A look at the aquaculture industry

May 10, 2009 News

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By Tusika Martin

It is always believed that if a fish is not caught in the sea then it’s not considered ‘fresh’ but that perception is changing as the aquaculture industry in Guyana is moving apace.
Studies have shown that the world’s marine life is depleting and soon the global focus will be on aquaculture.
Last Monday, I made my first trip to a private aquaculture farm at Hampton Court, Essequibo Coast. What I expected I did not see, but what I saw surprised me.

I expected to see an elaborate farm with all sorts of new technology but instead I saw simple ponds nested on 26 acres of land sporting Guyana’s possible future largest contributor to the Gross Domestic Product.
The Kayman Sankar aquaculture farm features 23 earthen ponds with a hatchery.
Walking to the farm reminded me of my childhood days in Essequibo when I used to jump my grandmother’s garden fence and climb trees with my male cousin.
It was not until I jumped over a fence at the farm that I realized that I have really not had that ‘country area’ experience for a while now.
Pamila Ramotar, Head of the Satyadeow Sawh Aquaculture Station, Mon Repos however made the experience very pleasant as she showed me along with new fisheries officer within the Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. Vivek Joshi, how to catch the fingerlings and even taught us a secret about holding fishes.
With aquaculture being a very new industry there is 150 acres of semi-intensive freshwater aquaculture in Guyana.
Speaking with Kaieteur News, farm manager of the Sankar aquaculture station, Basdeo Gobin said that the input cost on a ten-day basis is about $264,240.
However, while this is very costly, he quickly noted that it is a viable industry once the initial investments are made as the returns are high.
The Sankar farm started just under three years ago but according to Gobin ‘if you ain’t get it right’ then the rearing of fishes can be very expensive and frustrating.
“You have to be on the farm, you have to be on the farm everyday…if you don’t pay close attention to what’s going on then you will operate at a loss.”
To subsidize the cost of its aquaculture operations, feed for the stocks are being produced on site from byproducts of rice.

Every ten days, Gobin said, they harvest at least 600 pounds of fish making it a very viable venture.
Making a comparison with rice, he noted that the aquaculture industry is more economically feasible but the initial investment is much greater.
“Once you get it right, it would be more financially viable…it requires an initial high level of investment but after the third crop, one would realize that it has a higher financial rate.”
This is an additional industry to create jobs.
A recent McKinsey study on avoided deforestation found that aquaculture is the subsector, which can earn the country the highest return as an alternative activity.
While on the Essequibo Coast, I visited another potential investor who said that it is an area he is ‘excited’ to venture into.
Samaroo’s investment will be starting up its farm, even as Sankar’s are planning to expand their operations.
“I really want to get into this thing early because I have my own equipment. We are waiting on the lease and as soon we get the lease we will go into the land and start the infrastructure works,” Samaroo said when I visited him at his home.
The initial investment will be about $50M creating jobs for some 25 persons within the community.
Commercial aquaculture in Guyana is in the early stages of development.
The Brackish Water operations are mainly subsistence and small scale commercial in nature, and occur mostly in the brackish water swamps along the Atlantic Coast in Corentyne, Berbice, on an estimated 2,000 acres.
Minister of Agriculture Robert Persaud said that aquaculture is a significant part of the five-year Fisheries Management Plan.
Increasingly more resources are being spent on the industry.
After some negotiations with IDB, the Minister said, the bank agreed to include aquaculture as one of the activities for the agriculture diversification project.
Persaud said that this programme works with both small and large scale producers, especially in flood prone areas.
Only recently, the Brazilians signed an agreement to give technical support to the industry in Guyana.
The Minister added that farmers interested in the industry will get free technical advice and fingerlings at a small cost.
“Very soon we will look at offering support to dig ponds through acquisition of excavators,” he said.
A semi commercial Tilapia Hatchery was constructed at a cost of over $13M and was commissioned in August 2008 at the Satyadeow Sawh Aquaculture Station.
This hatchery is supporting and enabling small farmers to access fingerlings more easily.
The Satyadeow Sawh Aquaculture Station was constructed to provide information on site selection, pond preparation and farm management in the industry.
In order to achieve this, technology transfer and training are offered to the local farmers.
The facility is also involved in the production of fingerlings of various species, and conducts trials on feeding, growth rates, and other parameters regarding species with aquaculture potential.
This subsector has begun to contribute to an improvement in the national economy and with increased production and export, there is evidence that aquaculture will evolve into a major growth area in Guyana as described in the National Competitiveness Strategy.

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