- Mar 12, 2024
- Tamanna Patel
Cultivating Change EP#2 Shannon Lim
In this episode, we speak to financial planner turned aquaculturist Shannon Lim who runs his fish and crab farming Community Supported Agriculture business, OnHand Agrarian, in space scarce Singapore.
#2, Part 1: Fish Farming in the City
Part 1 of this episode provides a fascinating look into the life of someone who turned a hobby into a fish farming business. Shannon uses a method called Integrated Multi-Trophic Recirculating Aquaculture System (IMTRAS) at his homestead and at his farms in Lim Chu Kang and Pasir Ris, Singapore to cultivate seafood. He shares with us the basics of how it works and why he prefers it over monoculture fish farming. We then have a discussion about the reasons he turned to a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) subscription box business model and began supplying vegetables along with his seafood. Nova’s discussion with Shannon also provides an informative overview of small scale fish farming in Singapore and its recent history.
This is a two part episode. Part 2 of this episode we continue our conversation with Shannon Lim, delving into the intricacies of running a polyculture aquaculture business including the challenges of finding hatcheries, talent, and running fish farms in open seas. He also shares why he feels it is important to share the know-how to create abundant food systems and how he has been doing it even in dense urban settings in Singapore.
Show notes
[00:05:10] Learning about Shannon’s childhood experiences with his grandmother and father in Singapore
[00:09:17] Shannon explains how the Integrated Multi-Trophic Recirculating Aquaculture System (IMTRAS) works
[00:11:28] How he learned about IMTRAS and expanded his knowledge about the systems
[00:13:28] A discussion about Singapore’s fisheries policy and history around aquaculture including and how and why local production may have decreased over time
[00:18:27] The myths about monoculture fish farming in Singapore - antibiotics and water pollution
[00:21:26] Why Shannon chose polyculture over monoculture for his aquaculture ventures
[00:25:34] Moving to a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) subscription box model - what prompted the move and why
#2, Part 2: The Business of Fish Farming
In part 2 of this episode Nova continues her conversation with Shannon Lim, delving into the intricacies of running a polyculture fish farming business. This ranges from the challenges of finding hatcheries, the right talent, the basics about running a fish farm as a business including the Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) and the potential of running fish farms in open international waters. Shannon also shares why he feels it is important to share the know-how to create abundant hyper-local decentralised food systems, how he has been doing it even in space-scarce dense urban Singapore, and whether the IMTRAS system he uses is replicable. As a bonus, Shannon also takes Nova on a quick tour of the crab condo set up in his homestead as he elaborates on what he calls his “crab scam” system.
This is a two part episode. In Part 1 of this episode where we began this conversation discovering much about Shannon’s background, the aquaculture system he uses known as Integrated Multi-trophic Recirculating Aquaculture System (IMTRAS), and why he turned to a Community Supported Agriculture model to grow his business.
Show notes
[00:02:28] Shannon sharing the details of his current team, the unique challenges he faces in hiring, training, and retaining talent for the aquaculture business
[00:05:07] How Shannon ensures the freshness of his seafood and flow and schedule of deliveries
[00:07:00] The logistical and human resource challenges of running a community supported agriculture subscription business which also includes vegetables
[00:08:58] The potential environmental and financial advantages of setting up fish farms in international waters
[00:11:29] Discussing the two largest costs of running an aquaculture business - fish feed and labour
[00:12:24] The complications and challenges of running a polyculture fish farm instead of a monoculture
[00:14:11] The intricacies of the fish farming business from sourcing and importing fingerlings, finding good hatchery partners to quarantine process and water quality
[00:20:33] The importance of knowledge sharing between and among farmers, universities, for the success of Southeast Asia’s local food systems.
[00:24:24] A tour and explanation of Shannon’s Crab Condo system
[00:25:45] The abundance of opportunities for aquaculture and fish farming business
[00:28:30] Details of how productive his 75, 000 liters of tanks in his home are including number of fish, feed, size of fish, return on investment and the viability of the business
Additional Resources
1. Connect with Shannon Lim here: here.2. Get an overview on the consumption of global seafood and plans for supplies to meet the growing demand here.
3. To learn about restorative aquaculture in Southeast Asia read this article.
Special thanks to Shannon Lim, Managing Director of OnHand Agrarian for his time and invaluable insights.
Senior producer and host: Nova Nelson.
Executive Producer, presenter and researcher: Tamanna Patel.
Music credits go to LongTong Studios Longtong Studio
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About Cultivating Change
Cultivating Change is a podcast about people and communities shaping regenerative local food systems in different parts of Southeast Asia. Hear from farmers and urban growers, food producers, culinary trailblazers, researchers, environmentalists and various individuals that are imagining, designing and creating healthier more sustainable food futures from the ground up.
Our mission? To explore questions and find answers about the vital aspects of our food system, why it matters to your well-being, and the seismic impact it has on the environment in Southeast Asia. It's not just a podcast; it's a recipe for change.
Tamanna Patel
Tamanna enjoys reading, writing, yoga, being outdoors, and of course gardening. She's on a mission to grow as much of her own food as possible and get composting on a balcony right! It's all a work in progress for her and she dreams of one day owning a piece of land far, far away from the hustle and bustle of cities to cultivate veggies, maybe rear some animals, and watch the stars sparkle in light pollution-free night skies. In the meanwhile, she's happy being content cultivator at Cultivate Central.
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