Hello AquaChamp 🐟 A wise man once said, "A smarter fish farmer is he who buys all the feed he needs for the production cycle before buying the juveniles". A farmer who is smart enough and has studied the trend should already know the price of feed may rise to 30% before the end of a production cycle in Nigeria. But as a smart agribusiness man, the best you can do to stay afloat and make a profit from business is to make a purchase order of all the feed you need for that cycle of production. If you decide to start a fish farm, the prerequisite basic knowledge of how much feed you need for a certain amount of fish is very important. This is after considering the target market you intend to sell to. What weight/size of fish do they require from you? Let's look at the advantages of adhering to the wise man's statement; 1. You will beat inflation costs. 2. You will buy cheaper since you are buying in bulk. 3. You will save costs. 4. Your fish farm will have a smooth operation. 5. Your fish growth will be consistent. 6. You will hit your target as at when due. 7. You will avoid the feed scarcity challenge. What to do when you buy almost or all the feed for a cycle? How do you store your feed? 1. Have a well-ventilated storehouse on your farm. 2. Keep rodents and pests away from your farm. They are threats to your farm biosecurity. 3. Don't keep your feed in direct contact with the floor and walls. 4. Keep feed away from direct sunlight. 5. Keep feed away from water. 6. Keep stock of the feed coming into or leaving your storehouse. 7. Ask/check the best-before date before purchase. 8. Torn feed should be used first or rebagged and kept separately. 9. If you notice any damage on any feed bag while in a storehouse, discard it immediately. 10. Inspect all feed bags before you open to feed your fish. 11. Stack between 5-10 per bag of feed on each other when arranging in the storehouse. 12. Handle feed with utmost care during loading and offloading. Some may be worried about the effectiveness of feed stored for a long time. Here are a few facts you should know 1. Fish feed usually stays up to 6 months before it starts to lose nutritional value. 2. 3months after the best-before date, the nutritional value lost is less than 5%. 3. While the nutritional value begins to drop after 6 months of manufacturing, the cost of that feed has gone up by 20-30%. 4. If you observed the feed handling procedures stated above, feeds will be in better shape even after 6months. Two good alternatives to the wise man's advice are 1. Make a down payment for feed with your feed distributors and collect them in batches. 2. Buy feed in bulk (maybe not all at once). In conclusion, no single economic or business expert can fault buying a commodity in bulk. It makes a businessman stay ahead of his contemporaries. Fish feed costs about 70% of your fish farming business expenses. What is stopping you from cutting down that cost legitimately and logically by buying all you need at once for a production cycle? Wishing you a wonderfully Fishful weekend 🐟 #agribusiness #fishfeed #aquaculture #foodsecurity #prodave