Iowa Siblings Use Aquaponics to Produce Fish, Plants

Three siblings from Maquoketa are beginning to turn heads with a family-owned business that relies on aquaponics to produce fish and plants.

Maquoketa resident Matt Andresen, 26, opened Tri-M Aquaponics in 2012. The name “Tri-M” is inspired by the presence of his older brother, Michael, and older sister, Megan.

Tri-M Aquaponics turns a profit by selling fish and produce created within a closed-loop, self-sustaining system in which plants and fish species facilitate one another’s existence.

While the process might appear complex, Andresen said the general concept is simple.

“Water from the fish tanks passes through a biofilter, which turns ammonia from fish excrement into nitrates,” he said. “The plants then soak up the nitrates and send clean water back to the fish.”

Click here for the original article published in The Des Moines Register.