Farming Dreams Take Root

A harmonious symbiosis is seen in a green-house of the modern agricultural demonstration base in Jiangmen City, Guangdong Province. With a dazzling range of lush hydroponic vegetables that are commonly seen on the market, such as lettuce, celery, cucumber, pumpkin, eggplant, and tomato, as well as some rare varieties, like houttuynia cordata, lemon basil, and perilla, the greenhouse is also an ideal jungle-like environment for fish raising. All this is attributed to a mechanical circulatory system, which enables water to trickle down from the hydroponic device and then be circulated between the fish pond and the pipe trough.

- ZHOU LIN

From Idea to Action

“Farming fish without changing the water and growing vegetables without fertilizer – this is the ‘fish and vegetable symbiosis’ system we have developed. It is typically a circular agricultural project,” said Fung Leung, designer of the sophisticated system, and a member of the three-person entrepreneurial team from Hong Kong. According to Leung, the “fish and vegetable symbiosis” system can transform the nutrient-rich water produced by intensive fish farming into nutrients that vegetables are able to absorb through a water treatment system, which can boost the growth of organic hydroponic vegetables. “All the vegetables grown in the greenhouse have zero pesticide residue, because once pesticides and fertilizers are used, the fish will die,” he added.

Such an environmentally friendly hi-tech agricultural project was created by three post-90s young people from Hong Kong — Victor Lo, Fung Leung, and Mandy Tam, who graduated from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and Hong Kong Shue Yan University respectively. They were previously classmates at Hong Kong’s Island School. It was during their senior year on campus that they came up with the idea of the “fish and vegetable symbiosis” system spurred on by their social practice task. In the entrepreneurial team, each of them has played an essential role in realizing their dream: Tam raises fish, Lo grows vegetables, and Leung designs and operates the water circulation system.

Further Expansion