Some begin with Aquaponics as a hobby, and once they realise how lucrative it is, quickly scale up to do it on a commercial scale. The cost of starting up is minimal, since you can create the system yourself using the materials available in your local hardware store. Running costs are also low, since between the plant environment and the fish ecosystem, nutrients and services (such as water) are exchanged and the two support each other. Since fresh organic vegetables and fish fetch good prices, profits are high. To get you started with commercial aquaponics, here are our top tips:

1. Local market analysis. What crops and fish to grow will be determined by this. You want to pick those with high demand , high cost , and low competition, probably. Of course, do not pick a fish / vegetable species that needs very different climatic conditions from what you have in the region. Tilapia, for instance, needs warm temperatures, and you will have to spend significantly on heating to develop them if you live in cold regions; Trouts would be a safer choice. In addition , rising fish can be considered for sale as pets instead of food: there is a significant demand for goldfish in many areas , for example. The same goes for plants: you'll find in certain areas that growing herbs instead of vegetables is more lucrative. Furthermore, increasing off season production is generally profitable, but this will require heating (and therefore heating costs). To maximise income, it's all about finding the optimum balance. Properly do the research.

2. Seek customers for you. You'll get to keep all the money if you sell directly to the customers, but it can be a hassle. You can get an offer from a local grocery / fish monger instead, and you can sell them anything you make. You'll have to give them a lower price than what you're going to give to direct customers, however. Consider putting an advertisement in your local newspaper if you sell fish as pets.

3. Start tiny, think high. No matter how detailed your research is, you'll only get to know all the stuff involved and the profit margin when you actually launch your company. You should also start small, as this will provide you with the versatility to adjust. It's much safer to run a smaller system, and you'll have some learning to do to run it effectively if you're new to Aquaponics. Furthermore, things can go wrong when you're just starting out and it's easier to repair them on a small scale than if you run a large Aquaponics farm.

Learn how to make it BIG with aquaponics farming in Aquaponics 4 You