How to make fish feed for catfish in Nigeria?

2021-01-06 Back to List

1.Prospects for Catfish Farming In Nigeria

Catfish is mainly sold in first- and second-tier cities. This kind of fish is only available in high-end restaurants and seafood restaurants. Other places will not stock this kind of fish. Moreover, the popularity of catfish is not very wide now, almost the market is full. In the city, in addition to exporting to other countries, the catfish has good meat quality and has a good market. Catfish farming in Nigeria is the cultivation of one or more finned fish primarily for commercial purposes. In this article, you will learn how to start your own successful catfish farming business in Nigeria. We will provide you with all catfish farming tips so you can start your own catfish farming for profit. In terms of aquaculture, catfish farming is the most profitable in Nigeria. So although the prospects and benefits of catfish farming are very good, you must remember to find a good market.

2.Introduction Of Catfish Feed Pellets

Catfish feed is mainly plant based, but fry and small fry feed contains some fish meal and other animal protein. The main ingredients used in catfish feed usually include soybean meal, cottonseed meal, corn and by-products, and wheat by-products. By the way, fish feed pellet making machine is the main fish feed processing equipment to make catfish feed pellets. fish feed pellet machine

There are various types of catfish feeds. The type used at any given time is a function of the life stage and the size of the fish fed, whether during the growing season or winter, and whether or not antibiotics are added.

Catfish fry in hatcheries are fed finely ground diets or flour-based feeds containing 45-50% protein. Once the fish are in the pond, they are usually fed a diet containing about 40 percent protein. Some producers feed "fish" with 28 or 32 percent protein, and the food fish grow until they grow to 1-2 inches. At this stage, if the pond is properly fertilized, the catfish fry can get most of their nutrients from natural foods such as large zooplankton, small insects, and insect larvae.

The larger species were fed small floating grains (1/8 of an inch in diameter) containing 35 percent protein. Advanced species (5-6 inches) and food fish are usually fed a floating diet of 28-32% protein about 5/32 to 3/16 inches in diameter. Some producers turn to slowly sinking feed during the winter.

3.Catfish Feed Formula

Catfish feeds are usually based on fixed formulations and rarely use the lowest-cost methods used in other animal industries. To prepare a feed using the lowest-cost computer program, the manufacturer must know the cost of feed ingredients, nutrient concentrations in the feed, nutrient requirements and supply in the feed, and nutrient and non-nutrient limitations.

The use of low cost fish feed formulations is limited because we do not know much about the maximum profit from nutrient levels associated with the levels that lead to optimal weight gain, and our inability to store a large number of different ingredients in feed mills and to obtain a wide variety of feeds in time is a problem. But we can use the simplest cost feed formula to make catfish feed.

(1) 40% hay powder, 30% silkworm pupae, 10% vegetable cake, 20% barley, and a feed coefficient of 3.

(2) Green hay 40%, cotton cake 30%, bean cake 10%, rapeseed cake 5%, silkworm pupae 5%, fish meal 5%, wheat 5%, and the feed coefficient is 3.

(3) Bean cake 47.5%, fish meal 35%, yeast 1%, inorganic salt, etc. 16.5%, and the feed coefficient is 2.26.

4.Catfish Feed Production Process In Nigeria

Catfish feed production produces a mixture of feed and feed additives into usable forms. The main purpose of making catfish feed is to increase the profitability of animal production by increasing the nutritional value of feed or feed mixtures. Depending on the type of catfish, the catfish feed manufacturing process can be reduced from simple particle size to steam granulation or extrusion to form feed particles. Catfish feed is unique compared to the diet of land animals used for food, because catfish feed must be granular, water stable, and usually float on the surface of the water.

As a result, most commercial catfish feeds are made by extrusion. If the specific feed additive cannot withstand extrusion, the particles can be pelleted by steam to make sinking particles. Before transportation, fat is usually sprayed on feed particles to reduce feed dust (fine powder).

(1)Grinding section

First of all, the fodder materials should be crushed to required size by using catfish feed hammer mill grinding machine.

(2)Mixing section

To improve the quality of the catfish feed and the efficiency of the catfish feed pellet production line, the catfish feed raw materials should be thoroughly mixed. To ensure such capability in the material mixing, we offer six types of horizontal fish feed mixer. These catfish feed mixer machines are the double shaft mixer,the ribbon type feed mixer,feed blending mixer,dual-shaft paddle mixer,etc. These mixing equipments are useful for powder related matters while the former is the best in both mixings of granular, blocky and powder related materials. The machines also have customized spraying cubicle for liquid additions.

(3)Pelleting/Extruding section

We have szlh series ring die fish feed pelleting machine and four types of feed extruder machine,among them,the wet-type one is relatively expensive because it is equipped with steam boiler and its productivity is generally higher than the dry-type one. The dry-type one is cheap and it is the best choice for small scale aquatic /pet food production.

(4)Pellets dying section

If you choose dry type feed extrusion machine, belt dryer is suggested. After extruded from the extruder, the feed pellets will be sent to the perforated plate belt or wire mesh belt and then go through the chamber of the drying machine and be dried optimum moisture content. If you select wet type extruder, gas type dryer is recommended.

(5)Packaging section

Our automated weighing and packaging machines ensure a proper packing for easy transport, display, and storage. With automatic options, it is featured of high efficient and low labor cost.

5.How To Start Catfish Farming In Nigeria?

