Farmers seize opportunity for fish farming at Dutse stream

A visit to the area revealed that farmers who have interest in fish farming are taking the advantage to acquire space to establish fish farms.So far more than 10 farmers have developed about 30 fish ponds stretching from the area to Dutse-Bwari road and many more farmers are indicating their interest in having fish ponds […]

A visit to the area revealed that farmers who have interest in fish farming are taking the advantage to acquire space to establish fish farms.
So far more than 10 farmers have developed about 30 fish ponds stretching from the area to Dutse-Bwari road and many more farmers are indicating their interest in having fish ponds there.
Thomas Haruna, handles the security of the ponds and connect intending farmers to the land owner for space.
He told our reporter at the farm that the area is open to people who intend to do fish farming, adding that such a person will have to meet the owner of the land in Dutse-Baupma for the allocation of space.
A farmer will about N25,000 to the land owner who will prepare a pond for him or her. The amount will be paid annually.
“What the farmer needs is to acquire a pond and bring in the fish and the feeds,” Haruna told this reporter. “We have people in charge of security and the people who will feed the fish. The farm owners will come from time to time to supervise their farms,” he noted.
He said the farmers who have busy schedules find it easier in the area because they have people on ground who handle every aspect of the farm.
“People come in always asking for modalities of owning fish ponds here because you don’t need water to supply your farm. The water comes out naturally and it make the fishes even more comfortable in their natural habitat. So it cost less to have a pond here,” Haruna stressed.
The farmers collectively employ about four persons who maintain security and feed the fish leaving them with only supervisory role to play.
For security, each farmer pays the sum of N2,500 monthly, while the same amount is paid for feeding the fish.
A farmer who is less busy could however handle the feeding aspect but might have to pay for the security of the area.
Ishiaku Bitrus, a civil servant owns two ponds in the area. He told the reporter that he started the fish farm in February 2014 with one pond which contained 2,500 fingerlings.
According to him, he harvested the pond five months later and 2000 fish at N400 per kilogramme.
“Although it did not sell the way I expected, because I expected N600 per kilogramme, I can still say I made significant profit from the venture.
“I have grown the farm to two ponds and I have a total of about 5,700 fish. I hope to continue to grow the farm some more, but my busy schedule is affecting it,” Bitrus said.
Another farmer, who gave his name as Danladi Bako from Plateau State told this reporter that his passion for farming led him to own a fish farm in the area adding that his work with a construction company in Abuja is taking too much of his time from the farm.
He said there is huge potential in the area for fish farming which every farmer who is interested -particularly those that are less busy – can get a space to start something.
“I paid the sum of N23,000 including tenancy and labour to get this pond. I have 2,800 fishes in this pond. So far so good, they are doing well,” he noted.
A young man who simply gave his name as Bala, a fish farmer told the reporter that he also handles the feeding on the farms on behalf of other farmers.
Bala however lamented that some of the fish farmers don’t supply the required fish feeds regularly adding that it affects the rapid growth of the fish.
He opined that a farmer should harvest the farm after four to five months if the fish are properly fed.
“But some of them hardly supply the feeds. Sometimes the fish stay a whole day without food, this is bad,” he said.
He told this reporter that a farmer, under normal circumstances, is supposed to harvest his or her farm two to three times a year which could give them more money since they spend less in maintaining the farms.
“Since we started fish farming here, we have never witnessed any flood and the mortality rate here is very low. Each pond can contain up to 3,000 or even more depending on the size,” Bala stated.