drastic measures to save the ocean’s fish. Because the aquaculture industry has been receiving so much negative criticism due to its more obvious use of fish meal in their food products, that industry is running extensive research to find an alternative to fish meal for fish food. Right now there are fish food products on the market that do not use fish meal. It won’t be long before the research pays off; and we’ll have several choices of high quality fish food that use reduced amounts of fish meal or none at all available thanks to the aquaculture industry.

2. One fourth of the fish used for fish meal comes from the inedible trimmings off of fish that has been processed for eating. In other words, one quarter of the fish used for fish meal comes from fish that have been harvested from the sea for the purpose of human consumption.

3. Fish oil, which is also added to the fish food, is a by-product of fish meal production and fish processing. Before aquaculture came on the scene, fish oil was already being used for technical purposes as fuel, an additive to paint and to harden margarines. Isn’t it an improved use of fish oil to be using it to feed food fish?

INTERESTED IN GETTING THE AQUAGANIC™ CERTIFICATION?

This Certification is designed to be a Certification WITHIN THE AQUAPONICS INDUSTRY. There are no Government Agencies in any country involved in these rules or regulations. That’s the good news; and you will understand why we are saying this when you read about what’s happening with the USDA Organic Certification above under the heading “What constitutes Organic food and where does it come from?”.

As we explained in our first paragraph at the top of this page, we will be encouraging our Aquaponics USA customers to get this “Aquaganic™” Certification. The NOSB (National Organic Standards Board) in the U.S. has already declared that Aquaponic products are not USDA certifiable because they are not grown in soil.

The Aquaganic™ Certification is an opportunity for us to step out of all government bureaucracy and make our stand for what we believe in--that Aquaponic fish, vegetables and fruit are the healthiest and most wholesome products grown and sold in the world market today. All we really have to do is sell our Aquaganic™ Certification to the people. As Aquaponic Farms spring up all over the planet with Aquaganic™ Certified products, that sale will be easy with the customer’s first taste of what constitutes real food.

Won’t you join us in this worldwide grass roots effort to establish Aquaponics as the most viable, sustainable and healthy way to grow food for planet Earth and demonstrate that Aquaponics agriculture is a SELF REGULATING AGRICULTURE INDUSTRY that has created its own Aquaganic™ Certification process because together we’re better.

There isn't a better time to educate ourselves about our Food System than during Food Shortages. Actually it's a bit late, but better than never. Perhaps that's the silver lining behind Food Shortages. It makes people stop to think about their Food System and what they're eating. The question, "Is my Food System Working?" is about to get a resounding "NO"!  

This page and the other pages on our Menu above focus on our Food System. They are an enlightening read as we explain the differences between Food grown with Pesticides and Food Grown Organically, with GMO Technology, Hydroponics and Aquaponics.

This final page in our Menu Series introduces our Aquaganic™ Trademark, which redefines pure, organically grown food. This Trademark has been used in the marketplace by our sister company, AquaponicsUSA, to describe food grown using Aquaponics Agra-Tech. The by-line, “Beyond Organic,” describes a Certification that is more demanding than the Organic Certification because “Aquaganic™” products are safer, cleaner and purer than any other products on the market. The following is part of this multi-page explanation of why we are making this claim.

AQUAGANIC™