I MAKE OUR OWN FISH FEEDS AND SAVE BIG

Herbert Ojwang,Fish farmer in Homa Bay County 

By ELIZABETH OJINA

Dressed in light blue shirt, grey trouser and white gumboots, Herbert Ojwang walks around his fish farm issuing instructions to his 10 workers armed with nets and ponds ready to start fishing.

Soon, the workers divided into groups of three cast nets in three of his seven ponds each measuring 60 by 30 by 3 feet deep on the three-acre farm in Kabondo, Homa Bay County.

“We are clearing fish from these ponds. I want to place liners at the base to improve the ponds for the safety and benefit of the fish. The liners will help maintain water temperature,” says Ojwang, who keeps over 5,000 tilapia fish.

He started the agribusiness in late 2014 with three ponds that he dug and stocked with a capital of close to Sh100,000.

His first harvest was last May, with the farmer getting about 2,500 table-size fish that he sold at between Sh100 and Sh700 depending on the size in Sondu, Oyugis, Kisumu and Kericho.

“I made over Sh300,000 from the sale after waiting for close to eight months for them to mature. This is what made me realise fish farming is a good business,” says Ojwang, 63, who also runs a petroleum transport business in Nairobi

Normally, Ojwang stocks his pond with the market in mind, so that the fish matures when there is scarcity.

“You really have to time the harvest. Myself I ensure I harvest in February, May and December where there is a decline of tilapia from Lake Victoria.”

His second harvest was in December last year, with Ojwang harvesting 8,000 tilapia fish that he sold in Kisumu at Tilapia Beach Resort, Oyugis and Sondu.

“Initially, my main challenge was feeds but I overcame this by learning how to make my own, that I sometimes supplement with the commercial ones.”

He further puts chicken droppings from his 120 Kienyeji flock in the pond.

“I normally collect the droppings and dry them before putting in the pond. Wet droppings have a lot of bacteria that you don’t want to put in the pond

The amount of chicken droppings used depends on the climate, water and type of soil. About 2kg of chicken droppings is enough for a pond and should be applied not more than twice a week.”

Similarly, he uses dung from his eight Friesian cows to feed the fish.

Controlling predators

“I put the dung in a manila sack, tie the end and immerse near the walls of the pond. About 5kg is enough per pond, and you should place it in small portion. I use the chicken droppings and dung concurrently because they are key in the growth of planktons that fish feed on,” he says, adding that the dung also guards against predators, in particular, snakes which don’t like its smell.

The farmer makes fish feeds from maize and rice bran, ochong’a (fresh water shrimps) and sukuma wiki. A 20kg bag of commercial fish feeds goes for Sh1,400 to Sh2,000, thus, he cuts his cost by up to 30 per cent.

To prevent fish disorders such as fin rot, he puts lime into the water after every three months to disinfect the water.

Felix Opinya, an animal breeding and genetics expert from Egerton University, says keeping dairy cattle, fish and poultry encourages utilisation of waste.

“Poultry droppings can also be incorporated into feeding dairy cows. Likewise, cow dung can be used as feed for the fish and fertilise ponds, he says. 
CREDIT: NMG