The Quality of seeds Determine rich Harvests

Farmers are constantly searching for a stable pool of premium seeds. Indeed seed quality is a major factor for any form of agriculture, and we are committed to providing our farmers with aqua performance carp fingerlings.

Stunted or aged IMC (Indian Major Carp) fingerlings are tuned for high performance aquaculture. We provide farmers with a range of 50 - 150 grams body weight fingerlings, aged 14 - 20 months in earthen ponds with maintenance dose feeding. When compared with the classic 2 month old fingerlings, stunted varieties grow at a faster rate with superior survival points.

Prior to delivery, we take special care to prepare the stock so they arrive in perfect condition for farmers to commence the growth out phase. This is doubled with our on-call technical support team advising the steps to take once the order is delivered.

The fingerlings are in a state of stress at the time of delivery, and need a window of 72 hours to stabilize their feeding pattern. Feed optimization is a must to kick off the farming process, however pond management is crucial. A healthy pond compliments a robust crop!

Understanding Nitrogen in Agriculture

Figure 1.

The management of nitrogen is a critical factor in aquaculture. Feeds contain proteins which when uneaten or digested results in ammonia.
Ammonia is water exists as Total Ammonia Nitrogen (TAN) described by the following equation:
NH₄⁺ ↔ NH₃ + H⁺

Feeding rate is a crucial factor in generation of ammonia in an aquaculture pond, and this can be described by


P_TAN = (Daily Feed in Grams) X (%age of Protein Content in Feed) X 0.092

P_TAN is the total ammonia production in grams per day.

In well managed aqua farms, the TAN is consumed by healthy population of plankton, which is then fed by the fishes. This further aids in reduction of Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR). You see, phytoplankton are unicellular chlorophyll containing organisms which take up nitrogen for their photosynthesis. They are a rich source of amino acids and antioxidants, hence as energy source for the fish.

Aquaponics is the science of combining aquaculture and agriculture/horticulture in a single process. The classical indoor method is well known: Separate fish tank where the feed is administered. The nutrient rich aquaculture water is pumped in to a hydroponics unit where vegetables or crops are grown and harvested. The water after getting filtered through the hydroponics unit then recirculates back into the fish tank. This controls the use of fertilizers and optimizes productivity. Not to forget a better utilization of the nitrogen factor.

In aquaponics, the growth of plants from the aquaculture water fed system results in consumption of NH₄⁺ which in turn converts NH₃ to NH₄⁺ for balance as explained in the first equation. Nitrifying bacteria present in the plant grow beds/biofilters convert ammonia to NO3- from which plants take up their nitrogen requirements in aquaponics (Figure 1). 

This process is catalyzed first by Nitrosomonas bacteria by the following equation:
NH₃ + 1½O₂  ↔ NO₂^- + H₂O + H⁺ + 84 kcal mol^-1

Followed by the second step conversion by Nitrobacter bacteria:
NO₂^- + ½O₂  ↔ NO₃^- + 17.8 kcal mol^-1

Hence the stocking density of plants is a crucial factor to balance the nutrient requirements for crop production.

We had constructed a proposed model for a rainwater reservoir pond designed for polyculture of Indian major carps (IMC); Rohu, Catla and Mrigal with freshwater giant prawns or scampi, Macrobrachium rosenbergii. Feed and probiotics get fed in the reservoir pond, while a solar powered motor pumps the nutrient rich pond water in to a vegetation patch via timed sprinklers (Video below). The veggie patch has a specially designed based inclined towards the pond which channels the percolating water towards the reservoir. The sprinklers are programmed to switch off after a certain time by which six inches of top soil is wet. As a back-up for dry seasons, 40 ft. table water pump is operated on solar for a monthly 30% water exchange.

Sustainability is a race to plug the excess flow of nutrients and limit the use of fertilizers. We must respect our environment to reap dividends.

Indian Carp Farming - Best Practices

There are a few simple features which you must ensure prior to carp aquaculture.

1. Pond bottom and water quality

2. Juvenile stocking density and survival

3. Feeding

4. FCR

1. Fertilisation is a crucial feature of aquaculture since it ensure high quality plankton development which aids in carp feed conversion.

A. Ensure the installation of an underground water pump which will assist in 30% water exchange once in 28 days. What is the present source of fresh water? Water should be pumped into the pond from a depth of 40 feet. 

pH of water for carp should be around 6.8 to 7.3

B. Pond area needs to be prepped well prior to addition of water. Fertilizers to be mixed for pond bottom construction been detailed below:

Urea: 9 kg per acre

Single super phosphate: 9 kg per acre

Quick Lime: 360 kg per acre

ZeroTox: 40 kg per acre

AquaCyclo: 5 kg per hectare

After mixing and prep of pond bottom, one must ensure the water height should be a constant 1 meter. First 20% water is filled, then followed by the remaining after 2 days. 

