Tilapia fish farmer hopes for better returns

For Garfield Bryan, tilapia fish farming has been his way of life from he was a teenager, and it is the only trade he knows best.

“I have been involved in raising fish from I was a teenager and observed some elders in the area (Hartlands St Catherine) working at the ponds,” Bryan said.

He detailed the processes of fish farming to The Gleaner news team on the sugar cane lands of Hartlands.

“First you have to prepare your pond (clean it and fill it with water),then you purchase the fry (fishlings) and place them inside the pond and start the feeding process,”Bryan said.

He said that the newer ponds give a larger yield as it is often more sound than those used overtime.

“A half acre pond can give you up to 10,000 pounds of fish at $350 per pound to the vendors,but that is after the struggle of about seven months of nurturing and caring for the fish,” Bryan said.

He informed that seven month old fishes achieve ideal weight of half to three quarter pound.

The fish which have to be fed twice daily is a tedious task with constant monitoring of the water to have a clear channel and also the thieves.

“The man dem (thieves) give us a warm time as dem no stop tief the fish. They have a net call the stucky overtime dem dash it inside a pond all 100 pounds a fish gone,in one lift, it wicked mon,” Bryan told The Gleaner.

NOT CHEAP

He said that maintaining the business is expensive, and the costs are driven by water supply for the pond and feed. “Whenever you buy the Hi Pro tilapia fish feed it’s $2,800 per 55 pound bag and to feed the fish for seven months is a lot of money.

“We normally sell to the vendors that are at Twickenham Park and other areas, but tief is our main enemy, not even the crocodiles is as dangerous,” Bryan said,

Bryan said that he loves fish farming as it gives some flexibility. “The thing is that when the fish ready if you can’t sell today,the buyer can come all two weeks later and you can still make a living,” he said.

Red tilapia is one of the more popular fishes in Jamaica, and offers greater flexibility in preparation.