14pgs, We used an online survey to document challenges experienced by aquaponic hobbyists (n = 81), producers (n = 117), and educators (n = 75). Responses were distilled into the following categories: 1) operations and management; 2) facilities, location, and system design; 3) knowledge and educational resources; 4) funding; 5) economic viability; 6) plant culture; 7) marketing and distribution; 8) fish culture; 9) human factors; 10) regulations and certifications. Training and research in these areas are needed to advance the aquaponics industry.
Joffre, Olivier M. (author), Bosma, Roel H. (author), Ligtenberg, Arend (author), Tri, Van Pham Dang (author), Ha, Tran Thi Phung (author), and Bregt, Arnold K. (author)
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
2015-12
Published:
Vietnam: Elsevier
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 160 Document Number: D07800
Govindasamy, Ramu (author), O'Dierno, Linda J. (author), Puduri, Venkata (author), Myers, Joseph J. (author), Islam, Sho (author), and Rutgers State University
Format:
Paper
Publication Date:
2006-06
Published:
USA: New Jersey Department of Agriculture
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Document Number: C27421
Notes:
Posted at http://dafre.rutgers.edu/documents/ramu/organicaquaculturesurvey.pdf
Short, Gianna (author), Yue, Chengyan (author), Anderson, Neil (author), Russell, Carol (author), Phelps, Nicholas (author), and University of Minnesota
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
2017-06
Published:
United States: American Society for Horticultural Science
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 16 Document Number: D10442
11 pages., Via online journal., Aquaponics, an integrated system with both hydroponic plant production and aquaculture fish production, is an expanding alternative agriculture system. Many key questions about the overall feasibility of aquaponic systems remain unanswered. Of particular concern for start-up and established producers alike are consumer perceptions and willingness to pay for aquaponic produce and fish. This study reports results and analysis of a consumer survey about perceptions and preferences for aquaponic-grown products that was conducted in Minnesota during Feb. 2016. Probit and ordered probit models are used to evaluate the probability of different consumer demographic segments having various levels of knowledge and perceptions about aquaponics. About one-third of respondents had previously heard of aquaponics, and upon learning more about the system through the survey, respondents tended to be generally neutral or favorable to aquaponics. Price might be an issue for many consumers, but many tend to believe that aquaponics can impact the environment in a positive way. The results represent a first step toward building knowledge about the potential consumer base for aquaponics, which is a critical piece in the system’s potential overall profitability. It appears that consumer education and marketing will be key for the expansion of the market.
13 pages., The original website no longer has a copy of the article. Access is available through ERIC database. ERIC Number: EJ890607, Via online source., This article discusses three sites that disrupt accustomed expectations and roles for technical communication. These sites include an agricultural processing site that is requesting tax abatements in exchange for decreased emissions so that it can remain competitive in the global market. The second is also an agricultural manufacturing site that remains globally competitive by increasing efficiencies and expanding the range of products made at the site. Finally, the essay discusses a manufacturing facility that takes finished products-automobiles-and remanufactures them for a niche market of users. Each of these Midwestern sites is globally competitive and challenges expectations for high technology work. Taken together, they gesture toward new definitions of work, in new postindustrial context, and offer insight for defining technical communication in the postindustrial age. The remaining challenge, for scholars and teachers, is to articulate emerging literacy practices supporting postindustrial manufacturing, and to participate in the knowledge management that supports innovation. Here, each site takes something that would have previously been considered either finished product or waste and rearticulates it as an ingredient in a new product. At the least, technical communicators will need to learn to document such organization's innovation and change. At best, such change invites technical communicators, acting as knowledge managers, to articulate opportunities for innovation. Research, a traditional strength of technical writing preparation, allows organizations to better prepare and understand change, turning disruption into opportunity. Postindustrial business practices are no longer the work of futurists, but the reality and structure of the workplace today. Each work site described in this article presents opportunities for basic research into emerging workplaces in need of the expertise of technical and professional writers; each is an example and potential model for knowledge work.