There are various ways to start a catfish business. Catfish farming is a simple and flexible animal based business and you can start anywhere, especially in tropical climates like Nigeria. In addition, catfish farming can be done where you live, especially if you have large yards. Yes, you can start catfish farming at home.

Around the world, there are so many fish, some of them include: pangas catfish, greasy grouper, big fish, grass fish, silver snapper, common catla, Nile tilapia and so on. But most fish are not suitable for farming in Nigeria. The most common fish in Nigeria are tilapia and catfish, and later catfish are the most common.

(1)Machines For Making Catfish Fish Feed

Catfish feed extruder machine and catfish feed pellet making machine is widely used in making both floating fish feed and sinking feed pellets for aquaculture farms and fish feed making plants. Through the fish feed extruder we can use cheap local raw materials to produce high-quality fish feed, which may save feed costs.

(2)Profitability Of Catfish Farming In Nigeria

As mentioned, catfish is one of the most consumed sources of animal protein in Nigeria. Catfish farmers feed on everything from local chili soups to roadside barbecue vendors to upscale restaurants. Please note that this is a home purchased for daily use. Catfish is in far greater demand than supply, and will continue to grow due to its huge health benefits. Because fish grow very fast, turnover is very high. If you put your best efforts into this profitable business, you can make a huge profit, and I can assure that you should break even in a few months.

(3)Decide The Size Of Your Catfish Farm

The size of your catfish farm depends of course, on the starting capital you have. You can start from small-scale catfish farming using one tank or a small pond. Catfish farming in tanks is an option for temporary business, if you want to have a real profitable long-term business, you should think about catfish farm in a pound. However, in order to avoid harm and money loss, it is better to start from small, to understand how this business works. Your business should not do any harm to the environment. Try to choose the proper place taking into account the size of the future farm, necessity of water supply and of course, not to spend a small fortune.

(4)Feeding The Catfish

Feeding catfish is far from an exact science. It's a very subjective process, catfish farmers are different. Changes in feeding methods are the result of many factors, such as cropping systems, fish size, the ability to manage water quality, the experience of feeding labor, and difficulties in estimating fish stocks.

In general, fish should be fed once a day as they will be consumed without adversely affecting water quality. During the warmer months, most catfish producers feed once a day, seven days a week. While feeding twice a day may slightly improve species growth, the logistics of feeding multiple times on large catfish farms make it impractical.

(5)Health And Environmental Concerns

Keep your catfish healthy, make a point to detect early signs of diseases, and take the necessary actions to prevent them. Follow safety guidelines and medication regulations for your fish farm. Know what chemicals are safe to use and how to treat diseases and the water in an eco-friendly manner to treat diseases and pests. Several chemicals such as copper sulfate, formalin, hydrogen peroxide, and povidone iodine are FDA approved and are safe to use in your pond for treating catfish diseases.

(6)Challenges Affecting Catfish Farming In Nigeria

Though this is one of the most lucrative businesses in Nigeria today, it has severalchallenges that are not just peculiar to the Nigerian terrain, but are faced generally.

①Fish farming is capital intensive.

②Acquiring of suitable land for siting the farm.

③Depending on the scale at which you operate, it can be labor intensive.

④Lack of technical knowhow.

⑤Pest activities.

⑥There is usually cannibalism among the fish.

6. What is the cost and profit of raising an acre of catfish?

(1) Cost and profit of catfish farming (take China as an example)

Catfish farming is a high-density aquaculture industry. Basically, artificial farming is carried out by large investors or commercial enterprises. The breeding density of one acre is as high as 10,000 catties per acre. Calculated at 3 yuan per catty, the income of one mu of land is about 30,000 yuan. Excluding the cost of 10,000 yuan for fry, feed, water, electricity and labor, the general profit per mu is about 20,000 yuan.

(2) How long is the artificial breeding cycle of catfish?

Generally, only wild catfish grow slowly, and the weight does not exceed 1 kilogram, but the growth rate of artificial breeding is very fast. It can weigh 2 kilograms a year after breeding, and the largest individual can reach more than 10 kilograms. The growth cycle of artificially farmed catfish is generally 80-90 days, and it can be marketed in half a year. Basically, two seasons of catfish can be produced in a year. Although catfish grows fast, the following points should be paid attention to during the breeding process:

①The breeding environment of catfish

Although catfish is highly adaptable to the environment, in order to ensure its meat quality, there must be no pollution sources around the farm and the air quality must reach the first-class standard. The water temperature is controlled at 18-28°C, which is the best temperature for fish growth. The Ph value is about 7.5, and the dissolved oxygen content is more than 5 mg/L, which can accelerate the growth rate, and the output per cubic meter of water can reach more than 50 kg.

②Construction of catfish breeding pond

The breeding pond can be constructed with a length of 80 meters, a width of 8 meters, and a height of 0.6 meters, with water inlets, outlets, and aerators. Each intensive culture flow pond is equipped with 5 feeder ponds. At the same time, a hatching loop is used to artificially hatch catfish, carp, and trash fish. Raise the fry hatched from trash fish for feeding catfish and carp.

③Catfish breeding management

The feed for catfish farming can be wild trash species, river prawns, water fleas, algae, etc. collected from the Yellow River, or it can be purchased special feed; in addition, it is necessary to prevent and control viral fin rot, parasitic diseases, Enteritis, etc.

The above is the introduction of the whole situation of catfish farming. Friends who have farming ideas suggest that they visit the local market more to understand the market situation.