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Should You Attempt Fish Farming?

Considerations for Prospective Fish Growers

Introduction

Fish farming is an ancient practice that can provide many profitable opportunities today. The raising and selling of fish on a commercial basis has proven to be economically successful throughout the World. Increasing recognition that fish is a healthy food, low in calories and cholesterol levels, but rich in protein has increased consumer demand in both restaurants and supermarkets. Consumption of fish products is increasing dramatically and now averages about 14 pounds/person/year in Virginia.

They can convert feed into body tissue more efficiently than most farm animals, transforming about 70 percent of their feed into flesh. Fish also have excellent dress-out qualities, providing an average of 60 percent body weight as marketable product and a greater proportion of edible, lean tissue than most livestock. Fish can be intensively cultured in relatively small amounts of water. In Virginia, they can be farmed at densities near 2,000 pounds/acre with careful management. Farm-reared fish offer a new alternative agricultural crop that can potentially replace those which are declining in popularity or profitability. Healthy farm-reared fish, guaranteed free of diseases, pesticides, and other harmful toxicants, are a more desirable substitute for wild fish from potentially polluted waters.

Fish farming is, like most other types of farming, a risky business that requires special knowledge, skills, and careful considerations. Some of the most important factors to consider in determining whether you should begin a fish farming business are listed below. Answering yes to all or most questions does not insure success. Similarly, answering no to all or most questions does not guarantee failure. Individuals with little or no experience in fish farming and few resources available can become successful fish farmers.

Fish ID - Bass
Fish ID - Catfish
Fish ID - Salmon
Fish ID - Trout
Fish ID - Other
Fish Lifecycle

http://www.lakefishingmaps.com/lake_fishing_maps_fish_identification_guide_trout.htm

Answer Yes or No

Economics:

1. Do you have suitable land with a good source of high-quality water?
2. Do you own enough land and water necessary for a profitable venture?
3. Is there a high demand and sufficient market for your product?
4. Do you have the equipment and machinery necessary?
5. Is expected profit from fish farming greater than other land uses?
6. Can you really devote the resources, time, and labor necessary?
7. Do you know the costs involved with the following items:

Capital Costs
Land & buildings
Building ponds/raceways
Trucks & tractors
Plumbing & pipes
Tanks & aerators
Oxygen meters
Nets & boots

Operating Costs
Purchasing eggs/fingerlings
Fish feed
Electricity & fuel
Labor & maintenance
Chemicals & drugs
Taxes & insurance
Telephone & transportation

Marketing:
l. Is there an established market for your fish?
2. Is the market demand sufficient year-round?
3. Do you have an alternative marketing strategy to rely on?

Physical:
l. Do you have a continuous source of clean, high-quality water?
2. Does your soil have enough clay content to hold water?
3. Is the water temperature optimal for the fish species reared?
4. Do you have space sufficient to build enough ponds or raceways?
5. Do you have good and easy pond access for feeding and harvesting?
6. Are the pipes sufficient in size for quick draining & easy filling?
7. Is your residence near enough for direct observation and security?

Production:
l. Have you had your water tested (chemical and bacteriological)?
2. Do you have a reliable source of fingerlings or eggs at affordable prices?
3. Do you have a reliable source of feed at reasonable cost?
4. Do you have dependable labor available at affordable wages?
5. How long is your growing season (days/year)?
6. What's your production capacity (pounds/year)?
7. What's the best fish species for you to grow?
8. Are you aware of fish reproductive biology and nutritional needs?

Legal:

1. Do you feel the administration is not performing properly?
2. Do you feel the unfair framing of regulations is occurring?
3. Are you aware of the federal and state laws about fish farming?
4. Do you know where to apply for the necessary permits and licenses?
5. Does discrimination exist in framing of these rules and regulations?

Risk Assessment:

l. Do you have fish crop insurance?
2. Can you conduct water quality tests?
3. Is fish-disease diagnostic-help readily available?
4. Do you know about off-flavor and its causes?
5. Is pesticide, metal,or oil contamination possible?
6. Can you deal with poachers and vandals?
7. Do you know where to go for information and help?
Trout
Fish Farming Publications

Magazines/ Newsletters

Aquaculture Digest
9434 Kearney Mesa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92126
Monthly--$50/yr.

