Marc Laberge, who is considered a commercial pioneer of trout aquaponics, strongly believes that affordable organic foods can be produced from commercial aquaponic greenhouse farms built on small to mid-sized land lots. With a newly developed turnkey greenhouse model, he's helping other growers to realize this.
"In my vision, profitable turnkey aquaponic facilities create stimulating jobs and produce locally-grown organic food while respecting the environment," Marc says. He knows what he's talking about: he designed, built, and operated a commercial aquaponic greenhouse in Quebec from 2004 until 2017 and is a member of the Committee on Organic Aquaculture for the Canadian General Standards Board.
Working closely with Harnois Greenhouses Inc., he has put his life's work now into the Model 7, a turnkey aquaponic farm based on decades of research and operating expertise.
The building dimensions are 320 feet x 42 feet, producing lettuce and smoked trout filets year-round. "The farms create two full-time and three part-time jobs and yield a weekly average of 7,000 heads of organic lettuce along and over 200 kg of organic trout while using only 4 liters per minute of new water for the entire production", Marc shows.
The total cost, excluding land, is roughly $1.4M (CAD), with an average 17% ROI starting in year 2.
The first Model 7 owner in their region can showcase their facility to earn royalties on new facilities built in their territory.
For more information:
Marc Laberge
ML Aquaponics Inc.
Tel.: +1 819 324 7872
info@ML-aquaponics.com
www.ML-Aquaponics.com
Robert Chave
Harnois Industries Inc.
Tel.: +1 450 916 7800
r.chave@harnois.com
www.Harnois.com