Double Harvest - Part 2

 

Double Harvest uses irrigation to water their fields. Green is everywhere!

Eggplant is growing in this field.

Crops are being picked by hand.

Neals's cousins together with their family keep Double Harvest going. Their focus is to be a self-sustaining mission; that the fields and other income generating activities can support the missions' focus in areas such as education, church, and medical care. They are not 100% self supportive yet, but they are working towards being this one day.

Aquaculture fish harvesting is done at Double Harvest.

These serious of fish tanks produce 250,000 pounds of tilapia fish each year. The maximum that the tanks can handle is 500,000 pounds of fish each year.

Fish are put into their tanks according to size.

It is a simple process if you have the proper equipment

These filters filter out the bacteria growing in the tanks.

Immediately after the earthquake Double Harvest started providing the surrounding community with food. The fish in the tanks were harvested right away and given to the people.

Neal Hegeman is listening to his cousin explain the tilapia fish project.

Double Harvest sells their produce to the community, to street vendors who then enter into the community and to local businesses.

The water is changed in the tanks frequently and the discharge water is used to irrigate the fields. Nutrients in the tank water from the fish enter the ground as fertilizer for the growing crops.

If you look closely enough you can see the fish swimming in this tank. Tilapia is a good fish to eat. The Haitian people love to eat fish and the tilapia is readily accepted as part of their diet.

We were given a tour of some of the farm equipment that is used at Double Harvest.

This pile of rice hulls will be used as compost.

Long rows of piles of compost.

They discussed how methane produced from the piles of compost could provide a source of fuel for the generators used to power the filtration/circulation system of the fish tanks.

Currently the methane gas isn't being harvested from the compost piles.

The farm also has a chicken business.

Chickens and their eggs are sold.

The chicken are housed inside this building.

Lots of cute chickens :)

In another building are another variety of chickens. As I undersood it these chickens are raised as broilers ready to get plump and sold for their meat!

It was great to hear the history of Double Harvest from the family who started and continue to run the mission.

Double Harvest also has a nursery and greenhouse where trees and tropical plants trees are grown.

Maybe one day they can export their plants to other countries.

At the back of the rows of compost piles I saw this cow bird. A compost pile is a good place for this bird to search for tasty bugs :)