NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. – Pasco County students are working on a project that could be part of the future of growing fresh food.

It’s called aquaponics. Plants and fish live together to grow food naturally with a system of tanks, filters and water.

Students at Wendell Krinn Technical School have been building the project for the last few years.

“The roots are in the water,” explains student Jackalynn King. “They absorb the nutrients. The fish make constant fertilizer with these plants, making them the healthiest plants you’re ever going to eat.”

The project is unique because it gets all of the departments at “K-Tech” involved.

The school opened in 2018 to give students in Pasco County career training options. Subjects from welding to robotics to culinary all took part in building it.

“We were looking for a project that we could get everyone involved in. We have 14 different programs here,” said Dr. Chris Dunning, principal of the school. “We wanted to show students how they could work together.”

Soon, students hope to even cook with the food that’s made, showing how using aquaponics can feed people.

“We thought that one thing we need is how to feed the world as the population continues to grown,” Dunning said.

It’s a project that one day could be used on a larger scale. It’s also a chance for students to learn the circle of life.

“There’s this whole big world that we don’t see under the water that here we can now see,” King said.

The school also earned grants to help finance the aquaponics project.