SINGAPORE: Imagine preparing a seafood dinner at home – but instead of buying crab from the market, you simply pick one up from your own crab farm, which fits in the corner of your kitchen.
This is the vision that urban farmer Shannon Lim, 37, has for his students. The founder of OnHand Agrarian runs classes where he teaches participants how to build “crab condos” and how to take care of the crabs that live in them.
The crab condo is a set of modified plastic storage drawers – seven “storeys” high – filled with water and fitted with pumps and filters so that crabs can live in them. An ultraviolet steriliser and algae that breaks down organic waste prevent unpleasant smells.
Mr Lim charges S$680 (US$510) for a 10-hour course across two days, and the fee includes the cost of equipment to build the crab condo, use of tools and a ride home after the class. Participants can also bring a guest along if the class is not too full.
Mr Lim started building crab condos around 2016, but it is not his invention. He saw a post on a forum many years ago where crayfish were being reared in plastic drawers, and adapted it to farm crabs.