November | December 2009

Feature title: Feed Management -

On-farm feed manufacture and application in small-scale aquaculture
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The International magazine for the aquaculture feed industry

 Feed Management Feed Management

Table 1: Commonly used feed types in small-scale aquaculture

FCR
Feeds of plant origin Feeds of animal origin
Range

Soybean, barley flour, corn, cereals, groundnut cake, ground
maize, ground rice, sorgum, rice bran broken rice, deoiled cakes
1-5
and meals of peanut, sesame, cashew, cocoa, coconut, oil palm
linseed, mustard, sunflower, cotton seed, rapeseed, cannabis,
Daphnid, mysis, Clams, locust (dried), silkworm pupae (fresh &
dried), chironomids, prawn and shrimp, fish flour, meat flour,
dried blood powder, fishmeal, bone/meat meal, feather meal,
food yeast

Oil palm cake, barley bran, wheat flour, wheat bran, red bean, Earth worms (fresh), snail flesh (dried), housefly maggots, locust
5-10
pea cowpea, broad bean (fresh), liver spleen, fresh meat, freshwater fish, fresh sea fish

10-20 Manioc leaves, manioc flakes, rye grass, Sudan grass -

Irish potato, banana leaves, hybrid grass, Lucerne, clover,

On-farm feed manufacture

Manioc rind, manioc flour, Napier grass, elephant grass,
Chinese cabbage, water hyacinth, water lettuce, duckweed, giant
duckweed, water egg, aquatic fern, Pond weed, water spinach,
> 20 alligator weed, salvinia, Reed-mace, tape grass, Hydrilla, Guinea -

and application in small-scale grass, para grass, lalang grass, star grass, barnyard grass, sweet
potato, sorgam, ramie leaves, canna leaves, pumpkin vines, velvet
bean vines, cassava leaves and tuber, bean stalk leaves and

aquaculture
seeds, vegetables, leaves and stems of leguminous plants

Source: Tacon (1988); Yang and Yakupitiyage (2000)

Krishen J rana1,2 and Sunil N Siriwardena1
1Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling

2University of Stellenbosch of powdered ingredients or ingredients mulated compounded commercial feeds but of farm-made aqua-feeds varies between
compounded into a dough or pellet form. relying on organic and inorganic fertilisers 507,000kg/ha/yr (Viet Nam) and 2313kg/
Plant origin ingredients are used singly manures to increase natural food (Akiyama, ha/yr (India) in semi-intensive farms while it
or in combination with other plant or 1991; Chong, 1995). varies between 270,189kg/ha/yr (Viet Nam)

T
here is no clear definition
for what is farm-made
aquafeeds and non-farm
made aqua-feeds.
FAO suggests that farm-made feeds be
defined as feeds in pellet or other forms,
consisting of one or more artificial and/
or natural feedstuffs, produced for the
exclusive use of a particular farming activity
and not for commercial sale or profit.
De Silva (2007) regards mixtures of
ingredients subjected to some form of
processing (simple mixing, grinding and
cooking) done on-farm or in small process-
ing plants are generally regarded as farm-
made aqua-feeds and are often the mainstay
in small-scale semi-intensive aquaculture
practices (De Silva and Hassan, 2007). This
is not true across Asia.
According to an analysis by Rola and
Hassan (2007) based on case studies carried
out in six leading aquaculture producing
countries in Asia, number of semi-intensive
farms depend on industrial (commercial)
feed and this is highest in India (74 percent)
followed by China (46 percent), indicat-
animal origin feeds as feeds with no or little This trend may continue, but with appli- to 1500kg/ha/yr (China) in traditional farms
ing mainstay of semi-intensive farms is and brans) and animal-processing by-products processing in small-scale aquaculture at the cation of farm-made aqua-feeds to
industrial feeds as oppose to on-farm made (blood and feather meal, bone meal etc.). lower end of semi-intensive practice while increase productivity, as freshwa-
feeds. Semi-intensive farms in Viet Nam, the Kitchen waste may also be considered as animal origin material such as trash fish is ter omnivorous and herbivorous
Philippines and Bangladesh depend less on one of the types of farm-made aqua-feeds used singly or in combination with other fish, particularly common carp,
industrial feeds at four percent, 28 percent as per FAO definition as it contains one or ingredients with no or little processing at Chinese major carps and tilapia,
and zero percent, respectively. more natural feedstuffs in non-pellet form. the upper end of semi-intensive practices are the most frequently used spe-
(De Silva and Hassan, 2007). cies in freshwater aquaculture.
Ingredients The full extent of the usage of farm- These low value species main-
are used for made aqua-feeds is unknown and literature tained a contribution of around
on-farm feeds is scarce. It is note worthy that use of 90 percent to the global total
A very wide range farm-made aqua-feeds is not restricted to freshwater aquaculture produc-
of ingredients is used small-scale aquaculture practices. tion (Table 2). In order to increase
to prepare farm-made According to the recent analysis based productivity in small-scale aquac-
aqua-feeds (Table 1). on case studies carried out in six leading ulture of low-value species use of
Feeds range from aquaculture producing Asian countries 70 farm-made aqua-feeds is likely to
single component feeds percent to 50 percent of farms dependent be on the increase.
available on-farm such on farm-made aqua-feeds with the excep- (Rola and Hassan, 2007). These feeding
as grass or rice bran to tion of China depending only on 25 percent Growth is expected – in rates are against feeding rates of industrial
farm-made formulated (Rola and Hassan, 2007). Asia and Africa feeds between 64,903kg/ha/yr (Thailand)
feeds and commercial However, there are reasons to believe According to a recent estimate, based and 391kg/ha/yr (the Philippines) in semi-
feeds.They include aquatic that farm-made aqua-feeds would make on seven leading aquaculture producing intensive farms.
and terrestrial plants a significant contribution to small-scale countries in Asia, this trend is seen as It is also predicted that the usage of
(duckweeds, azolla, water aquaculture production, particularly in 19.3 million tonnes of farm-made aqua- farm-made aqua-feeds may go up to 31 mil-
hyacinth etc), aquatic animals (snails, clams Usage unknown freshwater aquaculture. feeds were used against 10.3 million tonnes lion tonnes over the next five years against
etc) and terrestrial-based live feeds (silkworm On-farm feed manufacturing can be Approximately 80 percent of global industrial feeds during 2003-2004 in Asia industrially manufactured feeds, represent-
larvae, maggots etc.), plant processing prod- of very simple form of single ingredient aquaculture production in the past is alone (De Silva and Hassan, 2007). ing a growth of 60 percent increase from
ucts (de-oiled cakes and meals, beans, grains directly uses as feed to simple mixtures believed to be produced without using for- On average, annual feeding usage rates current levels (De Silva and Hassan, 2007).

