Catfish farming business in Nigeria |steps on how to start A-Z Guide.
Every Nigerian today eat fish, you hardly come across a Nigerian who forbids fish, as at today Nigeria now consume about 3.2 million tonnes of fish annually while production of fishes hovers around 1.1 million metrics tones per year, this shows a huge gap , in fact it is said that about 2 million metrics tones of fish are needed to fill this gap.
This shortfall has led Nigeria to massively depend on imported fish which has led to massive drawback and further depletion on Nigeria’s foreign exchange. Take for instance Nigeria spends an average of N109.2 billion annually on imported stock fish from Norway alone.
Despite the short fall and abundant opportunities in the production and distribution of catfish across the 36 state of the Federation which is far below the ever increasing demand a lot of Nigerians still shy away from venturing into catfish production
The purpose of writing this article is to enlighten the average Nigerians on how they can start a profitable catfish farming right here in Nigeria and still smile to the bank after each harvest.
Catfish farming in Nigeria from our perspective
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Fish has Been categorized as one of the cheapest sources of protein, in fact fish has an enormous benefit to the human body this has made doctors and health professionals to recommend it for not only the young but also the for the old.
As at today almost all homes eat fish, the same goes with bar, hostels, eateries and relaxation centers where catfish remains one of the popular delicacies. This has made catfish farming to be classified as an ever green business because it is one of those businesses that has an ever increasing demands.
Expert in Catfish business has classified it production into two categories and they are as follows:
- nursery and the
- grow-out pond operation.
The nursery operation is very important to the grow-out pond operation because it supplies the needed healthy fingerlings to the grow-out pond operation and as such the importance can not be overwhelmed.
Required facilities for a successful catfish production in Nigeria
Every business requires a facility to kick off apart from the facilities they also need a set aside capital for the day to day running of the business, the same thing goes with catfish farming.
To be a successful farmer you must have or make available certain facilities That will aid the smooth running of your business.
You need a land for your catfish farming:
The first requirement on our list is a piece of land that is well protected from predators, intruders and human interference. Remember that this land could be rented or owned by you and the size of the area that will be used for the fish farming will be determine by the number of fish you intend to farm.
Construct a solid Fish pond:
After getting a land for your catfish farming you can now set up a pond. The size of the ponds will be determine by the number of fish you wish to farm. But in every business it is advisable you start very small even if you have the needed capital to start big, when the experience is not yet there it is safe to start a little then expand it as time goes on.
When constructing your ponds you need to get those who know how it is done to help or come to supervise or just make sure that everything is under the supervision of an expert.
Get a good source of water supply:
You need a constant source of water supply so the best and cheapest way to go about it is to drill it, don’t just conclude that you are going to be buying water from the closest place where water is sold, doing this alone will not only exhaust you but will also shot the cost up but if you still want to go ahead to buy water you need to get an Overhead Tank where you can store your water.
You need healthy fingerlings
Yes you need healthy fingerlings not just random ones but healthy ones and to get some good ones you need to employ the help of a specialist that have the eyes to differentiate healthy fingerlings from unhealthy ones.
Note that the success of your business lies here so any mistake you make here can drain your finance. We have seen a situation where poorly sorted out fingerlings where sold to a farmer and after feeding them over a long period of time they won’t just grow.
So go for the good breeds that are diseases resistant and that have the potential to grow fast.
Advantages of venturing into fish farming in Nigeria
- You have an ever increasing demand that keep expanding. As population expands the demand of fish keep increasing.
- You have the choice to sell your fish in bulk unlike in chicken. Buyers locate you to get them in bulk while you sit down in your farm to wait for them
- Return on your investment is guaranteed as far as there is no mortality and also your fingerlings grows faster.
Risk involve in Catfish farming in Nigeria
Every business comes with it own risk and catfish is no exceptional to this, so let’s list some risk we have identified in cart fish farming.
- Managing the farm is very difficult and stressful. In fact you have to be running around to change the water but not on daily basis, you also have to run around to get the feeds. If you chose to formulate your feed yourself you will definitely face tougher difficulties in doing this.
- There is high mortality rate if there is an outbreak of diseases. to counter this you must get the needed drugs, get a specialist to come regularly to the farm and give recommendations.
- The capital involves in setting up a fish farm is not for the faint-hearted in fact it runs into millions depending on the scale.