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Fish farmers in Nigeria can produce fish feeds themselves

Nigeria is one of the leading producers of catfish in Africa with 788, 000 metric tons per year. But this has been grossly inadequate to meet WHO’s protein requirement recommendation per person. This is made up for by imports from Europe, South America and the Far East. That is unnecessary while using the Minister of agriculture’s assertion that Nigeria’s aquaculture industry has potential to produce 4 million metric tons of fish which can serve the whole of Africa.

One of the challenges of fish farmers is feed in Nigeria and 80 percent of the cost of fish farming is the feed. Although the quality of the imported fish feeds is good, the cost puts them out of reach for most farmers.

If you produce feeds by yourself, cost of production will drop by 54 per cent because you don’t need to pay for labor, just carry it and feed the fish and you will be using raw materials (chicken waste) that are locally available.

With a hammer mill, mixer, extruder and dryer, Amisy Machinery can supply a simple feed making technology for fish farmers that could cut down the cost of fish production by 80 per cent. This could be achieved if every fish farmer gets to know the floating fish feed mill making model which has developed maturely enough in many other countries.

The fish feed pellet extruder supply can be divided into two types: dry type fish feed extruder and wet type extruder. Dry type fish feed extruder does not need the steam boiler and can process materials into floating pellets directly, so the dry type fish feed pellet machine is cheaper and easier to use and operate; while the wet type is with the conditioner and the steam boiler which can make material ripen and mixed enough, so the feed pellet is of better quality and capacity of the machine is higher than the dry type. Thus the wet type fish feed machine is suitable for large feed pellet factory while the dry type fish feed pellet machine is better and economic for the small and medium size user or factory.

This innovative cost efficient machine could process various locally sourced and abundant raw materials in Nigeria like soybeans, groundnut cake, thrash fish etc. Besides, it can produce not only all kinds of floating or sinking aqua feed pellets for fish, eel, shrimp, crab, loach, bullfrog, etc, but also many kinds of pet feeds for cat, dog, and etc. The output can be from 0.06t--- to 5t per hour for your choice. The resultant effect could be a 54 per cent reduction in the cost of cat fish and other species of fishes in Nigeria. With this fish feed machine, even those who are just trotting in aquaculture business can afford to make fish feeds themselves.

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Romanian Fish Feed Machine

In Europe, Romania is the twelfth-largest country. Large areas are used as fish ponds and represent a great advantage for the development of aquaculture in the country. The fisheries sector includes aquaculture, marine and inland fishing activities, as well as the related processing and marketing activities. Most farmed marine fish and shrimp are carnivorous. They can be fed by both whole fish and pellets. The pellets often made by fishmeal and fish oil, and the fish used as feed are caught from the wild.The aquafeeds market in Romania is mainly focused on the production of formulated feeds for those carnivorous fishes, such as trout, seabass, seabream, etc.

Formulated fish feed can be classified by fish species, growing stage, processing and energy level. The type of fish feed is very variable and depend to a large extent on the culture of each fish farm, and also on the consumer preferences. For example, feeds with 21-22% fat content are suitable for marine species, and 26-30% is suitable for trout. For marine species, the feeds are also affected by seasons.

Currently, due to the competition of animal feed market, the aqua feed manufacturers began to reducing the amount of fish meal and fish oil in their feed products. Instead, lots of research showed that vegetable source of protein and oil, such as soya, sunflower, cereal glutens, olive, rapeseed, etc, can also be used in different kinds of aqua feeds. This substitution can not only reduce the costs of feeds, but also helps producers to reduce the dependence and pressure of those two natural resources. Beside, the main crops in Romania are corn and wheat, which also can used as main raw materials in fish feed manufacturer. Anyway, the challenges for the aqua feed industry in Romania are based on the aquaculture sector itself and involve all issues threatening future development. Besides, the use of raw materials, the re-organization of aqua feed companies, and the adaptation to consumer and social demands are also important factors. Our company can supply cost-efficient fish feed machine to help you produce suitable feed pellets for different kinds of fish.

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Fish feed pellets extruder in Nigeria

Nigeria is blessed with over 13, 000km² of water surface which a good percent-age could be turned to gold mines if the right feeds could be produced to meet aquaculture and cage culture development.

Raw materials available for fish feed pellets in Nigeria

There are abundant materials that can be regularly used in the formulation of fish feed pellets in Nigeria. Their usage is standardized and widely acceptable. Many of these are cheap and readily available in very large quantity. They are usually agro- industrial by-products. Examples include wheat bran, groundnut cake and rice bran. Some are animal based (for example, fish meal, blood meal, shrimp meal), whereas others are plant based (for example, maize, soya bean meal, cotton seed meal). Generally these materials are relatively cheap and available throughout the year in Nigeria. For detailed and balanced formulation of fish feed pellets in Nigeria, please visit Amisy fish feed machine which will provide technical formula for making floating fish feed pellets in Nigeria.

