Fish farming in Bangladesh is playing an important role in the country’s gross national income. Bangladesh is a south Asian country, and there is hardly any region in the country without rivers or any other source of water. In short, Bangladesh is surrounded by rivers and various types of water sources, such as ponds, streams, lakes and so on. The majority of the country’s population is directly or indirectly involved in fish or fish-related businesses. In particular most people in southern Bangladesh are directly involved in commercial or fish-farming related businesses.
Fish Feed Making Machine
Fish feed extruder machine is widely used in making both floating fish feed and sinking feed pellets for aquaculture farms and feed plants. Through the fish feed extruder we can use cheap local raw materials to produce high-quality fish feed, which may save feed costs.
The fish feed pellet machine belongs to fish feed pelletizing equipment. The fish feed pellet machine uses the feed hammer mill, fish feed extruder machine and other equipments to set up the fish feed production line. The final feed pellet has a unique shape and good taste, high nutrition and smooth texture. Used as feed for fish and shrimp. When extruding pellets, the time of floating on the surface can adjust by the degree of extrusion, which is an ideal choice for small and medium-sized fish farms (catfish, tilapia, shrimp, etc.).
Fish Feed Ingredients and Formulation in Feed Making
The main ingredients used for fish feed production are rice bran (20–50% inclusion), maize (5–20% inclusion), soybean meal (10–30% inclusion), mustard oil cake (10–25% inclusion), fish meal (5–15% inclusion) and meat and bone meal (10–20% inclusion).
Rice bran is mainly produced locally, and is derived from rice milling. It accounts for 7–8% of unmilled paddy grain by weight. Three types of rice bran are used: de-oiled rice bran (DORB), grade A rice bran (comprising 85–90% bran and 15–10% husk), and grade B rice bran (comprising 60–50% bran and 40– 50% husk). The protein content of DORB and grade A rice bran is approximately 12–17% and 10–13%, respectively. Only 30% of total rice bran production of Bangladesh is used for commercial animal feed production. Three main factories produce approximately 0.13 million tonnes of DORB per year during production of rice bran oil.
Local production of maize has reached 1.65 million tonnes, of which 90–-95% is used for animal feed production, including 7–10% for fish feed. The market for maize is mainly controlled by the poultry ndustry.
Fish feed production and market trends
Use of formulated feeds for fish farming is increasing in Bangladesh, associated with growth and intensification and commercialization of aquaculture. It seems that commercial pelleted feeds are starting to replace ‘farm-made’ and ‘raw’ unformulated feeds. As indicated by Figure 3, production of commercial feeds has increased at an average rate of 32% per year over the period 2008–2012, and has reached an estimated total of almost 1.07 million tonnes in 2012. Sinking feeds, which accounted for 81% of total manufactured output, still dominate over extruded floating feed (19%), but growth in the production of floating fish feed has been fastest, averaging 89% over the last four years. Three types of floating feeds are available: oil coated, non oil-coated, and vegetable protein based. Non-oil coated feeds account for 95% of total sales. Feed prices increased at a rate of between 9 and 15% per year from 2008 to 2012, due to increases in the price of major raw materials and unavailability. The retail price of 3–4 mm grower feed is currently 35–42 BDT/kg for sinking pellet feed, and 48–54 BDT/kg for extruded floating feed, depending on the species. Using least square demand forecasting and Delphi methods, total feed production is projected to increase to nearly 1.8 million tonnes in 2015 .
How to Choose the Right Fish Feed Making Machine
Before buying a fish feed machine, people usually first shop on the internet to have an awareness of the machines. Countless machines on line from various companies are for sale, with different looking or similar looking. No matter which type of feed machine you decide to buy, the four tips should be taken into consideration.
1. Quality
Quality is key, the heart of fish feed production. You should know the structure, materials that made of machine, fish feed quality and so on. To choose a fish feed machine with a CE certify is necessary.
2. Cost
The cost of buying machines is also an important factor. Best of all, you can purchase a suitable pellet mill from the manufacturer or supplier with cheapest price. However, cost is proportional to quality. You should clearly know your production requirements, feed quality requirements and budget, and then choose the right one.
3. Operation
Operation is also a key factor in buying a machine. Easy operation not only does not need professional training, but also can reduce the maintenance cost caused by wrong operation to the minimum.
4. After-sale service
After-sales service is an important aspect before buying a machine. Excellent after-sales service can help you solve operational problems. It is best to choose a pellet mill from a manufacturer or supplier that can provide satisfactory after-sales service. Any problems you may have can be solved by phone or email.
Aquatic Feed in Bangladesh
The use of aquaculture feeds in Bangladesh has grown substantially in the past few years, and now over 1 million tonnes of commercial pelleted feed are being formulated for use by aquaculture farmers. An estimated further 0.4 million tonnes of locally-formulated and processed diets are also being prepared by small village-based feed-making enterprises. Rapid growth in use of formulated feeds has helped many aquaculture farmers intensify production, but at the same time has raised a number of issues including feed quality, feed management efficiency and environmental sustainability.