Shrimp, Pangasius Next After RAS Tilapia Product Trial More Than Triples Productivity in Ponds

The MARES project MVP design

The first commercial-scale trials of a new recirculating\r\naquaculture system (RAS) technology in Vietnam have produced strong results for\r\ntilapia farmers, project organizers Fresh Studio and Alpha Aqua told Undercurrent\r\nNews.

Tested with tilapia for its "greater robustness and  the wide availability of references in literature", the next stage of the\r\ntechnology's developments will be designed for use in shrimp and pangasius\r\nponds -- Vietnam's most economically important aquacultured species -- they\r\nsaid.

The device in question is a water treatment "box"\r\nwhich floats in ponds, acting as a "third lung" and increasing\r\ncarrying capacity and ecosystem stability. In the trial, three control ponds\r\nwere stocked at three fish per-square-meter, while the treated ponds were stocked\r\nat 15 fish per meter square -- the reference for the prototype's design\r\ncapacity.

"With the application of the prototype technology the\r\nproductivity in the treatment [ponds] reached 16.92 [metric] tons [per hectare,\r\nper crop]. The productivity was therefore multiplied by a factor of 3.8\r\ncompared to the controls, in which the productivity reached 4.5t/ha/crop,"\r\nsaid Fresh Studio and Alpha Aqua in a report developed for the Dutch ministry\r\nof agriculture, nature, and food quality, which often funds aquaculture\r\nimprovement programs.

The average survival rate in the prototype's ponds was 82.4%,\r\ncompared with 79.3% in the controls. Average feed conversion ratio (FCR) was\r\n1.36, 8.2% lower than in the controls. Boiled to the simplest and, perhaps most\r\nimportant number; the prototype meant $0.19 extra profit per kilogram of fish\r\nharvested.

These benefits are meaningless if the prototype is not\r\naffordable to the average Vietnamese farmer for whom it is designed, and this\r\nwas the forefront of the development process. 

Based on the prototype's performance -- which has prompted\r\nFresh Studio and Alpha Aqua to begin work on several improvements already --\r\nthey expect farmers would spend $3,500 per 500-meter-square pond, and could\r\nbreak even in under four years. Over 10 years, farmers should be able to\r\nmultiply revenues from their farms by a factor of 50, they estimate. 

On top of this, improvements to the initial design could\r\nbring break-even point down from four years to just two. Made of recycled\r\nplastic, the creators estimate the device should last for up to 30 years.

"We're happy with the initial trial results, in terms\r\nof affordability," Alban Caratis of Fresh Studio told Undercurrent.\r\n"When you consider FCR alone, using 8% less feed [which makes up between\r\n50% and 70% of farmers' expenses] should mean significant savings. And that's\r\nbefore improvements."

What next for the\r\nproject?

This "minimum viable product" will be followed up\r\nby a "minimum marketable product" (MMP), to be developed and piloted\r\nat a commercial scale with two groups of farmers in the Mekong Delta. 

One will focus on integrating the MMP in a "service delivery\r\nmodel" for small-scale intensive shrimp farmers, while the second will\r\nfocus on integrating it for pangasius nurseries, "which will grow\r\nhigh-quality fry produced in an indoor and fully controlled hatchery system\r\ndeveloped by Alpha Aqua and Fresh Studio".

This will, therefore, be developed with the intention of\r\napplying the technology to pangasius nurseries and intensive shrimp farming\r\nsystems on a wider scale. 

In the meantime, the Mekong Aquaculture Solutions, or MARES, the project -- backed by the Dutch government -- will run demo days across the\r\nregion in a bid to raise acceptance of new technologies. 

"In January we'll start those demos," Caratis told\r\nUndercurrent. "We'll gauge interest, get some critical feedback, and -- we\r\nhope -- find a small number of early adopters who'll want to work with us in\r\ndeveloping the technology."

The aim is to bring these farmers into a program through\r\nwhich MARES will sell or lease the technology, as well as provide ongoing\r\ntraining and support services to shrimp producers.

Then, when it comes to more extensive commercial trials of\r\nthe updated design, these farmers will put the MMP to use for a year or two,\r\ncapturing performance and economic data. "We hope these early adopters can\r\nbecome like our ambassadors, and that we will be able to use their farms in the\r\nfuture for further demos" said Caratis.

The project is looking at a conservative, long-term\r\ntimeline, illustrating Alpha Aqua's desire to be a partner to the Vietnamese a sector, and not simply "drop some tech and run," said the firm's COO\r\nfor veterinary and biological farmer expertise, Ramon Perez.

Work with pangasius nurseries has already begun, the pair\r\nrevealed. 

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"The jump from tilapia to pangasius was fairly easy to\r\nmake," said Caratis. "We're working with pangasius nurseries because\r\nthat's such a key area in need of improvement in Vietnam." The project is\r\nworking with Can Tho University and its students at some of the earliest open\r\ndays.

Source: Undercurrent News