Floating fish feed pellets making solution in Nigeria • Collect raw feed stuffs mentioned above • Weigh the required quantity of various feed ingredients according to the formulation specification. • Grind ingredients into powdery form with a feed hammer mill • Feed the powdery ingredients into fish feed extruder • Cool and dry the finished pellets with a cooler and dryer or in the sun, then the pellets can be fed to the fish directly • (optional)Package dried pellets into bags for storage till it’s needed

Fish feed machine in Nigeria

The best sell fish feed extrusion equipment in Nigeria is Amsiy fish feed extruder which not only increases the digestibility of nutrients and improve the palatability of food but also promotes the stability and storability of the formed feed particles. It is the desirable or necessary fish feed machine in Nigeria to produce a floating feed to accommodate the feeding habits of the target species in Nigeria. 

Why choose Amisy fish feed extruder in Nigeria

1. Fish food made by this pellet extruder is of puffing type, more easily to digest for fishes.

2. The fish feed pellet size can be from 0.9-10mm to feed different sizes of fishes.

3. The puffing fish feed pellets can float on the water surface without dissolution for over 12 hours.

4. High temperature and high pressure process can kill the salmonellosis and bacterial infections and also makes the pellets easily to digest.

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Choose suitable forms of marine fish feed pellets

In recent years, the development of marine fish aquaculture is very rapid with increased aquaculture area by years and diversified aquaculture species, and its production has accounted for a sizeable proportion of worldwide aquaculture. Suitable fish feed forms concern the feed intake of fish, residual feed, fish growth rate, feed efficiency and thus the economic benefits of aquaculture. 

Based on form and character, the marine fish feed can be divided into: minced fillet, powder type and feed pellets which includes dry sinking pellets, wet pellets, extruded pellets and slow sinking pellets.

Now the disadvantages and hazards of the minced fillet and powder feed have increasingly attracted people's attention. Wet feed pellets are made of fresh or frozen small miscellaneous fish and powdery feed with certain nutritional indicators by fish feed pellet machine. It can integrate the strengths of both small fish and pellet feed for carnivorous fish feeding habits and has good palatability. Besides, nutritional levels can be adjusted according to the nutritional requirements of the fish at different stages of growth, improving feed efficiency, reducing feed costs and significantly weakening the dependence on small fish, so as to maintain a balanced supply of fish feed. It is reported that in Japanese cage aquaculture, wet fish feed pellets account for 65% of feeding amount.

Extruded fish feed pellet has a good stability and can float on the water for a long time, so it is easy to observe fish feeding conditions. Moreover, high temperature and pressure during extruding can damage the anti-nutritional factors in feed and improve feed digestion rate. But if directly feed extruded feed pellets, some fish may not be accustomed and the palatability will not be satisfactory. In addition, extruded feed pellets are not suitable for the middle and lower fish feeding habits. As to sinking fish feed pellets, the requirements for formulation integrity are particularly high and it is difficult to master fish feeding conditions. But, with low processing cost and convenient storage and transportation, this sinking fish feed pellet is the main feed form for intensive marine fish farming. 

Slow sinking pellet is a new form of fish feed developed in recent years, and it has a slow sedimentation rate (between extruded feed pellets and sinking feed pellets), particularly suitable for fish living and feeding in the middle level water (such as large yellow croakers).

Fish living habit and feeding habit should be taken into consideration when decide the suitable forms of marine fish feed pellets. According to reports, salmon grouper can feed on both wet and dry feed pellets, while the dry feed pellets have a better result on weight gain rate, feed efficiency and protein utilization. Perch generally eat wet feed pellets, but after being soaked in water, dry pellets and extruded pellets are also suitable for them to take. Wet feed pellets and slow sinking feed pellets have the best performance for large yellow croaker. 

The size of the feed pellets should be 40% -60% of fish caliber so as to be fit for fish feeding, because too big or too small feed pellets will increase feeding difficulties and feed waste.