42 | InternatIonal AquAFeed | november-December 09 november-December 09 | InternatIonal AquAFeed | 43

 Feed Management
therefore, important for the longer-term
sustainability.
Cost of fish production using on farm
feeds may not be lowered unless locally avail-
able non-fishmeal ingredients are carefully
selected and blended based on the nutri-
tional requirements of the target species.
References
Akiyama, D.M. 1991.Future considerations for the
aquaculture feed industry. In: D.M. Akiyama and
R.K.H. Tan (eds), Proceedings of the aquacuture
processing and nutrition workshop, Thailand and
Indonesia, September 19-25, 1991. American
Soybean Association, Singapore.
Rola, W.R. and Hassan, M.R. 2007. Economics of
aquaculture feeding practices: A synthesis of six
Asian countries. pp 1-32. In: M.R. Hassan and R.
Banks, Economics of aquaculture feeding practices
in selected Asian countries, FAO Fisheries
Technical Paper 505.
Tacon A.G.J. 1988. The nutrition and feeding of
farmed fish and shrimp. A training manual. 3.
Feeding Methods. FAO Field Document, Project
GCP/RLA/075/ITA, Field Document No. 7, pp
208, Brasilia, Brazil
Tacon A.G.J., Hassan M.R. 2007. Global
synthesis of feeds and nutrients for sustainable
aquaculture development. pp 3-18. In: M.R.
Hassan, T. Hect, S.S. De Silva and A.G.J, Tacon
Feed Management
(eds.), Study and analysis of feeds and fertilisers
for sustainable aquaculture development. FAO
Fisheries technical Paper No. 497, FAO, Rome
pp 510.
Yang, Yi. and Yakupitiyage, A. 2001. Feeds in
small-scale aquaculture. pp 263-268. In: IIRR,
IDRC, FAO, NACA and ICLARM eds, Utilising
Different Aquatic Resources for Livelihoods in
Asia: A Resource Book, International Institute of
Rural Reconstruction, International Development
Research Centre, Food and Agriculture
Organisation of the United Nations, Network
of Aquaculture Centres in Asia-Pacific and
International Centre for Living Aquatic resources
Management, 2001.

Chong, K.C. 1995. Economics of

on-farm aquafeed preparation and use.
pp 434. In: M.B. New, A.G.J. Tacon and
I. Csavas (eds.), Farm-made aquafeeds,
FAO Fisheries Technical Paper No. 343,
FAO, Rome.

De Silva, S.S. 1995. Supplementary

However, what proportion from this
increase would be utilised in small-scale
aquaculture is not known.
There is no accurate information on
This may be attributed to the obser-
vation made by Tacon and Hassan (2007)
that with the possible exception of Brazil
(in the case of freshwater aquaculture)
75 percent of production costs.
Most of the farm-made supplemental
feeds use agricultural by-products since
selection and utilisation of supplementary
feeding in semi-intensive aquaculture
systems. In: M.B. New, A.G.J. Tacon and
I. Csavas (eds.), Farm-made aquafeeds,
FAO Fisheries Technical Paper No. 343,
FAO, Rome pp 434.

