EU Aquaponics Hub

On 12 June 2017 members of the EU Aquaponics Hub met representatives of pertinent EC Directorates-General at the COST Office in Brussels. The meeting was convened in order to communicate the status quo of aquaponics in Europe, and to explore avenues to support its development in order to fulfil its potential to become a significant part of a sustainable food production strategy in the EU.

COST FA1305 members gave a joint presentation: introduction and summary (Benz Kotzen); current research and the research agenda for the future (Tycho Vermeulen); upscaling to semi-commercial and commercial systems (Harry Palm); aquaponics systems for urban agriculture (Haissam Jijakli); an SME perspective on factors limiting the development of aquaponics (Agnès Joly); and aquaponics and education (Dieter Anseeuw).

There was consensus among the DG representatives that the meeting was very timely and useful, and that it enabled them to better understand the state of aquaponics in the EU and to put aquaponics on the agenda in their future discussions.
The discussion ranged around two main topics: factors limiting the development of aquaponics in the EU; and funding opportunities. A report on the meeting will be available shortly. ... See more