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The superiorities of extruding fish feed pellets

Fish feeding is one of the most important factors in commercial fish farming because feeding regime may have consequences on both growth efficiency and feed wastage. During the last decade, there has been a marked increase in the use of extruded fish feed pelletsfor feeding fish. These feed pellets have superior water stability, better floating properties and a higher energy. The main effects on fish are: an increase in fish growth and an improvement in feed conversion. Hygienic quality of extruded feed Ingredients are cooked at high temperatures and pressures in fish feed extruder. Therefore, extrusion cooking provides hygienic processing of feed destroying the pathogens and most viruses and reducing the toxin levels in the feed ingredients. In extrusion cooking avian influenza virus is destroyed during the processing (greater than 70ºC). Also, Newcastle disease virus is inactivated by the extrusion and drying process where temperatures exceed 75ºC for one minute. Growth inhibitor, allergens and other anti-nutritional factors largely inactivated during extrusion cooking. Manufacturing soft aquatic pellets Some species like blue fin tuna prefer very soft pellet. Extrusion processing allows us to make a very soft pellet (moisture content up to 30 percent in finished feed), which is not possible by other methods. This is accomplished using a preservation system in aquatic feeds (final product moisture of 16-28 percent) during extrusion processing. Lower Aw, (water activity) below 0.70 can be controlled with humectants at 10-12 percent levels and by reducing pH to 4.0-4.5 with acids at 1-2 percent levels or with fish silage/soluble. Mould inhibitors are also added at 0.2-0.5 percent level in the formulation. Recent developments indicate that soft, gel-like aquatic pellets can be processed by coupling alkaline extrusion with a post-extrusion acid bath to adjust ph and set or ‘firm up’ the texture and pellet integrity. Water stable pellet Pellets that break down quickly in water will lose nutrients. Some farmers hydrate feed in water and nutrient solution prior to feeding and require rapid and excellent water stability for handling and feeding purposes. Pellets that breakdown quickly in the stomach of fish loses nutrients (during regurgitation) and may contribute to GDAS (Gastric dilation and air sacculitis) in certain species. Extrusion processing allows us to make pellets which are very stable in water for a long duration. Water absorption of pellets Extrusion moisture content during processing can be controlled over a wide range, which helps to increase the water stability of the final feed. These pellets absorb more water, retains shapes for longer time and results in reduced losses of nutrients. Water Absorption and integrity after hydration is very important. It benefits pellet technical qualities and fish health. Fewer fines of pellets Extrusion reduces 75 percent of the amount of fines which normally enters the water and ends up decaying on the bottom of the pond. In other words, fewer fines means: increased water stability; clearer ponds; lower fatality rates; less undesirable bacteria growth; increased conversion rates (10 - 20 percent); higher production yields; improved digestibility and reduced feed cost.

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Pakistan: Analysis on Fish Feed Market

After a delay of six years, the European Union has lifted ban on import of fish products. Though partially by allowing only two Pakistan companies to export fishery products to the European countries, it’s still a great progress to fish farming in Pakistan.The EU had slapped ban on import of fish products from Pakistan in 2007 after EU inspectors found systemic enforcement failure and serious deficiencies in the sanitary quality of the fish.

Although marine resources are very rich, but most fish comes from marine capture rather than aquaculture farming. The limitation of advanced fishery tools and processing technology worsen the fish market. Thus the local government encourages fish farmers to develop fish farming after realizing the declining catches of marine resources.

Aquaculture is a rather recent activity in Pakistan and is still in its infancy; nevertheless there is immense potential for development of the sector after EU resumes Pakistan fish import. Despite its vast fresh, brackish and marine water resources only carp culture is practiced in ponds. In Pakistan, the fish fauna is rich but only seven warm water species and two cold water species are cultivated on a commercial scale. On a typical carp farm in Pakistan, the ratio of the warm-water species stocked on the farm is catla (10–20%), rohu (30–35%), mrigal(15–20%), grass carp(15–20%) and silver carp(15–20%). Intensive aquaculture has not yet been developed because of non-availability of low-cost feed and limited production expertise.

No commercial fish feeds are currently being produced in Pakistan, however, some experimental feeds have been prepared and utilized very effectively. Small pelagic caught as a by-catch from shrimp trawlers as well as fish offal are used for the production of fish meal on an industrial scale. Some progressive fish farmers are using fish meal and or trash fish in aquaculture operations but it is not a common practice.

Due to the lack of quality inputs in the country, the fry was purchased in Thailand, while two consignments of 44,000 lbs each of floating fish feed made with U.S. soybean meal were shipped from Idaho, USA.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is supporting the three-year effort that will assist Pakistan in using U.S. soybean meal to make high-protein fish feeds. The fish feed mills are currently trying to produce soy-based floating fish feed in Pakistan with imported U.S. soybean meal. The feed in Oryza Company is the first of its kind produced in the country.

