GK Aquafarms Aug 30 09

EXPERIENCES OF A COMMERCIAL AQUACULTURE FARM – A CASE STUDY OF G.K. AQUA FARMS IN CHIKWAWA DISTRICT, MALAWI

Priscilla M. Longwe, Jeremiah Kang’ombe and Emmanuel K.W Kaunda

Experiences of a Commercial Aquaculture Farm – A Case Study of G.K. Aqua Farms Page 2

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SUMMARY .................................................................................................................................... 3

1.0 BACKGROUND ................................................................................................................. 4

2.0 OBJECTIVES ...................................................................................................................... 6

3.0 DESCRIPTION OF THE FARM ........................................................................................ 7

3.1 Dimensions ....................................................................................................................... 7

3.2 Feeding ............................................................................................................................. 7

3.3 Fertilization ...................................................................................................................... 9

4.0 ACTIVITIES...................................................................................................................... 10

5.0 PRODUCTION CYCLE .................................................................................................... 11

6.0 MARKETING AND MARKET PRICES ......................................................................... 13

7.0 OUTCOMES TO DATE.................................................................................................... 14

8.0 PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED ........................................................................................ 16

9.0 CONCLUSION .................................................................................................................. 19

10.0 REFERENCE ..................................................................................................................... 19


SUMMARY

This study was carried out to find out the experiences of Gopi Krishna (G.K) Aqua Farms, with

specific interest being given to feeding/fertilization methods of G.K. Aqua Farms, the production

cycle of the farm as well as the marketing/distribution strategy of the farm.

G.K. Aqua Farms is situated in Chikwawa District, which is in the southern region of Malawi. It

has 19 ha (47acres) of its land under water.12 ha (30 acres) of which is in an enclosed area

(fenced) and the remaining 7 ha (17.3 acres) in an open are (not fenced).

G.K. Aqua Farms practices aquaculture on a commercial scale, and has led to promotion of

commercial aquaculture in Malawi, as well as providing an example on how profitable

commercial aquaculture can be, by attaining gross margins of over MWK3 million (US$21,429)

after about a year of serious operation.

The farm raises three species of fish, Common Carp, Tilapia rendalli and Tilapia mossambicus,

which are raised in polyculture system and are sold in Chikwawa district as well as in the

neighbouring city of Blantyre. The fish are stocked in ponds which are mainly fertilized by

livestock manure, and are fed with artificial diets. Partial harvests are done throughout the year,

upon consumer demand, with complete harvesting done once a year. The fish are then sold at a

farm gate price of MWK400/kg (US$2.9/kg) for Common Carp and MWK250 (US$1.8/kg) for

Tilapia species and wholesale prices of MWK500 (US$3.6/kg) for Common carp and MWK300

(US$2.1/kg) for both Tilapia species.

G.K. Aqua Farms has had a continuous rise in production figures, from 4.2tonnes/year in 2004 to

29.5tonnes/year in 2008, since it took over the farm in the year 2004, with a promise of such

increament to continue over the next few years. This, however, might not be the case as the

owners are thinking of releasing the land back to the government owners before the end of this

year (2009).

The farm faces several problems which include pests, inefficient feed supply and low sales

during summer. The farm, however, does not perform any integration.


1.0 BACKGROUND

Fish farming in Malawi began as early as 1906 with the introduction of rainbow trout

(Onchorhynchus mykiss) for angling (Balarin, 1987). The use of indigenous species in fish

farming began in 1956/57 with the culture of Oreochromis shiranus and Tilapia rendalli. Pond

culture of these species increased with the establishment in 1957 of the Domasi Experimental

Fish Farm for breeding and distribution to farmers of Tilapia rendalli and Oreochromis shiranus.

Pond culture is the main fish production system carried out in Malawi. The other production

system of cage culture is carried out in very isolated cases, for example, in Malawi Development

Cooperation (MALDECO).

Fast growing fish are preferred by farmers with Tilapia rendalli being among the favourites.

Tilapia rendalli is a very popular fish throughout the country because of its superior flavor. The

fish species is indigenous to Malawi (Phillippart and Ruwet, 1988) and is well adapted to almost

all water bodies of Malawi. The growth rate of T. rendalli exceeds that of O. shiranus and O.

karongae. The fish reaches a "large" size (about 150grammes/ 0.33pounds). It is for these reasons

that it is probably considered by small-scale aquaculture farmers in Malawi to be most suited.