Aquaculture Magazine
P.O. Box 2329
Asheville, NC 28802
Bimonthly--$15/yr.

Aquafarm Letter
3400 Neyrey Drive
Metairie, LA 70002
Bi-weekly--$70/yr.

Arkansas Aquafarming
University of Arkansas
Cooperative Extension Service
Box 391
Little Rock, AR 72203
Quarterly--Free

California Aquaculture
University of California
Cooperative Extension Service
Aquaculture Extension
Davis, CA 95616
Monthly--Free

Canadian Aquaculture
4652 William Head Rd.
Victoria, British Columbia
Canada, V8X3W9
Quarterly--$14/yr.

Carolina Aquaculture News
P.O. Box 1294
Garner, NC 27529
Bimonthly--$12/yr.

Farm Pond Harvest
Professional Sportsman Pub.Co.
Box AA
Momence, Illinois 60954
Bimonthly-$10/yr.

Fish Farmer
Business Press International
205 E. 42nd St.
New York, NY 10017
Bimonthly-$56/yr.

Fish Farming International
Heighway House
87 Blackfriars Road
London SE 1814B England
Monthly--$35/yr.

Fish Farming International
110 Fleet St.
London EC4A England

For Fish Farmers
Mississippi State University
Cooperative Extension Service
Mississippi State, MS 39762
Monthly--Free

Georgia Fish Farmer
University of Georgia
Cooperative Extension Service
Athens, GA 30602
Quarterly--Free

Salmonid Magazine
U.S. Trout Farming Asso.
506 Ferry St.
Little Rock, AR 72203
Quarterly--Free

South Carolina Aquaculturist
Clemson University
Cooperative Extension Service
Room 102, Long Hall
Clemson, SC 29631
Quarterly--Free

Texas Aquaculture
Texas A&M University
Cooperative Extension Service
102 Nagle Hall
College Station, TX 77843
Quarterly--Free

The Catfish Journal
Catfish Farmers of America
P.O. Box 1700
Clinton, MS 39056
Monthly--$20/yr.

Timely Tips-Fisheries
University of Tennessee
Cooperative Extension Service
P.O. Box 1071
Knoxville, TN 37901-1071
Quarterly--Free

Water Farming Journal
3400 Neyrey Drive
Metairie, LA 70002
Monthly--$15/yr.

World Aquaculture News
P.O. Box 150129
Arlington, TX 76015
Monthly--$20/yr.

Journals/ Technical Publications

Aquaculture
American Elsevier Scientific Pub. Co.
52 Vanderbilt Ave.
New York, NY 10017
32 issues/yr.--$640/yr.

Aquaculture Engineering
Elsevier Applied Science
52 Vanderbilt Avenue
New York, NY 10017
Monthly--$132/yr.

Journal of Shellfish Research
National Shellfisheries Association
Oyster Biology Section
Gulf Coast Research Lab.
Ocean Springs, MS 39564

Journal of the World Aquaculture Society
178 Pleasant Hill
Louisiana State University
Baton Rouge, LA 70803

Progressive Fish Culturist
American Fisheries Society
5410 Grosvenor Lane, Suite 110
Bethesda, MD 20814-2199
Quarterly--$16/yr.

Transactions of the American Fisheries Society
American Fisheries Society
5410 Grosvenor Lane, Suite 110
Bethesda, MD 20814

Selected Fish Farming Books

A Guide to Integrated Warm Water Aquaculture. D. Little and J. Muir. Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, Scotland.

Aquaculture Engineering. 1977. F.E. Wheaton. R.E. Krieger Publishing Company, Kreiger Dr., Malabar, FL 32950.

Aquaculture: The farming and husbandry of freshwater and marine organisms. 1972. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. New York, NY.

Cage Aquaculture. 1987. M. Beveridge. Unipub, 4611-F Assembly Drive, Landham, MD 20706-4391. Phone (301) 459-7666. ($38)

Commercial Catfish Farming. 1973. Interstate Printers and Publishers. Danville, Il.

Crustacean and Mollusk Aquaculture in the United States. J.V. Huner and E.E. Brown. AVI Publishing Co., Inc., 250 Post Road East, P.O. Box 831, Westport, CT 06881.