Apart from the soybean meal, some local raw material can be also used to produce floating fish feed. The feed milling industry does not import feed grains, thus utilizing locally available/produced feeds grain. These include maize, broken rice, wheat, rice polishings and sorghum. As there are no commercial fish feeds produced in Pakistan currently so there is a larger market for people to process fish feed.

It can be easily traced that when cost-effective fish feed and advanced fishery methods adopted, the aquaculture market in Pakistan will be blooming.

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Thailand: The Situation of Fish Feed Machine Market

The Situation of Fish Feed Machine Market in Thailand

The aqua feeds market of the world keep growing rapidly in the last few years and will keep growing for the next few years, especially in Asia-Pacific area. Asia-Pacific area is concerned to be the fast growing region, the most common fish feed composition consists for fish meal, soybean meal and fish oil. But rice, wheat and corn based products has also become common.

Thailand is one of the biggest suppliers of animal feed in the world with over 20 million tons of compound feeds produced every year. Soybean meal and fish meal are major protein source in Thailand, but most of these needs to be imported. There’re 500,000 farmers produce cassava in Thailand. The most important usage of cassava is in chip and pellet production for animal feed because cassava hay is high in protein and condensed tannins.

To use cassava make feed pellets, first step is washing, the next is chipping and drying. After drying, the cassava chips are ready for processed into pellets. The commercial purpose of pelletizing cassava root products is to decrease the volume by 25-40 percent to produce a uniform product, to facilitate bulk handling during transportation, loading and reloading and to eliminate the dustiness of the product. Pelletizing contributes significantly to the density, durability, and quality of the product. Pelletization of cassava diets also increases the nutrient density and in this form, about 50 percent root and 20 percent leaves can be used to replace almost all of the cereals and about a third of the soybean meal in a broiler diet.

Thailand’s animal feed industry includes more than 1,000 manufacturers today. Among them there’re about 200 medium and large sized businesses. About 150 of the businesses in the industry are aqua feed specialists, of which around 70 are producers of complete aquaculture feeds. Currently, the feed product in Thailand includes a number of brands: Inteqc, Diamond, and Shrimp First for tiger shrimp (Penaeus monodon); Starteqc and Wave for gulf white shrimp (P vannamei); Neo Feed and Vanamax as feed supplements for these species of marine shrimp; and Fresh for freshwater prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii).

For fish, Inteqc manufactures and markets brands Fish Choice and Fish Mate and the new Fish First brand. And the mill machinery was mainly sourced from Triumph, the well-known Thai feed equipment company. Each mix contains four tons of ingredients and mixing time is three minutes, 25 seconds per batch, with more than 95 percent of the feed being produced as 3.5 mm pellets.

 Anyway, fish feed mill market in Thailand has huge potential. Better use raw materials and high technology is the key for developing. Our company can supply high quality fish feed pellet machine to help you produce high quality fish feed pellets.

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Soy-based Floating & Sinking Fish Feed Pellets

India is the second largest aquaculture producer in the world. It produces nearly 3.4 million tons of shrimp and fish every year. The fish farm often use farm-mixed feeds which containing 2-3 ingredients. Intensification will require the prefect feed industry to produce nutritionally balanced floating feeds. How to Make a reasonable between sinking and floating fish feed pellets? 

Most carp production are get increased, polyculture systems are very common in India. The traditional polyculture often include one or two species: catla and rohu. These fishes fetch high market prices. Farm-mixed feed include rice bran and a plant protein source such as peanut oil cake or cottonseed oil cake. As farming operations have intensified, the limitations of farm-mixed feeds have become more apparent. The most important is much of farm-mixed feeds is not eaten by the fish and only fertilizes the pond.

The advancement of India’s shrimp feed sector is due to its compliance with international benchmarks and references, and the support it received when it began in the late 1980’s and early 90’s. The fish feed industry’s lag behind can be primarily attributed to the very nature of the Indian fish-farming system. The value of manufactured feed was not well understood, and farmers as well as feed companies were down on the cost effectiveness of commercial feed. However, once the value was demonstrated, the industry developed rapidly, and fish farming in India is moving quickly on to modernization.

But as the advantages of fish feed pellet spread in Asia, India gradually becomes a significant producer of soy-based extruded, floating and sinking feed pellets for fish. The industry has invested in imported fish feed extruder for making floating fish feed. Currently, there’re 7 feed mill operations, and the monthly capacity is almost 86,000 million ton. The pellets are often 3-6mm and have 28%-32% protein and 3%-6% fat content. Soybean meal is the main source of protein, the other raw materials include rice bran, broken rice, wheat flour, corn gluten meal and copra meal. Most feed pellets are sold in the state of Andhra Pradesh, the largest fish farm area in the country. In the aquaculture industry, feed is just a part of it. Although India is in a good position with respect to fish feed production capacity and quality, there still have some challenges need to be faced.

