ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Sustain. Food Syst.
Sec. Water-Smart Food Production
This article is part of the Research TopicInnovations in Aquaponics: Integrated and Digital Approaches for Sustainable Food Production and Circular Resource ManagementView all articles
Integrated Nutrient and Feeding Optimization Strategies in Aquaponics for Sustainable Urban Food Production and Water Conservation
Provisionally accepted
- United Arab Emirates University, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
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This study evaluated the impact of varying fish feed inputs (20, 40, and 60 g/m²) on water quality, nutrient dynamics, and growth performance of tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and lettuce (Lactuca sativa) in a recirculating aquaponic system. The aquaponics fish were fed commercial formulated feed twice (20 and 40 g feed/m2) and thrice (60 g/m²) daily. The system fish density was 80 fish/m3 of water, and the initial weight was 85.43±2.54 g. The increasing feed inputs significantly affected system water chemistry, with pH declining from 7.74±0.22 to 6.35±0.01 at the highest feed level, while electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, and nitrogenous compounds (ammonia, nitrate, and nitrite) increased correspondingly (p<0.05). Dissolved oxygen decreased notably in the high-feed treatment (4.15±0.14 mg/L), reflecting the elevated organic load and microbial activity. Macro- and micro-mineral concentrations (Ca, K, Mg, P, Mn, Mo, Zn) in system water and plant tissues increased significantly (p < 0.05) with higher feed inputs, indicating an enhanced nutrient recycling efficiency. Fish reared at 60 g/m² achieved the highest growth performance, with a final weight (768.30±17.60 g), specific growth rate (1.89±0.10%), and lowest feed conversion ratio (1.67±0.07%), indicating superior feed utilization. Proximate analysis showed increased protein (14.06±0.64%) and ash contents, but decreased fat and moisture with higher feeding levels. Similarly, lettuce cultivated under the 60 g/m² regime exhibited the greatest biomass (14.51±3.82 kg/m²) and elevated protein and mineral content. Overall, feeding at 60 g/m² optimized fish and plant production without compromising water quality thresholds, demonstrating efficient nutrient coupling and high system productivity. These findings highlight feed optimization as a critical determinant of balanced aquaponic performance and sustainable nutrient recycling. Further research with higher feed rates could potentially identify an even more effective feed ratio.
Keywords: Aquaponics, Feed quantity and frequency, Nutrient cycle, Tilapia fish, Lettuce production
Received: 08 Aug 2025; Accepted: 07 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Subramanian, N, Manoharan, Nishanth, El-Haroun and Jaleel. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Abdul Jaleel, abdul.jaleel@uaeu.ac.ae
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