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Purpose:
    Introduce to peasants in Haiti a simple and innovative technology (aquaponics) that is designed to produce high yields of fish and vegetables in small areas.Malnutrition is a serious health problem throughout the rural and urban areas of Haiti and farming has been severely compromised by erosion and poor growing conditions. Protein deficiency is a large component of the malnutrition seen in Haiti.

The Solution:
    Aquaponics has the potential to provide communities in Haiti with fresh vegetables and protein rich fish, as well as increasing the yield of the crops as much as 10-45 fold without using much water. We have chosen a fish known as tilapia for our tanks. These hardy and disease-resistant fish are natives of Africa and the Middle East. Tilapia are ideal because
  1. They tolerate low oxygen and poor water conditions that kill most fish;
  2. They can survive by ingesting algae,
  3. They grow rapidly, reaching an adult weight of 0.75 -1 lb. in about 6 -9 months, providing an inexpensive source of protein and
  4. They are also among the world's most popular fish for eating because they are very palatable, a large degree of white flesh (40% of their weight) and very few bones.
 Project Goals:
  1. Establish a greenhouse in Durham, North Carolina to sustain a prototype aquaponics system that can be replicated in Haiti. This prototype system will:
    1. Allow us to gain experience with this technology as we work with area researchers and
    2. Provide a working model that potential sponsors can visit.

  2. Establish an aquaponics system in Fondwa, Haiti with the goals of
    1. Increasing the yield of crops over currently used traditional soil-based farming practices
    2. Providing peasants with new knowledge and marketable skills and
    3. Increasing the amount of produce that can be taken or market or consumed locally
Progress to Date:
  1. The prototype was completed and dedicated September 22, 2001
  2. Tilapia were introduced into the tanks on October 2, 2001
  3. Luke's Mission used a grant of $15,000 by the New Hope Presbytery and a donation of fish from PCUSA missionary Rodney Babe of Haiti Fund, Inc., to build the 1st system in Fondwa, Haiti, in June 2003.
  4. August 2003 saw the first plants of green beans and tomato seedlings. Fish that started at 1/2 inch long are now 3 inches long.