For an existing pond with foreign eggs issue, nothing much can be done at this point. For future, your aqua pond must be dried out once every winter season for preparing. That way to control unwanted seeds.

During pond construction all holes in the pond bottom must be sealed and bleaching powder is recommended to clear out all foreign eggs and disease. Bleaching powder (>33% chlorine) @ 200 kg per acre.

Once all water has been pumped in, allow to stay and fertilize for 10 days. After this, your pond is ready for the carp fingerlings.

2. Juveniles must be a combination of Rahu, Catla and Mrigala. The stocking density of 1/sq.m, 1/sq.m, 0.5/sq.m. The stocking density can be a maximum of 3 times of given values, not exceeding.

Individual fingerlings of body weight 40 to 60 grams recommended.

3. Feed optimization is a crucial step. Start the culture with 10% of total biomass, divided equally into 4 portions fed daily. To ensure proper feeding, use floating feeds, 32% protein, 1 mm pellet size. Construct a netted nylon tent with an open bottom. The bottom part of the net should be dipped 6 inches to 1 foot below water surface. The top send needs to be constructed on a bamboo to create a conical or cylindrical shape. The net must be installed near the bank of the pond by fastening it to a bamboo horizontal pole which is in turn tied to a vertical pole on the dyke. You must add the feed into this feeding net. Since the bottom of the net is submerged in water, feed cannot float away. And you can monitor how much feed is actually been consumed. Carp feeding time is 30 mins. For eg. if the total fish biomass in the pond is 100 kg. Then you need to feed 10 kg feed per day. This is 2.5 kg per feeding time. So you add the 2.5 kg in to the feeding tray and observe how much is being actually consumed. If you see they are actually eating 2 kg in 30 mins, then next time to give them 2 kg. Floating feed helps you to monitor the volume of feed being consumed. Remove feed not consumed from the feeding net after 30 mins.

You should change the feeding programme once every 2 weeks after checking length and weight of at least 25 fishes once a fortnight. The philosophy is to gradually reduce feed quantity with time. Feed should always be used as supplement, since carp will feed on plankton. Contact us for more info on this feature.

We recommend you to use Matsya360 at 1.5 lites per acre, once in 3 weeks, 30 days from culture start. This should be combined with AquaCyclo used at 1 kg per hectare once in 3 weeks. These are probiotics which will ensure proper cycling of ammonia and sulphides along with plankton balance, reduced FCR, increased D.O. with pond bottom quality.

Natural Alternatives in Aquaculture

Intensive fish farming has spread of several bacterial diseases over the years and as a solution more antimicrobials (antibiotics and drugs) are used. The negative consequences of antibiotic use on public health have encouraged the development of strict regulations controlling the use of antibiotics and other drugs. The high numbers of antibiotic-resistant bacteria because of antibiotic usage provides a threat to aquaculture as they become the source of the antibiotic resistant gene that stays in the culture.

Bacterial antibiotic resistance and antibiotic residues has become a matter of concern across the globe, there is a need to develop alternatives to deal with for bacterial pathogens in aquaculture.

Several alternatives to the use of antibiotics have been used successfully in aquaculture. The use of probiotics or friendly bacteria to avoid pathogenic infections in aquatic organisms has been tested in aquaculture.

Several microorganisms has been tested and used as probiotics in aquaculture research. The most studied are species of lactic acid bacteria , Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Aeromonas, yeasts, Acinobacter… These probiotics have been used in different aquatic organisms and have been shown to be successful, not only for their ability to prevent disease, but also for improving digestion and growth. Many of these applications have been targeted at the early stages of development of the aquatic organisms, such as the larval stages, because these stages are more susceptible to infections.

Some of the proposed mechanisms that provide protection against pathogens involve the production of inhibitory compounds, competition for essential nutrients and adhesion sites, the enhancement of disease resistance and the modulation of host immune responses.

Another alternative treatment is using natural essential oils and herbal extracts, which are natural components from plants that are generally recognized as safe substances (GRAS). Due to their antimicrobial properties, these natural products may constitute alternative prophylactic and therapeutic agents in aquaculture.

