MANILA, Philippines - El Niño has dried up farmlands, reservoirs and waterways all over the country, forcing farmers to find other ways to adapt and survive. Even lakes and ponds have also been left parched from the heat.
While freshwater fishponds are drying up, brackishwater fishponds are suffering from high salinity which can affect the growth of fish.
Mariculture or sea farming is one way of mitigating the effects of El Niño, according to Phillip Ong, president of Santeh Feeds Corp., a fish feed provider that is celebrating its 20th year in the Philippines.
Advantages
Ong says mariculture has a number of advantages over its freshwater and brackishwater counterparts.
“The Philippines has an inherent advantage with its long coastline. Farming the sea with high value marine species will be more profitable than land-based farms. Pond culture requires big investments in land development and pond preparation. For marine cage farming, the set up time is greatly reduced,” he said.
Land-based aquaculture requires building ponds or tanks, which require more resources and time to develop and maintain. On the other hand, mariculture uses “sea cages” – a system of nets and a frame to contain the fish – which are submerged in the ocean.
“Also, the sea maintains a fairly constant temperature and salinity throughout the year, which is good for the health of the fish because it reduces stress brought about by sudden changes,” explained Ong.
High water exchange
Importantly too, Ong said water exchange is generally high in floating sea cages. This means there is no need to expend energy for pumping water and providing aeration, even at high stocking densities. Even with fuel and electricity cost continuing to go up, production cost is hardly affected. This means lower prices for the consumers.
Lastly the cages can be moved to new areas in the ocean to reduce the build-up of biological wastes in an area.
He said all these advantages have played a key role in the growth of mariculture. In Asia, the leading aquaculture region in the world, the aquaculture industry is diversifying to include increasing proportions of marine finfish which are high in market value.
With global statistics showing that almost half of all fish consumed today is farmed and not caught, mariculture offers a lot of economic and environmental opportunities for the Philippines considering the country’s history and advantage in fisheries.
Efficient mariculture park
Critical to succeeding in mariculture is setting up an efficient mariculture park to which Santeh cites the following as key success factors: 1) site 2) cage and structures 3) quality seeds 4) farming technology 5) quality feed 6) market access and development.
For the ideal site, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) has selected locations that offer ideal environmental factors – secure and weather protected areas; support of local government and DENR; available trained personnel and clusters of support services and infrastructure.
The Floatech Corp. under the Santeh Group offers the right cages and structures. Floatech has the manufacturing facilities, design expertise as well as components (built in-house) to construct and install durable cages.
Santeh can recommend and supply the right fish feeds and seeds with its complete range of aquaculture feed products and years of experience in the industry.
When it comes to farming technology, Fishwealth Farming Corp., also under the Santeh Group, provides the actual mariculture experience to run the operation. Through Fishwealth, farmers will receive techno-demonstrations and learn how to produce high value marine fish.
Completing the mariculture set-up is Fishta Seafood Corp., also under the Santeh Group, which can provide the logistics and sales distribution channels to major supermarkets in Metro Manila and key provinces.
More viable, sustainable
With the support of the BFAR and Santeh’s network and expertise, mariculture becomes a more viable and sustainable alternative to its land-based counterpart.
A wide variety of fish species like bangus, pompano, snapper, seabass, grouper and other high value species can be cultivated in the sea for maximum profit.