HOW TO START FISH FARMING IN NIGERIA (II)

TYPES OF FISH.

Haven seen the benefits as well as the risks
involved in fish farming, let's now proceed to
decide which specie of fish we want to farm.
Below are some of the most popular fish
species that is suitable for Aquaculture.

1. Cat Fish - Even though Catfish is not the
most popular fish in Nigeria, this fish species
is by far the most cultivated in Nigeria. One
thing good about catfish is that it is one of
the easiest fish species to cultivate. So,
people naturally flow to the direction of fish
specie they found to be the easiest to
cultivate.

2. Tilapia - Second most popular fish in
Nigeria's aquaculture industry, Tilapia is a
fish species that lives in fresh shallow water.
Tilapia is very easy to cultivate and very
popular in Nigerian market, it reproduces
very rapidly and grows fast too.

3. Mackerel (Titus) - This is by far the most
popular fish in Nigerian market but so sad it's
not farmed. All Mackerel Fish are "wild
caught" but some farmer in Nigeria are
considering the possibility of creating artificial
salty water that will be similar to sea water
where mackerel can only survive. Can this
deep blue sea fish specie be cultivated
artificially? Only time will tell but for now, you
have to focus your attention to Catfish and
Tilapia.


WHAT YOU NEED TO START UP.

1. Secure a Land - Any location is good
since fish doesn't cause any environmental
disturbance. Look for land where you can get
it cheap and buy. Depending on the capacity
you wants to operate on, half plot of land is
just good enough for average fish farm.
However, you may go for something bigger
like full plot or two if you can afford it
probably for convenience sake. If you already
have a compound with leftover space you
thing can accommodate two or three ponds,
you may use it.
2. Construct Ponds - You need to engage
the service of expert pond construction
engineer or you go to another fish farm to get
the specification and construction
requirements. The plumbing work must be
properly done to ensure proper drainage.
3. Dig a Borehole - Adequate water supply
is the lifeblood of fish farm and lack of it may
result to disaster because water need to be
changed on regular interval. Naturally
available sources of water such as borehole
and river water is the most suitable. Rain
water and tap water from chemically treated
source is not recommended for fish
cultivation.
4. Overhead Tank - This is the water
reservoir from which water is supplied to
your ponds. This tank has to be connected
to your ponds through plumbing system to
make it convenient for water to flow into your
ponds when needed.
5. Juvenile Fish - Get your juvenile from
another farm that specializes in supplying it.
You need to go for the high yield specie of
catfish or tilapia and make sure you are
getting it from a healthy farm.
6. Get Training - Not the kind of training you
get from one day seminars; you need to get
attached to a fish farm for proper
apprenticeship. For you to properly learn this
trade, you need at least two months training
on this.
Remember that your investment is at stake,
trial and error is not good in business except
you have unlimited funds to experiment with.
Feasibility Study for a Standard Fish Farm
I found the analysis below from Kings Way
Agro Services and decided to add it as
sample case study you can follow.
"This feasibility study prepared for a catfish
farm capacity of 10,000 and fingerlings of
high breed catfish where to be stocked. The
expenses from pond construction to
marketing is considered. The farm is to have
10 concrete ponds of flow through system
and each pond is to contains 1,000 stocked
catfish.