Common carp (Cyprinus carpio) – one of the fast growing exotic species – was introduced into

Malawi in 1976, but further importation and distribution to farmers was prohibited in 1992

(www.fao.org), when the law was set in Malawi to prohibit introduction of exotic species.

The number of fish farmers in Malawi, has increased from less than 100, in the 1960s to 2 000,

in 1997 (Dickson and Brooks, 1997), and to 4 050 in 2002 (NAC, 2003). Over half of them use

some integrated aquaculture-agriculture technologies.

Total current fish production from aquaculture is estimated to be 800 tonnes (NAC, 2003).

However, yields may vary from 500 kg/ha/year (0.5 tonnes/kg/yr) to 2 316 kg/ha/year (2.316

tonnes/kg/yr) depending on the level of intensification. Average yields of 1.4tonnes/ha/year

(1400kg/ha/yr) are obtained (SSC, 2005). This represents an annual income of US$ 1 363 per

hectare per year (approximately US$ 25/farmer/year) thus according to www.fao.org.

Before Dr. Pala took over the farm in 2004, it was owned by the Fisheries Department, which

was then under the Ministry of Natural Resources. The ponds were constructed by the ministry


about 20years ago under the assistance of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP),

whose aim was to improve commercial aquaculture. The farm did not have much activity going

on at the time, and was not producing on a commercial scale. G.K. Aquaculture Farms then

acquired a lease for the farm from the Malawi government, and took over in the year 2004.

The farm is run by a retired scientist, Dr. Subrahmanyam Pala, and his family, with him being

the Managing director and his son, Gopi K. Pala, the director. Dr. Pala used to work for the

International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT). After G.K.

Aquaculture Farms obtained the farm, they cleared and renovated the farm. They established a

good water source from Southern Region Water Board, which they use in breeding and drinking,

as well as an electricity supply from Electricity Supply Cooperation of Malawi (ESCOM), to run

aerators.

Fig 1: Aerator on land Fig 2: Aerator in water

They also renovated the monks and canals, constructed breeding tanks, and bought brood stock

from the Fisheries Department. The total investment cost was about MWK14,000,000

(US$100,000).


Fig 3: Monk exposed in a partially drained pond

When G.K. Aqua Farms were taking over ownership of the farm, there was limited information

available on fingerling production and/or supply on a commercial scale in Malawi. Hence the

farm had problems in finding both, reliable sources on knowledge of fingerling production, and

suppliers of fingerlings. As a solution to this problem, Dr. Pala underwent a series of training in

fingerling production in India.

2.0 OBJECTIVES The objectives of the study were;

• To find out the feeding/fertilization of G.K. Aqua Farms

• To find out the production cycle of G.K. Aqua Farms

• To find out the marketing/distribution strategy of G.K. Aqua Farms.


3.0 DESCRIPTION OF THE FARM

3.1 Dimensions

G.K. Aqua Farms lies on a 19 hectare piece of land. It has 13 earthen ponds in total, with 11 in a

fenced area, covering 12ha of the land, and 2 in an unfenced area, covering 7ha of the land. It

also has three concrete tanks for fingerling production, two of which are rectangular (30m2 each)

and one circular (5m2).

The earthen ponds range from 0.8ha (2 acres) smallest, to 4ha (10 acres), largest.

3.2 Feeding

Feeding is done either once or twice a day, depending on the use of the pond. Production ponds

are fed once a day, while fingerling ponds are fed twice a day (in the morning, around 7 am, and

in the afternoon around 12 -1 pm). Tilapia rendalli and Tilapia mossambicus are fed by

broadcasting method while the Carp is fed by the bagging method.