Fish Farming Handbook. 1980. AVI Publishing Co., Inc., Westport, Ct. 06881.

Fish Hatchery Management. 1986. American Fisheries Society, 5410 Grosvenor Lane, Suite 110, Bethesda, MD 20814.

Guidelines for Striped Bass Culture. 1976. American Fisheries Society, 5410 Grosvenor Lane, Suite 110, Bethesda, MD 20814-2199.

Principles and Practices of Pond Aquaculture. 1986. American Fisheries Society, 5410 Grosvenor Lane, Suite 110, Bethesda, MD 20814-2199, Phone (301) 897-8616. ($39.95)

Principles of Warmwater Aquaculture. 1979. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. New York, NY.

Principles of Warmwater Aquaculture. 1979. American Fisheries Society, 5410 Grosvenor Lane, Suite 110, Bethesda, MD 20814-2199. Phone (301) 897-8616 ($39.95)

Recent Advances in Aquaculture. J. Muir and R. Roberts. Westview Press Inc., 5500 Central Ave., Boulder, CO 80301.

The Aquaculture of Striped Bass. 1984. Maryland Sea Grant Program, 1224 Patterson Hall, Univ. of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742.

Trout and Salmon Culture (Hatchery Methods). 1980. California Fish Bulletin Number 164. University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720.

Trout Farming Handbook. 1973. Scholtum International Inc. Flushing, NY.

Water Quality in Warmwater Fish Ponds. 1984. C.E. Boyd. Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36830. ($8)

Organizations

American Fisheries Society
5410 Grosvenor Lane
Suite 110
Bethesda, MD 20814-2199
301-897-8616

Catfish Farmers of America
P.O. Box 36
Jackson, MS 39205
601-353-7916

National Ornamental Goldfish Growers Asso.
6916 Blacks Mill Rd.
Thurmont, MD 21788
301-272-7475

National Shellfisheries Association
Edwin Thodes
National Marine Fisheries Service
212 Rogers Ave.
Milford CT 06460
203-783-4200

Shellfish Institute of North America
National Fisheries Institute
2000 M Street, NW, Suite 580
Washington, DC 20036
202-296-5170

U.S. Trout Farmers Association
515 Rock Street
Little Rock, AR 72202
501-372-3595

World Aquaculture Society
341 Pleasant Hall
Baton Rouge, LA 70803
504-388-3137Fish farming

Are koi big goldfish?

No, koi are not goldfish, they are a type of common carp.Goldfish are classified as Carassius auratus while both koi and common carp areclassified as Cyprinus carpio. Goldfish and common carp (which include koi) areboth members of the Carp and Minnow family (Cyprinidae).

How big does a koi pond need to be?
While very young koi can be kept in a relatively small container, they grow rapidly and require considerable room in which to do so. Also part of the consideration is the amount of filtration associated with the pond. We recommend an absolute minimum of 900 gallons as a koi pond. A much better size, even for a beginning hobbyist, would be 2000 to 5000 gallons. Some koi ponds are 10,000 gallons to over 200,000 gallons.

How deep should a koi pond be?
Koi can live in very shallow water, but are not comfortablewithout access to deep water. Particularly in hot climates, like Texas, they require deepwater and shade as refuge from the hot summer sun. We recommend an absoluteminimum depth of 42 inches for a koi pond. Koi derive musculature by swimmingup and down in the water and a better depth for a koi pond would be 60” to 84”.Koi ponds can and should have both deep and shallow areas.

How many koi can I keep in my pond?
Koi can grow very large, as long as three feet in some cases. While many small koi can be kept in a pond, the same pond will hold only a few large koi. The capacity of a pond is also very dependent on the type and amount of filtration the pond has. For most koi keepers, about 50 to 100 gallons per small koi (under 12”), and 500 to 1000 gallons per large koi (over 24”) is a good rule of thumb in a properly filtered pond. A good philosophy for collecting koi is to be very selective and have a smaller number of higher quality specimens.

