Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
T A B L E 7.4. Feed Composition for Carnivorous and Herbivorous Species
Black Carp
(%)
Grass Carp
(%)
Straw powder
50
25
Soybean cake powder
10
25
Fish meal powder
5
Sesame stem powder
25
Barley/wheat flour
15
1
Wheat/rice bran
10
24
Rapeseed cake
10
Source: Training Manual: Integrated Fish Farming in China.
7.8.5 Pests and Diseases
The OIE list A diseases does not contain any diseases affecting aquatic animals. Most
efforts are directed toward disease prevention since diagnosis, treatment, and cure are
especially difficult with fish. Some of the more notable diseases are hemorrhagic septi-
cemia, erythroderma, enteritis, bacterial gill rot, vertical scale disease, and saprolegnia-
sis. In addition, many parasites infest aquatic animals, causing long-term damage. In
most cases treatment consists of disposing of the infected fish and cleaning the pond
or rearing enclosures.
7.8.6 Marketing
Marketing of fish is a bit more akin to that of poultry than other animals. Many
countries in the tropics lack widespread refrigeration so that transport of live fish has
been developed as an alternative. In the Philippines, small farmers sell to middlemen
who come to their ponds with aerated tanks. 36 They are paid in cash for fish that are
then transported to wholesalers in a nearby city. The fish may then be cleaned and pack-
aged for sale in large fish stores or sold to individual buyers from the live tanks. An
alternate market is to kill the fish on the farm and for the buyer to transport the
whole fish on ice to a market where they are cleaned.
Fish are not fed for 24 hours before harvest to avoid off-flavors, a well-known
problem in farmed fish. This is due to feeding large amounts of commercial feed and
to uncontrolled fertilization resulting in shifts in the types of plankton in the pond.
In parts of eastern Europe, carp is the traditional Christmas dish much like turkey
or ham in the United States.
Small farmers frequently produce fish for sale and for use in their homes. A farm
family with a fish pond will normally eat fish 3 times per week. The reasons are low
cost, freshness, and convenience. Given the average size of families and frequency
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