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Dutch Fish Farming Market

In Netherland, the aquaculture can be divided into shellfish and finfish. Aquaculture plays only a minor role in the Dutch economy, but it is expected that the sector will develop from increased awareness of the benefits from increased consumption of fish and shellfish.

Even the fish industry is small, but its also a very healthy sector of the Dutch economy. The principal activities within the production are fishing and farming, processing and trade of fish. The main types of marine fisheries are herring, mackerel, blue whiting, dover sole, plaice, codfish and brown shrimp. Recently, experiments have been done with farming cod since wild cod has become extremely scarce in a number of seas. Several farmed fish species are fish-eaters themselves: this means that wild fish are caught and processed into fishmeal and fish oil, to be fed to the farmed fish. Thirty percent of the wild fish caught is destined as feed for fish and livestock. 

For commercial aquaculture, manufactured fish feed is an important part. It can provide balanced nutrition for farmed fish. The fish feed can be made into small pellets and granules. They can provide stable and concentrated nutrition for the fish to grow to their full potential. Currently, there’re 72 compound feed producers operating in Netherland. The largest five producers account for approximately 60% of feed production. The next 18 medium-sized companies account for 30% of feed production, and the final 10% is produced by 49 small companies. Now, the cooperatives and private producers make up nearly equal part of the production. 

Soy is one of the most important agricultural crops in the world and a substantial raw material for animal feed and many foodstuffs. The other main crops in Netherland are barley, corn, potatoes, sugar beets, and wheat, which can easily be used to make different kinds of fish feed. 

According to report, Asia-Pacific and Europe are the leading consumers of Aqua feeds-together accounting for more than 70 per cent of the consumption on a global scale. In this case, the fish feed still has a huge market in Netherland. Our company has rich experience in fish feed pellet mill and can give you the most helpful advice.

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Malaysia Pellet Feed for Fish Farming

In Malaysia, aquaculture began in 1920’s. First as polyculture, in the mid 1930’s, marine shrimp trapping ponds were developed. In the early 1940’s, the blood cockles’ culture began. And By the early 1990’s, aquaculture activities were further enhanced with the introduction of intensive commercial aquaculture with very high stocking density and complete dependence on supplementary feeding.

Recently, the aquaculture industry is growing rapidly in Malaysia, especially the production of fresh water aquaculture fish. For fish farm, no matter what system it is, artificial feeding is required. Because feeds represent more than 50% of total production cost in aquaculture, successful operation of a fish farm needs balance, efficient and economical diets. Nowadays, pellet feed has been introduced to replace traditional feeding process for a successful marine fish culture.

Most fish feed pellets in market has low water stability and easy to swell when it is immersed in water. But in this case, the soluble vitamins and minerals will be easily leached out from the pellets. This may cause nutrient deficiency and environmental pollution. For these reason, several formulations of fish feed were developed. The raw materials which can be used as formulation are corn flour, soy flour, tapioca flour, etc. Most of them are common and easy to find in Malaysia. Right now, the estimated pelleted feed requirement is nearly 700,000 tonnes, includes nearly 170,000 tonnes for marine fish. But out of the total amount, only 100,000 tonnes were produced locally and the other were imported. In this matter, a prototype marine fish feed which can cut cost and lessen the dependency on fish-based feed was successfully developed and promoted. And FQ Feed Mill Sdn Bhd, a local feed company in Malaysia has already involved in this formulation.

All in all, in Malaysia, well-balanced diet and adequate feeding are the most important part in aquaculture. Enhance the local feed production is another key point for fish industry. As professional manufacturer of fish feed pellet mill, our company can supply cost-efficient fish feed mill to help our customers produce high quality fish feeds.

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Useful Guidance for Catfish Farming in Nigeria

Catfish farming is increasingly becoming an attractive form of agriculture for many Nigerians especially young people. This form of agriculture has found a huge followers-base primarily due to the relative ease of culturing catfish, the readily available markets for catfish, e.g. with restaurants, especially as catfish is a treasured delicacy among many Nigerian cultures as well as the profitability of a successful catfish venture.

The demand for Catfish in Nigeria is unprecedented so much that no matter the quantity supplied into the market is consumed by ready buyers. This is so because of its low caloric value, low carbohydrate content, high in protein, low in fat, it is quick and easy to prepare and above all, it tastes great.

