In 2022, the DA announced that the SEAFDEC-AQD developed an alternative feed for tilapia and milkfish made from corn, poultry abattoirs, and coconut-fermented copra meal byproducts. INQUIRER.net stock photo
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Agriculture’s (DA) pilot test on cost-effective alternative fish feed has yielded 867 kilograms of tilapia in Lanao del Norte, the National Fisheries Research and Development Institute’s (NFRDI) said on Wednesday.
According to the NFRDI, the tilapia was grown in a brackishwater pond for four months.
The pilot project was held in Pacita, Lala, Lanao del Norte, by one of the project’s six partner cooperators, Mrs. Benita Maldepeña.
“Maldepeña used the technology on cost-effective aquafeed for tilapia developed by the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center-Aquaculture Department (SEAFDEC-AQD),” the NFRDI said in a statement.
In 2022, the DA announced that the SEAFDEC-AQD developed an alternative feed for tilapia and milkfish made from corn, poultry abattoirs, and coconut-fermented copra meal byproducts.
The project aimed to “determine growth and biological parameters and economic viability in using the feeds across the country,” the NFRDI said.
According to the DA, the alternative feeds would cut feeding costs by 25 to 32 percent for tilapia, and 18 to 23 percent for milkfish.
The project was made possible through the collaboration of NFRDI, ARDEP, SEAFDEC-AQD, and the Brackishwater Fisheries Research and Development Center. — MJ Soriano, trainee