There is still a lot of research going on and huge scope of development in the area of natural substitutes to increase productivity with sustainable environment for Aquaculture. To reduce antibiotic use in aquaculture best practices are to minimize the level of stress on the fish and reduce the chance of infections requiring antibiotics treatment.

Herbal Extracts in Aquaculture

Medicinal herbs and plants have strong antibacterial effects and this knowledge is used in Ayurveda in India since primitive times. 

Phenolics, polysaccharides, proteoglycans and flavonoids that are part of herbal extracts can help in preventing and controlling infections in Aquaculture. Several plant products found to have potent antiviral activity against fish and shrimp viruses.

With use of Antibioics and other drugs more the pathogens are becoming resistant to the drug and it also harms the environment.Use of antibiotics and drugs are now banned in most scientifically forward countries. 

Natural plant products are an extremely viable and ecofriendly alternative to antibiotics or other drugs which are not safe for the fish, the environment and people who are eating it. Use of herbal and natural remedies in aquaculture should be encouraged in India to boost production with sustainability.

Herbal extracts can be used as remedies, growth promoters, stress resistance boosters and prevention of infections. The use of herbal extract as feed additives can significantly benefit not only aquaculture but also poultry and animal feeds.

Aquaculture and Sustainability

Fish Farming or Aquaculture means human intervention to enhance production by stocking the fish, feeding them, providing protection from predators and so on. The farmer also needs to take complete of the fish that is being cultivated and the place where it is cultivated. The Aquaculture process vary from place to place from Marine Aquaculture processes like Sea Ranching, lines, racks etc to Freshwater fish farms.

The proper management and conservation of natural resources in Aquaculture, can help in meeting human needs today and also the needs of future generations. In aquaculture, sustainable development needs to be practiced to conserve land, water, plant and animal genetic resources and be environmentally friendly, technically bettered and economically viable to the population.

FAO defines food security as physical and economic access by all members of a population at all times to sufficient, safe and nutritious food in order to meet dietary needs and allow an active and healthy life. Aquaculture has enormous potential to better Food Security for the global population.

Aquaponics can help in improving Food stability in India

India is set to become the most populous country by the year 2025 according to projections and we are already unable to feed all the mouths in India. Helping India achieve Food stability is a must if we want our country to grow,thrive, sustain the huge population and use it to advantage.

Research in the field of agriculture, nutrition has many solutions to produce more using less but clearly the solution that has the potential to solve the food crisis is Aquaponics.

Aquaponics is already helping farmers reap huge profits in a lot of countries. It is the simplest, effective and reliable way to grow organic fruit and vegetables in bulk without needing acres of farm land.

We need something that produces healthier natural food at a faster rate and Aquaponics is the perfect solution.

An Aquaponic system consists of fish that are kept in tanks. Fish naturally produce the nutrients that plant need to thrive so their waste is collected at the bottom and pumped through a filter as readymade food for plants. The plants are set up in Nets, open bottom pots or grow beds on top of the tanks which allow the roots of the plants to immerse in water. The roots absorb the nutrient from the fish waste, while the leaves trap the sunlight. The system needs a regular oxygen, ammonia and PH level checks and basic maintenance.

Benefits of Aquaponics:

·         More produce as the plant is getting the best nourishment from the fish wastes from the roots and Sunlight from the top.

·         No need of land, soil or watering the plants and involves much less space than normal farming.

·         The produce (fruit and vegetables) are completely organic in Nature as no fertilizers or pesticides are used.

·         Multiple avenues of profit from fruits, vegetables as well as fishes.

·         One the setup is properly done, not much hard work is required as the fish does it for you, you just need to supervise the water quality at times.

·         You can grow foods that are not native to your region and you can grow these all year by controlling the environment of the Aquaponics setup.

·         You can do it in the city, so no transportation costs to sell it.

If more people engage in Aquaponics from India we can move towards a better future in terms of Food stability.

Importance of Water Quality in Aquaculture

Fish performs all their activities in water. Because fish are totally dependent upon water to breathe, feed and grow, reproduce, excrete wastes and maintain salt balance understanding the physical and chemical qualities of water is critical to successful aquaculture. To a great extent water determines the success or failure of an aquaculture operation.

Water sources for aquaculture may sometimes be of low quality or polluted by human activity. But the primary reason for bad water quality is the due to the activity in the culture.

Manures, antibiotics, feeds etc are applied to ponds to increase production, but this is only partially converted to animal biomass the rest is adding up to the culture if not degraded properly. During high production levels, the input of feeds and nutrients may exceed the capacity that the aquaculture environment can sustain and affects the water quality in a negative way.