Fig 4: Bags set up on poles in a pond for Carp feeding

The feed that is given is Wheat Bran, Maize Bran, Rice Bran, Pigeon Pea Powder, Sunflower

Cake, Groundnut Cake, and Soybean Cake. The costs of these feeds, as of 2009, are given in

table 1 below:


Table 1: Feed ingredients and costs at G.K. Aqua Farms

FEED INGREDIENTS COST (MWK/kg) COST (US$/kg)

Wheat bran 25 0.18

Maize bran 25 0.18

Rice bran 25 0.18

Pigeon pea powder 45 0.32

Sunflower cake 75 0.54

Groundnut cake 85 0.61

Soybean cake Not available at time of study

-

Source: G.K. Aqua Farms cash flow records

The cost of daily feed portions is MWK4, 500/ha/day (US$32/ha/day). Since the farm started

producing, there has been an increase in the amount of money being spent on feed. This is

illustrated below;

Table 2: Cost of feed

YEAR FEED COST (MWK) FEED COST (US$)

2005 700,000 5,000

2006 950,000 6,786

2007 1,200,000 8,571

2008 1,800,000 12,857

Source: G.K. Aqua Farms farm budget

Molasses are added to the bran feed in order to add flavour. They are stored in a plastic container

and are taken out through an outlet found on the plastic container, and poured into the feed, and

then the mixture is dropped into the pond for feed.


Fig 5: Container holding molasses

The molasses are also used to control algal bloom when seen to be in abundance. About 30litres

per hectare are applied to the ponds in order to do this. Approximately 100litres of molasses are

applied to the biggest pond (about 4 ha (10acres)), in order to control the bloom.

3.3 Fertilization

Fertilization of the ponds is done during pond preparation and afterwards, monthly, for the

period of the culture of the fish.

During pond preparation, the ponds are dried for 2 -3 weeks or until cracks appear. Afterwards

Endola Lime is sprinkled to neutralize the soil pH and to kill bacteria and germs. Cattle or

chicken manure is then mixed with water and left to fill the pond (3-4 truck loads of cattle

manure is used for every hectare and 2 tones of chicken manure is used for every hectare). This

is then left for a period of a week to ten day, and then the fish are stocked. After a month, if the

colour of the water is not yet green, NPK fertilizer is applied to boost plankton production. This

is done on an annual basis.

When manure (plankton) is deficient, 50kg of manure is applied to a pond, at most, three times a

week in order to boost the plankton production.


On an annual basis, the farm spends on average, MWK170, 000 (US$1,214), on fertilizers and

lime for the ponds, with every trip costing about MWK15, 000 (US$107)

Fig 6: Drained pond with exposed monk

4.0 ACTIVITIES G.K. Aqua Farms has several activities that take place either on a day to day basis, on a weekly

basis or on a monthly basis. The activities done include:

• Pest control

o Manual bird scaring.

o Seining of crocodiles.

o Monitor lizard control by dogs.

• Cleaning of the pond bands

o Sweeping and removal of any litter found on the pond bands.

• Feeding of fish

• Harvesting of fish


o The farm performs a series of harvests. Weekly harvesting of fish is done and General

fish harvesting is done once a year when the ponds are cleared and maintained. However,

on a regular basis, partial harvesting is done upon consumer demand. Weekly harvesting

is done every Fridays and the fish are sold at the Farm gate.

• Application of manure

o Done three times a week when plankton availability is low. It is also done during

pond preparation.

5.0 PRODUCTION CYCLE The farm performs a series of harvests. Weekly and annually, as well as upon consumer demand.

Production data for 5 years is known for the farm. Below are some of the production data for the

years 2004 (end) – 2009 (beginning).

Table 4: Production data of G.K. Aqua Farms

YEAR 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

TONNAGE/

YR

4.2 8.9 8.8 26.9 29.5 2.8

Source: G.K. Aqua Farms Budget

An increase in fish yield has been noted on the farm, with an initial average net yield of 8.9

tonnes/ha/year, during their first full year of operation (2005), and a current average net yield of

29.5 tonnes/ha/year, during their last full year of operation. Clearly showing an increase in

production.

The fish are harvested using a seine net which has floats on one end and weights on the other,

which allow it to be positioned vertically along the water column.


Fig 7: Floats on a seine net Fig 8: Weights on a seine net

Fig 9: Seine net laid out to dry

The harvested fish are then put in a cage for temporary storage before sale, as below.

Fig 10: Cage for temporary fish storage


6.0 MARKETING AND MARKET PRICES After harvesting the fish are cleaned and put in crates containing ice then transported. The farm

produce are transported by a personal pick-up and sold to retailers in Blantyre town. The main

markets include Shoprite, Peoples Supermarket, and on a smaller scale, local fish vendors at the

Limbe local market in Blantyre City.

