CREATE AND RAISE CATFISH FARM Why do we take pains to pay for expensive fish when we can create and raise them in our own backyard? If you like aquarium, then you can raise and manage your own fish pond. This will not only perk up the food budget but will impact positively on your finance. Let us then look at what it takes to own a catfish farm of 10 concrete ponds flow through system capable of containing in each 1,000 stocked catfish 1 PREPARED BY HART MICHAEL Website: Tel: Tel:

Building a medium size catfish pond Feasibility Study is key to ensuring that the project is successful and sustainable. Project site Landscape Water Source Drainage pattern Labor Security PREPARED BY HART MICHAEL2

Requirement to own catfish pond Pond Construction Location and construction of fish pond is the most costly phase of the investment for a catfish farm. Therefore, ponds must be conveniently located close enough to ensure proper monitoring of resources, and to provide adequate maintenance, wellbeing and safety for the fish. The location must also be tested for soil permeability and steepness. The layout of the land area will determine the type of pond needed. Water Supply Water supply, usually from wells or boreholes, must be certified safe for the fish, and large enough source to keep proper capacity levels. With most catfish, water flow is also a necessary consideration, therefore, channels and raceway systems must be built to keep water distribution consistent at all times. Some ponds may need a drainage piping system installed in order to meet specific state and/or local regulations and guidelines. Oxygen Requirements Oxygen levels in the water are vitally important, so an adequate system is needed for the type of pond created. Because fish are living creatures in a confined environment, great care must be taken to minimize oxygen competition from both other fish and other organisms that share the pond water. The shape, construction and location of the ponds will determine the systems needed to provide adequate oxygen flow through the water. PREPARED BY HART MICHAEL3

Feeding Feeding the fish adequately is also a major concern because it affects both the health and the selling weight of the fish. Catfish naturally convert food to weight very efficiently, needing a diet based on mostly proteins and carbohydrates. Many variables should be considered in fish feeding, including quantity and maturity of the fish and the quality, frequency of feeding, and availability of food. Feeding twice daily, if possible, will usually improve food consumption and food conversion. This means that one-half of the daily allowance is fed in the morning, and the other half in the late morning or early afternoon. Since low oxygen concentrations are usually at their lowest in the morning, it is generally best to wait until 8 or 9 a.m. before feeding. Other Operational Considerations To produce catfish that will yield the highest return for the investment, the farmer must consider factors such as security of the crop, a fish reproduction system and buyer demands. To protect the crop from poaching, a security system must be in place to deter any illegal fishing in the ponds. To have a continuous supply of fish, a system to maintain fish reproduction, from spawning to full maturity, must be in place. The farmer must also raise fish that meet buyer demands such as size, availability and price. PREPARED BY HART MICHAEL4

HARTRONICS.CATFISH.STOCK1 PREPARED BY HART MICHAEL5 Four weeks old stock

HARTRONICS.CATFISH.STOCK2 PREPARED BY HART MICHAEL6 Four weeks old. sorted

HARTRONICS.CATFISH.STOCK3 PREPARED BY HART MICHAEL7 One year old

HARTRONICS.CATFISH.POND.TYPES PREPARED BY HART MICHAEL8 TYPE A TYPE B TYPE C

Ownership of medium size ponds PREPARED BY HART MICHAEL9 Total cost of ownership of a catfish farm of 10 concrete ponds. COST OF OWERSHIP OF 10 PONDS SNItem DescriptionQuantityUnit CostTotal CostRemark 1Cement752, , Sharp sand (Trips of 40 tons)350, , Cheapening or hard core (Trips)260, , High breed fingerlins (10 ponds)1030, , Plumbing worksLot200, Chemical cleaning and treatmentLot150, Water Supply RequirementLot500, LaborLot400, Cost Feeding fish (Fingerlin to Maturity)Lot1,200, ContigencyLot150, TOTAL SPENDTOTAL NGN 3,327, PROFIT AFTER SPEND 1 Cost of table size catfish of average weight of 1.5kg (after 6 to 7 months) NGN 8,550, Estimated to loose 500 fish on mortality (Worst case scenario when ponds are well managed). 2 TOTAL NGN 5,222,500.00