Feeding Catfish in Commercial Ponds || Factors Affecting Feeding Practices || Fish Farming Business

Feed formulations:
Feeds used in commercial catfish production must contain adequate amounts of all essential nutrients to meet the fishes’ total nutritional requirements for normal growth and development. All catfish feeds are manufactured commercially; none are prepared on the farm. Manufacturers usually produce “least-cost” formulations rather than “fixed-formula” feeds. In least-cost feed formulation, the formulas vary as ingredient prices change. However, there are several limitations in the manufacture of catfish feed using least-cost formulations.
Factors affecting
feeding practices:
Feeding is a highly variable process among catfish producers. Some producers use computer programs that determine feeding rate based on a percentage of fish body weight. Feeding a prescribed amount of feed based on fish biomass in a particular pond works best when the biomass in each pond is known and a fairly accurate estimate of feed conversion can be made. However, since most catfish producers remove only market-size fish and replace harvested fish with fingerlings, it is difficult to know the biomass after several harvests and restockings. In fact, many catfish producers estimate their inventory by the amount of feed fed. As a result,
catfish are generally fed once daily to what is commonly called satiation (that is, feeding the fish all they will eat in about 20 to 30 minutes). Since catfish feeding activity varies with fish size and age, water temperature, water quality, and fish health status, producers must decide each day how much and how often to feed. No two ponds of fish are exactly alike; as a result, feeding behavior may differ greatly from pond to pond and from day to day. Under normal conditions, catfish should be fed daily as much feed as they will consume without adversely affecting water quality. However, depending on water temperature, water quality and the health of the fish, sometimes it may be better to restrict the daily feed allowance or to feed less frequently. Most commercial ponds are relative large (usually 10 acres or larger). It is important that the feed be blown over a large area to make it accessible to as many fish as possible. It is better to feed on all sides of the pond, if wind conditions allow. If the wind is blowing, feed must be distributed along the upwind side of the pond to prevent it from washing ashore
Food fish:
Commercial feeds for food fish generally contain 28% or 32% protein. A 26% protein feed is also available from some feed mills. Research has shown that protein levels as low as 24% can support maximum growth if fish are fed as much as they will eat. Low-protein feeds cost less, but usually result in more body fat and lower processed yield. Research has shown that there is a marginal difference in the processed yields of fish fed a 28% or 32% protein feed (about 0.3 to 0.4 percentage unit reduction in fish fed the 28% protein diet), but the difference may be significant to catfish processors. The type of feed to choose depends on whether fish prices are based on live weight or on processed yield. Although fish fed higher protein feeds (35% to 40%) have better processed yield and lower body fat content, these feeds usually are not economical. Several factors influence how much to feed in a production pond. These include fish size, standing crop (number and weight of fish present in the pond), water temperature, water quality and weather conditions. Food fish are typically fed daily to apparent satiation without adversely affecting water quality. Feeding as much as the fish will eat is especially important in a multiple-batch cropping system because it gives the smaller, less aggressive fish
more opportunity to feed.
Feed formulations
Form and size
Feeding Catfish in Commercial Ponds
Factors affecting feed conversion
Factors affecting feeding practices
Warm weather feeding
Food fish
Summary food
Winter feeding
size of pond for 1000 fish
how many catfish per acre pond
size of pond for 10,000 fish
catfish pond construction
catfish pond design
catfish pond size

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