“During these times of impending food crises and rising costs of consumer goods, we advise our fish growers to follow proper fish cage management practices so that they would be able to benefit more from their fish farming venture,” Mr Alcala said.
He said that by skip-feeding, fish farmers would be able to cut by half the cost of feeds which would be beneficial to them, their consumers, and the environment.
The alternative feeding scheme of skip-feeding is one of the important findings of extensive studies conducted by the Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) in collaboration with the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Centre-Aquaculture Department (SEAFDEC-AQD) to determine best fish cage management practices in the country’s major lakes.
Meanwhile, BFAR Director Malcolm I. Sarmiento, Jr. in a report to Secretary Alcala, said that a research funded by Australian Centre for International Agriculture Research (ACIAR) and conducted in Lake Buhi , Lake Bato, Laguana de Bay and in Ambuklao Dam by the BFAR’s National Inland Fisheries Technology Center (NIFTC), showed that skip-feeding does not affect fish growth.
“All excess food are just put to waste. It is not used up by the fish and accumulates only in the lake’s bottom, which in time would result to polluting the lake’s waters,” Mr Sarmiento said.
Fish cage farmers normally use up to 60 per cent of their production costs for the procurement of feeds alone.
Ag Secretary Urges Tilapia Growers To Skip-Feed
PHILIPPINES - To cut on production costs amid rising costs of consumer goods, Agriculture Secretary Proceso G. Alcala urges tilapia growers to try skip-feeding their fish.
