Fish Feed Processing and Production Technology

In animal production system, nutrition is a key factor to produce an economically healthy, high quality product. Feed is one of the major inputs in aquaculture production and there is also an increasing demand for quality feeds. Adoption of appropriate processing technology is an important factor to determine the final quality of feed. In Feed formulation, ingredients are selected in correct amount to form a single uniform mixture or pellets at possible low cost that will provide all the nutritional requirements of the target fish. The basic steps involved in fish feed manufacturing are 1) Selection of ingredients 2) Grinding 3) Feed formulation 4) Mixing 5) Pelleting 6) Drying 7) Packing 8) Storag

Components of a Fish Feed Mill

The design of a feed mill depends on the intended production capacity. For a small scale feed mill (20-50 kg feed production per day), a total area of around 3000 sq. ft will be sufficient, while medium and large feed mills require more area. The major components of a feed mill are (i) Building and (ii) Equipment/ Machiner

Fish feed ingredients and additives – Classification, composition and anti-nutritional factors

Ingredients are the basic raw materials of fish feeds. No single feed ingredient is nutritionally complete and can supply the nutrients and energy required for growth of fish. Therefore, a mixture of ingredients in a carefully formulated feed can provide balanced levels of nutrients and energy for optimum growth performance

Storage and quality assessment of ingredients and formulated feeds

Appropriate storage of ingredients and feeds is an important aspect in feed manufacturing process. Good storage is essential because the value of the feed presented to fish depends on it. Feed spoils during storage and the extend of deterioration depends very largely on the storage conditions. Since fish feeds usually contain relatively high amounts of fish meal and/or fish oil, they are very much susceptible to rancidity. In addition, loss of certain nutrients occurs during prolonged periods of storage. For these reasons, fish feeds should not be stored for longer periods (not more than 3 months). Ingredients and feeds should be stored in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight

An indigenous system for collection of Black soldierfly pupae and its nutritional evaluation for making fish feeds

Black soldierfly (BSF) pupae can be utilized as an excellent means for the bioconversion of organic wastes into high value sustainable protein and lipid ingredient for aquaculture. The life cycle of this insect begins with eggs laid in clutches of approximately 500 numbers. The eggs are about 1 mm in size and hatch into larvae within 4 days to two weeks. The larva feeds on organic waste and metamorphose into a pre-pupa, normally within 2 weeks which is the most nutrient rich stage in the BSF life cycle. At this stage it can be harvested periodically and converted into a feed ingredient for aquaculture. An indigenous small-scale system for the production of BSF by utilizing waste food from the departmental canteen of ICAR-CMFRI was attempte

Indigenous Re-circulatory Aquaculture System (i-RAS) developed for fish nutrition research

Fish nutrition research is an integral part of aquaculture research. The nutrition research requires a well equipped wet laboratory to conduct research in an effective manner for acceptable research findings. Adequate quantity and quality of water is a prerequisite for research in aquaculture. Also, maintenance of water quality parameters in the optimum range is crucial for the well-being of fish kept in the experimental system

Machinery in a Lab scale fish feed mill

Machinery in a Lab scale fish feed mil

Culture of snubnose pompano, Trachinotus blochii (Lacepede, 1801) in indigenous re-circulatory aquaculture system using low cost fishmeal-based diet

787-794An experimental culture of snubnose pompano, Trachinotus blochii was conducted for 210 days in low saline water to understand the growth potential in small indigenous Re-circulatory Aquaculture Systems (iRAS) using low cost fishmeal-based diet developed for pompano. In the present study, snubnose pompano has reached the marketable size (287.32±4.84 g) during the culture period with excellent feed conversion ratio of 1.74±0.01 and average daily growth of 1.32±0.02 g/day. Harvested fish showed viscerosomatic index, hepatosomatic index and intra-peritoneal fat ratio of 4.98±0.21, 0.99±0.09 and 1.45±0.16 %, respectively which enhanced the head-on muscle yield (80.57±3.25 %) and fillet yield (52.22±2.27 %). The survival percentage of T. blochii reared in the iRAS was 88.89±3.51 %. The cost of the diet developed for snubnose pompano is well below the commercially available marine fish feeds. The present study suggested that snubnose pompano can be successfully cultured in low saline sea water iRAS using low cost fishmeal-based diet

Farm evaluation of formulated diets on the growth and body composition of Etroplus suratensis reared in cages in low-saline coastal ponds

A 90-day on-farm feeding experiment was carried out in the installed cages in brackishwater ponds to evaluate the efficiency of three formulated diets on the growth performance and body composition of Etroplus suratensis. Two diets DI and DII were in-house formulations based on optimum macronutrient requirements (protein and fat) derived from an indoor nutritional evaluation of E. suratensis, and diet three DIII was a commercially available pellet meant for pearl spot fish. A sum of 900 fishes were randomly distributed with an average weight of 18.2±0.02g into three different treatment groups each in triplicate, and each replicate had 100 fishes stocked in cages with dimensions 2×2×1.5 m. At the end of the feeding trial, the fish were weighed to assess growth parameters in terms of % gain in weight, feed conversion ratio (FCR), and specific growth rate (SGR). The diet (DI) displayed significantly (p<0.05) higher % weight gain, and SGR than (DII) and (DIII). The FCR of diet (DI) was significantly (p<0.05) lower than diets (DII) and (DIII). Diet (DI) showed better growth when compared with other feeds. The study emphasized the need for species-specific diets for application at the farm level for an effective return on investment

Culture of snubnose pompano, Trachinotus blochii (Lacepede, 1801) in indigenous re-circulatory aquaculture system using low cost fishmeal-based diet

An experimental culture of snubnose pompano, Trachinotus blochii was conducted for 210 days in low saline water to understand the growth potential in small indigenous Re-circulatory Aquaculture Systems (iRAS) using low cost fishmealbased diet developed for pompano. In the present study, snubnose pompano has reached the marketable size (287.32±4.84 g) during the culture period with excellent feed conversion ratio of 1.74±0.01 and average daily growth of 1.32±0.02 g/day. Harvested fish showed viscerosomatic index, hepatosomatic index and intra-peritoneal fat ratio of 4.98±0.21, 0.99±0.09 and 1.45±0.16 %, respectively which enhanced the head-on muscle yield (80.57±3.25 %) and fillet yield (52.22±2.27 %). The survival percentage of T. blochii reared in the iRAS was 88.89±3.51 %. The cost of the diet developed for snubnose pompano is well below the commercially available marine fish feeds. The present study suggested that snubnose pompano can be successfully cultured in low saline sea water iRAS using low cost fishmeal-based diet