Poor water quality will lead to stress, poor growth, low immunity to diseases, low survival rate adding up to low production.

Constant check of water quality and application of right probiotics, herbal extracts and enzymes in a controlled manner is a natural solution to check and maintain good water quality in Aquaculture along with promoting fish growth and survival rate thus helping the farmer make profit with sustainability.

Aquaculture issues: Fluctuations in DO concentration

Dissolved oxygen is one of the factors of prime importance in Aquaculture. Dissolved oxygen concentrations fluctuate constantly if proper methods are not used to control it. Within a matter of hours, or sometimes even minutes, dissolved oxygen levels can change drastically from optimum to lethal. This dynamic nature of dissolved oxygen concentration results from following factors:

- Water has a limited capacity to hold dissolved oxygen as oxygen is not very soluble in water.
- The rate of oxygen intake by fishes and the aquatic flora and fauna can become very high,
- Water absorbs oxygen from the atmosphere very slowly

          In the day time oxygen concentration varies because of the amount of algae in the water, sunshine, and pressure. On hot days, there is large amount of algae presence. The algae are making photosynthesis and dissolved oxygen concentration becomes very high. This is not optimal for fishes.

 At night, algae consume the oxygen to breathe so there can be deficiency in DO concentrations. Even in winter when nights are longer and the days are cloudy the amount of oxygen is poor.
Also, high concentration of CO2 inhibits the ability of fishes to breathe oxygen from the water, which can also lead to death.

          Generally farmers believe that when there is less oxygen the fishes come up to the surface gasping for air. However, this is the last stage of Oxygen deficiency. Farmers need to check dissolved oxygen problems in the water and increase the aeration process when the fishes become unusually lethargic and stop feeding.

Feed Conversion Ratio – How Probiotics can help?

Feed Conversion Ratio is a basic and most important measure of productivity in aquaculture business. FCR is a measure of an animal's efficiency in converting feed mass into body mass output. In a nutshell it is increase of body mass in kg per kg feed intake.

When farmers are stocking the ponds with the fish fingerlings or samplings, the weight of the samplings or small fishes are checked(A). From then on farmer needs to calculate the amount of feed put in the aquaculture (B). When the season ends the farmer needs to calculate the weight of his output (fish/shrimp) (C). Using the following formula the FCR can be calculated.

FCR = B/C-A

What we need to understand is that digestion capability and survival rate of the fishes/shrimps are extremely beneficial to achieve low FCR i.e more weight gain with less feed.

If a farmer starts with 1000 fingerlngs and feeds them well 1000 kgs of feed and each fish weighs 1 kg after harvest, is the FCR a perfect 1? 

Well we need to consider the fact of survival, say if due to some poisoning or diseases 200 fishes die before maturity that will hamper the FCR as the weight of output is reduced. 

Similarly if the aquaculture/pond environment does not have enough dissolved oxygen or the pH level is not suitable fishes do not eat or even if they eat they are unable to digest it. Once the harvest is done these fishes are small as they could not digest or feed sufficiently due to improper environment, so the FCR takes a hit again.

Probiotics is the best and a natural solution to decrease FCR and increase production with lower cost of feed. Probiotics when applied on aquaculture improves the fish digestive system, improve plankton quality in water, controls ammonia in water hence reducing pH, inhibits disease creating pathogens and proves beneficial in many ways for the ecology of the pond and to the consumer who is eating the fish.

India is the second most populated country after China and we need food stability. Aquaculture has immense opportunity as more production will help in feeding a good protein diet to the huge population. FCR is one of the major measurements of productivity but we need to ensure that we are not sacrificing our environment by using unethical means of aquaculture for personal benefits.

Importance of Probiotics in Aquaculture- 1

The need for sustainable aquaculture has promoted research into the use of probiotics on aquatic organisms. The initial interest was focused on their use as growth promoters and to improve the health of animals; however, new areas have been found, such as their effect on reproduction or stress tolerance.

Probiotics can help aquaculture in the following ways:

Promotes Growth: Probiotics have been used in aquaculture to increase the growth of cultivated species, it increases the appetite as well as digestion hence the fish/shrimps can grow more with application of suitable probiotics.

