Water Wheel July/Aug 2024: Aquaculture

Abstract

AQUACULTURE Here’s something fishy to chew on: more people worldwide now eat farmed fish than beef. The trend is expected to continue, and while Africans lurk at the tail end, trailing every continent in consumption, and all but Oceania in production, that’s changing. Aquaculture production on the continent, although less than 3% of the global total, is evolving from subsistence to commercial, cashing in on a growing demand and a favourable environment, including water. Trouble is, aquaculture takes considerable technical know-how to do well. Give your fish too little feed and they won’t grow big in good time; give them too much and you’re throwing money down the drain (or at any rate, into the pond). The weight of a fish at a particular age has a direct bearing on profitability. Then there’s everything from water temperature and oxygen content that the poor fish farmer must manage. Authorities in Africa know this, which is why there’s increasing interest in helping our fish farmers become more productive and profitable.

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