Hydroponics, Aquaponics Studied As A Way To Help Feed The World: Bowie State University

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — Hydroponics and aquaponics are two processes being studied at Bowie State University as a way to expand the capacity to feed the world. Crops of tomatoes, lettuce and basil are nearly ready to harvest in the BSU greenhouse atop the BSU Center for Natural Sciences, Mathematics and Nursing, and recently planted seedlings have been added to an environment with tilapia fish. The goal is to simultaneously grow plants and fish in the same water-based agricultural system.

Bowie State’s SMART Agriculture Program infuses hydroponics and aquaponics technology into the plant science curriculum. Dr. Anne Osano, associate professor, department of natural sciences, leads the program along with department chair Dr. George Ude, and Dr. George Acquaah, dean, school of arts and sciences. Hydroponics is a technique used to grow and produce food crops in a closed-loop system that reduces the use of water resources without the need for chemical fertilizers. Aquaponics is the integrated culture of fish, plants and beneficial microorganisms grown in a soilless environment.

Osano explained that fish and plants grow in one ecosystem, eliminating the waste they separately produce by turning it into something of use. The waste created by the fish becomes a food source for beneficial microorganisms, which convert it into mineral nutrients for the plants. The plants act as a natural filter, cleaning the water for the fish. It’s essentially zero-waste agriculture.

The program, focused on studying the production of superfoods without the use of traditional agriculture, is funded by a five-year grant from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture and the United States Department of Agriculture.

“This program is necessary because not everybody has so much land to produce their own food, and this technology is simple enough to help them become self-sufficient,” Osano said. “I tell these students, you may be just that person who is going to be instrumental in feeding the world someday. That’s the reason we want them to get into agricultural jobs.”