When fish are sold at Farm gate, they are sold for K250/kg (US$1.79/kg) for Tilapia species and

K400/kg (US$2.86/kg) for Common Carp. This is much more affordable than the K300/kg

(US$2.14/kg) for Tilapia species and K500/kg (US$3.57/kg) for the Common Carp, which is the

price for urban markets wholesale.

The prices at which the fish are sold in the retail markets, are slightly higher than the ones set by

G.K. Aqua Farms. This agrees with the marketing principle which states that prices are usually

less at point of production and more the further away you go from the point of production

(www.coopgalor.com).

The price contrast is shown in table 5 below, both in MWK and US$:

Table 5: Retail Market Prices

CARP TILAPIA SPECIES

G.K. Aqua farms

Farmgate Price

Wholesale Price

K400.00/kg

K500.00/kg

US$2.9/kg

US$3.6/kg

K250.00/kg

K300.00/kg

US$1.8/kg

US$2.1/kg

Shoprite K549.99/kg US$3.9/kg K399.99/kg US$2.9/kg

Peoples Superettes K625.00/kg US$4.5/kg K375.00/kg US$2.7/kg


The fish are neatly packed and sold to the consumers at the above retail prices.

Below are pictures of the Shire valley Tilapia and the Fresh Water Carp, as the fish are called, in

Shoprite, Blantyre, Malawi.

Fig 11: Shire valley Tilapia (above)

Fig 12: Fresh Water Carp (above)

7.0 OUTCOMES TO DATE The farm managed to attain revenue of MWK8,090,000 in 2007 and MWK8, 860,000 in 2008,

which is an improvement from the previous years losses (2005 and 2006) of MWK2,210,000 and


MWK1,780,000 respectively, due to the extra knowledge gained on fingerling production in

India.

Three concrete tanks have been successfully constructed and used for breeding which have also

led to the increase in fingerling production. This practice was learnt during Dr. Pala’s visit to

India where he learnt how to breed fingerlings.

Formulated diets of different ingredients i.e. Wheat bran, Maize bran, Rice bran, Pigeon pea

powder, Sunflower cake, Groundnut cake and Soybean cake are used with or without molasses

and fed to the fish. This has then led to the increase in production on the farm to over 25 tonnes

per year.

The farm has managed to produce substantially, over the past four years that it has been active,

reaching tonnage of up to 29.5 in 2008. This, however, comes as a result of having all raw

materials constant, without which these figures drop drastically, to as low as 8.8-8.9 tons per

year, which was the case in the years 2006 and 2005 respectively.

The increase in tonnage has managed the farm to raise their gross margins from as low as

MWK949,000 and MWK1,670,000, in 2005 and 2006 respectively, to as high as

MWK3,608,000 and MWK3, 300,000, in 2007 and 2008, respectively.

The farm has also improved the livelihoods as well as the nutritional status of the people working

on, as well as around the farm. In order to let the people around the area enjoy eating the fish, the

farm sells the fish to the people at an affordable cost, for the majority, and thus also aid in their

nutritional status. Other than this, is has also aided in their food availability.

The farm also employs only locals and no foreigners. This has then led to improved employment

levels of the people in the villages around the farm.


8.0 PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED The farm faces both major and minor problems. These problems range from production, to

predation through to marketing. Birds like, eaglets, pelicans, cranes and pipis are the major pests

found on the farm.

Fig 13: Pipi Fig 14: Cranes

Monitor lizards used to cause problems before, on the farm, but the introduction of dogs led to

their reduction.

Eggs of wild fish (e.g. catfish), as well as other pests (e.g crocodiles), come into the ponds

through the supply canals, as the farm gets its water from Kasinthula Cane Growers Limited

(KCGL) canal, which is just adjacent to the farm. The canals waters are from Shire River.

Theft is also a problem, especially with the unfenced ponds which lie outside the fenced

compound. Crocodiles are also an occasional problem as they tend to enter the fish ponds and

prey on the fish.

Initially the farm faced problems with Carp, but now produces its own fingerlings in breeding

tanks which have since been constructed.