Photo courtesy of CSIRO

the usage of farm-made aqua-feeds in Sub-
Saharan Africa except for Nigeria (Tacon
and Hassan, 2007), which is estimated at
approximately 70 percent of the 35,750
aqua-feeds used in Nigeria (Hecht, 2007).
In Sub-Saharan Africa 80 percent of farmers
fall into small-scale category even though
they contribute to 30 percent of the total
production (FAO, 2007).
This indicates the level of contribution
of farm-made aqua-feeds in Sub-Saharan
Africa in terms of number of small-scale
farmers involved in aquaculture produc-
tion using such feeds. Several countries
in Sub Saharan Africa produced around
98,500 tonnes of farm-made aqua-feeds
in small- and medium-scale
aquaculture farms.
Table 2: Contribution of low value species to world freshwater aquaculture production
Growth is
expected – in
Latin America
In contrast, in Latin
Year
America farm-made aqua-
feeds are seldom used in
aquaculture and confined
the bulk of aquaculture species produced
in Latin America, especially Chile, are
high value species destined for export,
which are dependent of complete for-
mulated feeds.
Therefore, significant proportion of the
predicted increase in farm-made aqua-feeds
is most likely to happen in Asia and Africa.
There is a question of effectiveness of
farm-made aqua-feeds to increase aqua-
culture productivity and this is yet to be
addressed.
The choice of supplemental feed largely
depends on the availability and cost. In most
small-scale farms, on farm feeds, like indus-
trial feeds, also accounts for 40 percent to
Species contribution (million tonnes)
Miscellaneous
Carps & other Tilapia &
freshwater/
cyprinids other cichlids
diadromous fish
feeds is linked to other agricultural activities
(De Silva, 1995).
Capacity of farm-made aqua-feeds to
increase productivity of small-scale aquac-
ulture is not only dependent on the cost
of production but also the ability of feed to
provide a nutritionally balance regime, espe-
cially as production trends shifts towards
semi-intensive production.
Therefore, a cost effective balanced
nutritional regime is more appropriate than
one just based on one or two individual
ingredient based food items aimed at cost
reduction. Reducing costs of a feed whilst
ensuring a balanced nutritional regime in
such small-scale aquaculture systems is,
% Contribution
Total to total
production freshwater
production
De Silva, S.S. 2007. Reducing feed cost
in aquaculture: Is the use of mixed
feeding schedules the answer for semi-
intensive practices? NACA, available
online http://www.enaca.org/modules/
news/article.php?storyid=905
De Silva, S.S. and Hassan, M.R. 2007.
Feeds and fertilisers: The key to
long-term sustainability of Asian
aquaculture. pp 19-48. In: M.R. Hassan,
T. Hect, S.S. De Silva and A.G.J, Tacon
(eds.), Study and analysis of feeds and
fertilisers for sustainable aquaculture
development. FAO Fisheries technical
Paper No. 497, FAO, Rome pp 510. 23-26 May 2010
(in press).
‘keeping pace with change’
(-./01#2345167348/00-2
FAO 2007. Study and analysis of (-932.:1&3;<34=3
feeds and fertilisers for sustainable
aquaculture development. M.R. Hassan,
T. Hect, S.S. De Silva and A.G.J, Tacon
(eds.), FAO Fisheries technical Paper
No. 497, FAO, Rome pp 510.
FishStat Plus, 2008. FISHSTAT PLUS
(online). Universal software for fishery
statistical time series (Version 2005-
To !"#$%&"! or to obtain further information
11-02). Available at: http://www.fao. on "'($)$&$*# and %+,*%,!%($+ >>>?3@;.230=34A3B@38@0.@2/C-2.30?8-<1
org/fi/statist/FISOFT/FISHPLUS.asp opportunities, please visit:

to the use of agricultural

1995 10.40 1.857 0.643 13.533 95.32 Hecht, T and de Moor I. 2007. Small- Hosted by: Sponsored by:
by products in some small- D,!1E,!"1$*D,!EF&$,*
scale aquaculture in Sub-Saharan 6-4G/2/48/16--25=43.-2H Sarah-Jane Day
scale farms to replace or 2006 15.80 2.14 1.11 19.05 91.00 Africa. Available online: http:// Tel: +61 437 152 234 | Fax: +61 2 4919 1044
complement formulated cdserver2.ru.ac.za/cd/011120_1/Aqua/ Email: sarah-jane.day@aquaculture.org.au
Adapted from FishStat Plus, 2008 Post: PO Box 370, Nelson Bay NSW 2315 Australia
complete diets (FAO, 2007). SSA/main.htm

44 | InternatIonal AquAFeed | november-December 09 november-December 09 | InternatIonal AquAFeed | 45

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