Posted 5:23 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 3, 2018
UWL collaborates with startup company at the frontiers of sustainable agriculture.
UWL collaborates with startup company at the frontiers of sustainable agriculture
UWL students are getting a hand on the future of food growing. In a biology lab, students spent fall semester nurturing lettuce leaves from seedlings in dishes of water. Biology faculty Anita Baines and Tom Volk led the class in figuring out whether an additive in the growing process was worthwhile. Their research would help answer questions for a startup company exploring the frontiers of food growing — without soil or consistent sunlight — in a facility about 70 miles to the north. [caption id="attachment_50976" align="alignright" width="400"] Anita Baines, associate professor of biology, and Biology Professor Tom Volk had their class conducted a study to determine if an additive — a particular mix of microbes that improves plant growth — would be worth the investment for Superior Fresh. Their work was conducted fall semester.[/caption] Superior Fresh is an aquaponics facility just outside of Northfield, Wisconsin, that officially opened in August 2017. The business is the largest of its kind in the world; it sits on 720 acres and employs a cutting-edge method of fish farming and water-based gardening. Waste from Atlantic salmon and rainbow trout supplies nutrients for lettuce, which is grown hydroponically. The result is a quality product for sale, virtually zero waste — and plenty of food for thought.“Our owners want to prove that this sustainable model is viable and show the world we can get local, healthy, sustainable and organic food to everyone,” says Kurt Wagaman, general manager of Superior Fresh.Wagaman says it’s only natural that Superior Fresh would want to partner with universities nearby. “We could send samples off to other labs, but we enjoy being able to be part of the learning process,” he says. “All it takes is one student who says, ‘I’m going to do this and become the next innovator in something huge.’” Superior Fresh has already hired one such student, UWL alumna, Kelsey Kotecki, now a lab technician in the company’s fish house. And Superior Fresh has also connected with more than a dozen UWL faculty members so far in subject areas from microbiology to entomology to business. [caption id="attachment_50979" align="alignnone" width="685"] 2017 Science Career Forum. This year’s forum was Friday, Feb. 2, in the UWL Student Union. During the forum, Scott Cooper, UWL biology professor and director of Undergraduate Research, discussed the many ways faculty can get students involved in projects with off-campus partners. “I think we have a lot more untapped potential for this,” says Cooper. “Once we started talking to Superior Fresh, all kinds of options for research emerged.”[/caption]