Fig 15: Rectangular breeding tank

The breeding tanks are lined with artificial egg collectors which hold the eggs, after they are

fertilized, until they hatch.

Fig 16: Breeding tank lined with artificial egg collectors

After hatching, the fry are put in a nursing tank from which they are taken into the production

ponds (like below).

Fig 17: Production pond with aerators


Several consumers used to think Carp was an imported sea fish and were resistant to it at first,

but grew to love it later after realising that it was not.

Another problem that the farm is encountering, at the moment, is the lack of feed. The supply of

feed for the fish, in the country, has been poor for the past year. Since 2008, the basic materials

required for the fish feed, i.e. maize bran, wheat bran, sunflower cake, groundnut cake, and

pigeon pea cake have been scarce in the country and hence, expensive. This then has led to a

decreased production of the fish on the farm, from as high as 14.8 tons to as low as 2.8 tons, in

half a year, between 2008 and 2009.

During the winter season, fish sales boost, but this is not the case in summer, as the sales tend to

drop, due to the high catches of fish from Lake Malawi, as competition is faced with Chambo. In

the farms peak seasons (during winter), they harvest, on average, twice a week (8 times a

month). This is a lot more compared to the harvesting done during the low seasons (summer),

which is 5 times a month.

Supplying to local markets is not preferred by G.K. Aqua Farms as well. This is because fish

vendors in local markets sell their fish on, per bucket basis and not on per Kilogram basis. Thus,

they also prefer buying per bucket, while G.K. Aqua Farms prefers selling per Kilogram. Local

markets also want their fish early in the morning as this is when people come to buy from them

the most. This proved to be difficult as the farm had to harvest at night in order to meet the order

by morning the next day. This led to costing them more, as far as labour was concerned, since

the labourers had to work and harvest at night. This practice also led to their labourers and

guards being attacked, as thieves were aware that fish were being kept overnight at the farm.

Another problem they had was that of fungal infection on fish heads during a JICA experiment

that was to do with Cage culture in Stagnant water using an aerator. This led to a lot of fish

deaths. The cage in which this experiment was conducted is below:


Fig 18: Cage in which Experiment took place

9.0 CONCLUSION In conclusion, G.K. Aqua Farms has managed to produce on a commercial scale and has

managed to provide demonstrations to other commercial aquaculture farmers and as a result has

managed to promote commercial aquaculture in Malawi.

Despite accomplishing all these, the figures the farm attained in the four years of its operation

are not that satisfactory. This may be due to the lack of information in aquaculture production

that was there in the country at the start of the farm in the year 2004.

However, the potential that has been seen on the farm since 2007 shows that with enough inputs

and a constant flow of activities on the farm, the potential of commercial aquaculture on a farm

of over 15 ha, in Malawi, is guaranteed to give productions of well over 30 tonnes and returns of

well over MWK9 million (US$64,286), which is advantageous to a fish farmer.

10.0 REFERENCE Balarin, J.D. (1987). National review for aquaculture development in Africa. 12. Malawi. FAO

Fisheries Circular, No.770.12


Dickson, M. & Brooks, A.C. (1997). Fish farming in Malawi. Case of the central and northern

regions fish farming project. Directorate-General for Development, European Commission

and Ministry of Forestry and Natural Resources, Malawi Government.

FAO, Fisheries and Aquaculture Department. Online. http://www.fao.org/. Accessed on 21

August 2009.

Introduction to Cooperative Marketing. Online. http://www.coopgalor.com/. Accessed on 03 July

2009.

NAC (2003). National Aquaculture Center Annual Report, 2002/2003.

Phillippart, C.L. & Ruwett, C.L. (1988). Ecology and distribution of tilapias. In "the biology and

culture of tilapia: Proceedings of the international Conference on the Biology and culture of

tilapia , 2-5 September 1980" by RSV. Pullin and R.H. Lowe - McConnell (eds).

International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management. Makata, Manilla,

Philippines.

System Science Consultants Inc (SSC). 2005. National Aquaculture Strategic Plan (NASP)

(2006–2015). Master Plan Study on Aquaculture Development in Malawi. Main Report.

Japan International Cooperation Agency, Tokyo.

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GK Aquafarms Aug 30 09