What type and how much filtration does a koi pond need?
Koi will eat a lot; this is especially true in warm weather.This implies a great deal of wastes that must be filtered from the pond.Biological wastes come in many forms and require different approaches tofiltration in the same system (pond). We recommend that koi ponds be plumbed insuch a way as to remove water from the bottom, mid-level, and the surface forfiltration. We also recommend at least two separate filtration systemsincluding two pumps. Usually this consists of one system for bottom waterfiltration and another system for surface (skimmer) and/or mid-level waterfiltration. We do not recommend circulating any water that is not filtered. Thecombined filtration system should filter and return at least one pond volumeper hour on small ponds (under 5000 gallons) and one volume per hour and a halfon larger ponds (over 5000 gallons). A combination of mechanical (solidsremoval) and biological (ammonia conversion to nitrate) filtration is requiredto properly filter a koi pond. Examples of fish diseases
Symptons of illnessIt could be...Treatment
Your new fish have died - there are no obvious signs of illness "New Tank Syndrome" Adding fish to a brand new aquarium stresses the fish, and sometimes it can be fatal. For more info, check out: The Nitrogen Cycle
Loss of appetiteAn enviromental problem, newly-introduced fish can be slow to feed (stress), certain fishes will refuse anything but live foods.Enviromental: inspect for any manifestations of disease, and get a basic water tester (Ammonia etc). The same with stress. Be patient with them. Look for other signs of disease.
Cotton Wool effect on the bodyFungus, Columnarius (Mouth fungus)If you see this disease, can use medication (ie "Anti Fungus") and a Salt bath (1 teaspoon per gallon)
Small, white spots on the head, body and fins.Whitespot (Ichthyophthirius)A very common disease (especially in a new aquarium). There are several formulas around, dose the fish quickly before the parasite spreads. Salt could be used (1 teaspoon per galloon).
Fraying of the soft tissue (fin membrane)Fin Rot, the disintegration of the finsUse medication before a secondary infection occurs, it will take several days before there is serious fin damage. Could use salt bath (1 teaspoon per gallon)
Appearance of a whitish film over the eye of the fishPoor water quality, poisoning (Chlorine) or Eye FlukePoor water: Water changes are required. Poisoning: Make sure to condition tap water. Eye Fluke: Use medication
Fish are gasping, on the bottom of the aquarium, red streaks around gillsMost probably oxygen starvation, or a Gill diseaseYou have too many fish, an air punp may help. Gill diseases are quite rare, you could actually see the gills rot away: use medication.
Worms are visibly seen hanging from the gills, fish are gaspingGill Worm (Dactylogyrus)This is another parasite. Use anti-parasite drugs as directed.
Reddining of the skin, or red streaks in the finsVirus, Ulcers (Bacterial infection)Viruses can only be seen through microscopes - and its incurable. With a bacterial disease, use a anti-bacteria or anti-internal treatment. A prolonged SALT bath (3-5 g/litre for several days) will alliviate osmoregulatory stress in the case of severe ulceration.
Scales seem to be raised, fish are bloated.Dropsy (Ascites)Dropsy is more of a sympton than an actually disease yet, and is quite common. Most associated with a bacterial infection (cause could be wide - poor water conditions are often the culprit. Meds can be used, but dont always work.
Small, worm like parasites attached to fish, fish scraping against rocks. Anchor worm (lernea)There are many Crustacean Parasites around, and can be exported into your water. Meds are available.
Dull colour (mucus), detached skin, fraying of the fin.Mucus Hyperproduction.This called by caused by Slime disease (parasite, meds available), poor water conditioners (high Nitrogenous wastes), fFukes, stress.

A word of warning with using medication: Obviously people want to save their fish, so they go and buy a product, and sometimes these can be quite effective. But a word of warning - some meds can be very detrimental in the long term. Treatments whitch use Malachite Green and Methylene Blue can be useful treatments for parasites and Fungus, unfortunately they can destroy our beneficial bacteria, and then you can get a Ammoni/Nitrite peak for some time. Also some meds demand it that they remove Carbon/Zeolite for the duration of the treatment - this can effectively start up a mini-cycle as the Carbon/Zeolite have lost their bacteria.

Salt bath: So a salt bath is a good way of treating the fish without damaging the bacteria we need. It is a good antiseptic and fungicide. If you are using high doses, its best to try to gradually raise the concentration, so the fish don't become stressed. Sometimes it can be effective to use a short salt bath, with higher salt concentration (such as fungal infection - 10G/Litre for 30 min).