Before venturing into catfish farming, it is pertinent to take a number of factors into consideration for success. 

Quality of Fingerlings: Catfish fingerlings are of different breeds, just like other species of animals. It is important that the catfish farmer takes his time to identify fast growing and disease resistant breeds of fingerlings to ensure profitability in a catfish venture. This can be done through appropriate consultation with a specialist in fingerlings and physically evaluating fingerlings from several farms before making a pick on stock of fingerlings.

Pond Design: Stocking density plays a huge role in the growth rate of cultured catfish. Like for all other animals over-crowding catfish would increase competition for resources like food and oxygen. This can promote the growth of some fish at the expense of others and in the end lead to cannibalism. Therefore the catfish farmer would want to consider an appropriate length, breadth and depth of pond, depending on his intended number of fishes to stock pond with. Also pond design should incorporate provision for the separation of fishes in the event that growth is non-proportionate to avoid cannibalism. Water management for pond would mean periodic changing of water and pond design should incorporate this from the outset to avoid challenges.

Feeding Catfish: feeding constitutes the bulk of the cost of rearing catfish. Through development of fish farming over the years in Nigeria, feeding of catfish is predominantly done using pelleted floating feeds. This ensures adequate feeding of the fish thus increased growth rate and weight. For fish pelleting machines, Amisy fish feed machine is your best choice. Amisy is one of the well known manufacturers and exporters of Fish Feed Machines and Turnkey Fish Food Production Lines. For more information, please visit fishfeedmachine.com.

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Which is better? Floating or Sinking Fish Pellets

There are different opinions among fish enthusiasts as to whether floating or sinking pellets is the better type of fish foods given to your pet. In fact, whether to use floating or sinking pellets mainly depends on which type of fish species that you have. If you have bottom feeders like pleco and catfish, it would make perfect sense to give them sinking pellets while top and middle dwelling fish, it would be best if you provide them with floating pellets but those sinking pellets can also be considered as well.

There are several reasons on why you shouldn’t use sinking type for your middle and top dweller community fish. Foods that remain at the bottom of the tank will often get lost and missed out by your fish and thus gone wasted. Sinking pellets will also pose a problem especially those tanks that have large sized gravels because once the food touches the bottom bed; it will disappear into the gap. The foods that sink to the bottom will also most likely get sucked and trapped among the filter media and the condition gets worst especially if you have an under gravel filter system. Sinking foods that remain at the bottom of the tank will eventually rot and this will lead get to proliferation of bacteria that may cause spreading of harmful fish disease.

When it comes to goldfish, it is a totally different scenario. It is better if you use a sinking type instead because goldfish being a greedy pet will usually dash and swim towards their food and during the commotion while grabbing the pellets, they will end up sucking air into their stomach as they gulp their meal. Usually what you can observe is that air pockets will get trapped in their poo discharge and prolonged condition are sometimes blamed as the cause of flipping disease seen happening on goldfish. Therefore use only sinking food pellets for your goldfish.

As for koi, they are actually considered as bottom feeders and the reason why I’ve said so is because if you observe carefully, the fish has their mouths pointing downwards. This natural anatomy means that sinking pellets are best fed to them because it is easier for your pets to take a gulp of the foods. However, this doesn’t mean that floating foods cannot be offered to your fish as this will bring them up to the surface of the pond for your closer look. Koi enthusiasts mostly prefer to give their pet floating pellets because this is the time that they usually get the chance to view and get friendly with their fish. 

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How important is density of fish feed pellets

Fish digestive system is very short (for example: it is 10 times shorter that swine digestive system) and that is why fish feed must be light. Both dimensions and shape of fish feed pellets must be adjusted to size of fish. Besides, in water pellets must behave according to habits of fish: sink or float on surface of water. And this feature of feed depends on pellet density.

Kinds of feed pellets for fish

Depending on product density we can get food with different properties, which are appropriate for their nourish habits, which are explained below: • food floating on surface of water – for warmwater fish • slowly sinking food – for raptorial fish, which like cold water • sinking food, water resistant, for warmwater fish • sinking food, extremely water resistant, for shrimps and other crustaceans

In growth phase fish can need pellet up to 12 different sizes, from 0.05 mm to 12 mm. If the given food is too big or too small, fish will not eat it. 

Fish feed pellets production process

On density (specific weight) depends if pellet will float on surface of water or will sink. Floating pellets have the specific weight about 450-550 g/dm3, and sinking pellets - 550-650 g/dm3. Before pelleting (or expansion) components must be conditioned (mixed) with use of steam and water. 

