DETERMINATION OF THE OPTIMUM POND SIZE OF CATFISH PRODUCTION ENTERPRISE IN NIGER STATE, NIGERIA

Authors:Ojumu A. O, Raji K.O, Tanko Likita (Department of Agribusiness Management, Federal College of Land Resources Technology, Kuru, Plateau State. Department of Agricultural Economics, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger state. Department of Agricultural Economics, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger state) Correspondence Author: omobavoa@gmail.com 08069155277

Journal: Nigerian Journal Of Technical Education | Volume: 23 | Issue: 2 | Pages: 38 - 56

Keywords: Aquaculture, Catfish, Enterprise, fisheries, Optimum, Pond size, Production/p>

Abstract

Aquaculture, also known as fish farming, is the practice of breeding, rearing, and harvesting aquatic species such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, and aquatic plants for human consumption and other purposes. In Nigeria, aquaculture has become an important sector for food production, income generation, and employment. The growth of aquaculture in Nigeria is now largely being boosted by a steady rise in catfish culture. Catfish farming is increasingly becoming an attractive form of aquaculture for the private sector investors especially the young people. The catfish enterprise requires optimal farm organization most especially when large pond size is involved and therefore, optimum pond size is needed to be determined so as to bring about high return on investment. Proper planning and design of pond construction is critical to the success of a commercial catfish operation. This study was conducted in some Local Government Area of Niger State to assess the prototype optimum pond size of catfish production enterprise in the study area. Fifty-seven (57) catfish farmers were selected from the study area using simple random sampling techniques. Structured questionnaire was used to collect data from the respondents. The analytical tools used include, descriptive statistics and linear programming. Findings from the study revealed that 62.70 percent of the respondents are in their active age while 82.5 percent were male and majority of the farmers are married. The optimum plan for catfish production in the study established from the present investigation shows optimum pond size of 224.90m: 1054.01kg of feed: 1,061 fingerlings: 4 man-days of labour and 4195, 295.80k of capital.