ACUAPONICOS COMFUTURO
Family aquaponics enterprise combining fish farming with soilless plant cultivation using organic fertilization techniques.
Jaime Chahuendo conceived the idea for aquaponics on his family land near Popayán, learning independently from online videos. His daughter's alopecia, linked to agrochemical exposure from blackberry crops, became a key motivator to pursue chemical-free cultivation.
Jaime partnered with the local alcaldía, which provided materials for a pilot aquaponics project where he developed and refined the technique over four years. During this period he also began pioneering 'organoponía,' integrating organic solid and liquid fertilizers with aquaponics.
Jaime moved operations fully to the family land and launched Acuapónicos con Futuro independently after separating from his engineering partner. He began with a small tank of trout and strawberries, scaling up through trial and error to around 500 fish and 1,200 plants.
Acuapónicos con Futuro was selected as a beneficiary of a University of Seville research project focused on food security, receiving infrastructure for a 400 m² productive unit shared with seven families. The project concluded after 18 months, leaving Jaime's family as the sole operators of the infrastructure.
The initiative secured solar energy support from the departmental government, partially resolving chronic power outages that had previously caused livestock losses. However, the project continued to face financial strain, including an unresolved tax debt with DIAN stemming from Fondo Emprender participation.
Jaime attended COP16 in Cali, showcasing a working aquaponics machine and attracting new research contacts. His daughter, nearing her agronomy degree and employed as a SENA instructor, increasingly leads technical knowledge transfer to indigenous, Afro-Colombian, and conflict-displaced communities.