Conditioning temperature is 80 - 90oC, content of moisture in mixture directly before pelleting is 15-16%, if expander will be used then 18-20%, and if extruder will be used then 25-30%.

Fish feed extruder

The wet type fish feed extruder equipped with heating and cooling system was newly developed, with which we can adjust the expansion and control the temperature as well as density of the product. If we compare pellets produced in 3 different production processes, it will appear that the food made using extruder sinks 50% slower than food produced only with normal pellet mill.

The density can be modified by adding a kind of oil to formula. Depending on amount of added oil the food will float or sink and density of mixture produced basing on the same formula can be modified, so that it can have density from 430 – 550 g/l.

Final conclusions

The condition of a proper fish breeding is adjusting of the density of pellet to nourish habits of individual species. Choosing the proper density of pellets we will save on cost of feeding and avoid exceeding pollution of water. Food producer can adjust the density of fodder using fish feed machine, and due do proper conditions of raw materials treatment.

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How to identify the best fish feed pellets

Fish feed pellet is very important for aquaculture. Fish feed pellet is of higher nutrition, stable performance, and it can float in the water for a long time without polluting the water. What's more, it is easy for the fish to digest and absorb. So it enjoys a great reputation among the fish breeders.

If we choose the fish feed pellet, we'd better obey these three points. 

First, in order to ensure the fish grow rapidly, the nutrition of the feed pellet must totally satisfy the need of the fish.

Second, we must pay attention to the security. That is to say, we should test whether the fish feed pellets add the harmful additives or not. Or else, the fish will have an ugly body shape and even influence our health seriously.

Third, cost performance, if the quality of the fish feed pellets is the same; we should compare the price of them. On the contrary, we should compare the quality.

Attention Should Be Paid to When Feed Fishes

First, because the moisture of the fish feed pellet is 12%～14% whenpelletizing, so the feed pellet should not store for a long time. The feed pellet will mildew and get wet, so the nutrition value of the fish feed pellet will be reduced, it is bad for the fish to grow. The best way is that after producing the fish feed pellets, we feed the fish at once.

Second, we can add proper salt to the feed pellets when feeding the fish; this can kill the bacteria and prevent the fish getting ill.

Third, the fish don't have a stomach, so the feed pellets stay in the

intestinal tract for a short time, causing the feed pellets have a low efficient. So in the fixed gross, we should increase the feeding times and reduce the quantity of the feed pellets.

Forth, fertilize reasonably. The feed pellet for the common fish has a high-usage and they can grow rapidly. But for the fat water fish, they only eat the feed pellet not enough, and the water is light, so we should fertilize the water to improve the nutrition of the fat water fish.

Fifth, the diameter of the feed pellets should adjusted with the fish' growing. When the fish is infant, and the water temperature is low, grow slowly, the diameter of the temperature should be controlled within two millimeter. With the rising of the water temperature and the growth of the fish, the diameter of the feed pellets should be 3-3.5 millimeter. And in the later period, the diameter of the feed pellets should be 4-4.5 millimeter.

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Feed pellets to your fish in a correct way

Fish Pellet Sizes Fish pellets come in different sizes to accommodate the size of your fish. There are nursery feeds and grow out diets suitable for a wide range of fish jaws. You can crush the fish feed pellets in large size with a pair of pliers to feed to small fingerlings and also can feed larger fish directly ,but on the whole it’s necessary to get the pellet to match the size of your fish. Mature fish older than 12 months have no problem feeding on larger sized pellets when they hit the water. 

How many fish feed pellets do you need? A 10 kilo bag of fish feed pellets will last about 6 months. You can hand feed your fish three times per day just enough feed to disappear within a minute or two. After a while you will get a feel as to how much feed your fish will tolerate. Fish tend to eat more during their preferred climate conditions. Fish like warm tropical conditions and eat more feed over summer than they do in winter. Sometimes due to barometric weather conditions, an approaching storm etc, they will go off their feed for a day or two.

Sinking or Floating Pellets? When making fish feed pellets you can specify what type of fish pellet you required – floating or sinking. Some fish feed best on sinking pellets. There is no difference between the two types of pellets. The fish feed pellets made by the fish feed extruder is either pressurized more densely so it causes the pellets to be more compacted which causes them to sink rapidly or they are lightly pressurized in the extruder so they expands slightly, trap more air and are termed as floating pellets. Around 10% of floating fish pellets however do tend to sink.

Big Feeds or Small Feeds? Lighter feeds more frequently through the day rather than one big feed once a day. Dumping a heap of fish pellets into your fish tank will cause an ammonia spike that can cause problems if your system is new. Some larger systems use commercial fish feeders that drop a small portion of feed directly into your tank numerous times through the day. This is really a great idea to encourage your fish to strike quickly and an easy way to fatten them up quickly if you are unable to fuss around the tank all day. Ad-hoc backyard feeding methods will mean your fish will take longer to grow out. Giving your fish the necessary protein, keeping your fish pellets fresh and frozen at regimented serving portions throughout the day and into the year is a great way to fatten your fish quickly.

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How to prepare formulated fish feed for tilapia

Feeding tilapias increases their growth and makes tilapia farming profitable. So farmers should prepare fish feed pellets which must be nutritious and economical in any farming system and must be properly managed to be effective.

The tilapias of North Africa are the most important commercial cichlids. Fast-growing, tolerant of stocking density, and adaptable, tilapia species have been introduced and farmed extensively in many parts of Asia and are increasingly common aquaculture targets elsewhere. The nutrients needed by tilapias include carbohydrates, fats, protein, vitamins and minerals. Other components of feed are fibre and moisture. For tilapia fish feed must contain all the nutrients in the right proportions to bring about growth.

Prepared (artificial) Tilapia Diets

Formulated feed for tilapia should contain between 27% and 40 % protein.

For fry and fingerlings, the feed should have small particles and a protein content of about 35%- 40%, while for adults the protein content could be between 27% and 30%.

Tilapias, especially when reared in high densities, require a high-quality, nutritionally complete, balanced diet to grow rapidly and remain healthy.

Tilapia Feed Types

Formulated or compounded feeds may be given to tilapia in the dry, moist or wet form. Dried compounded feeds can be presented to tilapia as powder, pellets, or crumbles. Pellets are most popular and their shape and size would depend on the age of the tilapia. Commercial fish feed pellets are manufactured as either extruded (floating or buoyant)or pressure-pelleted (sinking) feeds.Both floating and sinking feed pellets can produce satisfactory growth, but some fish species prefer floating, others sinking. Floating fish feed pellets are desirable for tilapia which feed from the surface layers of water.

Extruded feed pellets are more expensive due to the higher manufacturing costs. Usually, it is advantageous to feed a floating (extruded) feed, because the farmer can directly observe the feeding intensity of his fish and adjust feeding rates accordingly. Determining whether feeding rates are too low or too high is important in maximizing fish growth and feed use efficiency. With afish feed pellet extruder, you can make floating fish feed pellets conveniently from common materials at low cost.

Feed is available in a variety of sizes ranging from fine crumbles for small tilapia to large (1/2 inch or larger) pellets. The pellet size should be approximately 20-30% of the size of the tilapia mouth gape. Feeding too small a pellet results in inefficient feeding because more energy is used in finding and eating more pellets. Conversely, pellets that are too large will depress feeding and, in the extreme, cause choking. Select the largest sized feed the tilapia will actively eat.

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How many fish feed pellets to feed your fish?

The number of fish feed pellets that an individual fish can catch is related to its swimming activity, which is, in turn, partially temperature dependent. 

Rainbow trout could catch larger numbers of pellets in a single feed portion as temperatures increased from 5 to 15°C under laboratory conditions; this change is likely mediated by changes in the fish’s activity at different temperatures. The feeding rate of brown trout increased rapidly between 3.8 and 6.8°C, remaining relatively stable between 6.8 and 19.3°C, before decreasing at temperatures above 19.3°C. Changes in the feeding and swimming activity of salmonids at different temperatures have been presented by others with the greatest change in activity occurring between 5 and 10°C. In aquaculture, the feed delivery rate should therefore be taken into account when calculating a feeding regime.

The size of feed pellets and the rate at which they are delivered may affect the amount of feed an individual fish can ingest over a period of time. Pellets of sub-optimal size or pellets that are delivered at a high rate may cause wastage, as fish may be unable to catch large numbers of pellets before they sink through the net pen. Salmon farmers use many different sizes of feed pellets during the grow out period, and each time the size is changed, new calculations for the optimal number of pellets per fish and delivery must be done. It would therefore save both time and money if fewer sizes of pelleted feed can be used for larger parts of the grow out period.

At some extreme, pellet size will obviously have an effect on fish performance, and there are indications of this effect presented here. For example, a pellet that is larger than the gape width of the fish or is so large that handling time becomes a limiting factor in the fish’s ability to ingest enough pellets to maintain good growth will clearly have adverse effects. Adult salmon showed a more immediate response to larger pellets but that these were more likely to be rejected than pellets of a shorter length.