Inhibits Pathogens: Probiotic microorganisms release chemical substances with bactericidal or bacteriostatic effect on pathogenic bacteria that are present in the intestine of the fish/shrimp, creating a barrier against the proliferation of pathogens. The antibacterial effect is due to alteration of the intestinal pH due to the generation of organic acids and the production of the following:

antibiotics 

bacteriocins 

siderophores 

enzymes (lysozymes, proteases) and/or hydrogen peroxide

Aquaculture Probiotics: Pseudomonas stutzeri

P. stutzeri is capable of degrading organic pollutants like naphthalene, chloronaphthalene, methylnaphthalene, chloro-salicylate, and methyl salicylate. P. stutzeri can also convert hexavalent chromium, precipitated mercury, cadmium, lead, arsenic and other elements causing pollution in the aquaculture.

Additionally, P. stutzeri is capable of nitrogen fixation which as discussed in an earlier blog is key to breaking up ammonia from fresh excreta and decaying matter at the pond bottom. P. stutzeri is an essential natural probiotic used in environmental remediation and recovery.

P. stutzeri can perform denitrification in high oxygen levels and can carry out nitrification and denitrification simultaneously.

Probiotics: Shirmp friendly Bacillus pumilus

A strain of Bacillus pumilus isolated from black tiger shrimp had high salt tolerance and capabilities to inhibit the growth of marine pathogens, including Vibrio alginolyticus, when cultured together.

Black tiger shrimp, can host Bacillus pumilus in the gut, where it inhibits infections by Vibrio harveyi, V. alginolyticus, and V. parahaemolyticus, all of which are known to be harmful bacterial pathogens of shrimp.

How Probiotics can reduce pollution - Aquaculture

A fish pond is a simple ecosystem and within the ponds there are billions of microorganisms which play an important part in maintaining the ecological balance, however when the pollution exceeds its capacity for self-purification, ammonium, nitrite and other pollutants accumulate in the pond, damaging the health of fish and shrimps.

High concentrations of ammonium can damage the gill epithelial cells and weaken the immune systems of fish resulting is disease and lesser survival rate.
High concentrations of nitrite can be poisonous because it increases the level of methemoglobin in the blood, resulting in tissue hypoxia, nervous palsy and death. Changing water, dredging, addition of lime and algaecides are common techniques to remove nitrogen compounds and other pollutants. However, these techniques are expensive to implement and may cause secondary pollution, adding to the disadvantages.

The addition of microorganisms to aquaculture systems like ponds has recently become a successful practice for reducing nitrogen pollution and improving water quality. Nitrogen cycling in aquaculture systems is mainly accomplished by ammonifying bacteria, nitrifying bacteria, and denitrifying bacteria. Many microorganisms, including photosynthetic bacteria, nitrifying bacteria, denitrifying bacteria, and some species of Bacillus are being used for commercial Aquaculture.

Aquaculture Probiotics: Bacillus subtilis

In aquaculture, feed is the most expensive production cost. The quality and quantity of diets are primary factors influencing shrimp/fish growth, shrimp/fish health, disease prevention, contamination and expenses. Utilization of probiotic bacteria has emerged as the best solution with innumerable applications in the aquaculture feed industry. Bacillus species ,Bacillus subtilis are one of the most researched bacteria for fish/shrimp probiotic development due to:

·         Versatile utilization of Growth Nutrients

·         High Enzyme production

·         Antimicrobial secretion

·         Produces spores

·         Develops in  both aerobic and anaerobic conditions

Bacillus subtilis is Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Alternative nutrition, vegetable proteins, carbohydrates, lipids and Bacillus subtilis probiotic strains, must be considered in shrimp/fish aquaculture production systems; as an option to eliminate animal feed ingredients, improves digestion-assimilation, reduce water pollution and diseases, increasing yields and profits.

NatureNerve

We at NatureNerve strive to bring a smile to the farmer's face by respecting what the land can provide. From delivering sustainability to providing consultancy, what ever the need we make sure that the customer always comes first. Its not only a product that we market to our client, its a complete service. Our clients can always reach us and take advice from our on call experts. We strive to understand the need of our clients and bring to them custom made products and services, since at NatureNerve we understand that every patch of green is unique.

Our dedicated team works round the clock to ensure complete satisfaction and peace of mind. Selling our range of sustainable aquaculture supplements or agriculture fertilizers is simply the tip of the ice-berg. We go the extra mile to assist them to get the best quality of seeds, and if they ask we can also arrange for their harvests to get picked up, and for no extra cost.

The products and services are a result of long ongoing years of dedication and research in the coastal regions of the Sundarbans and the green agricultural belts of the Punjab. With community development and establishment through our services we connect with the heart of sustainability.  We constantly strive to provide economic protection to the coastal population of India. Such coastal communities are at the fringes of society and hence intimately associated with native ecological services. Nearly 3/4th of the population of the Indian Sundarbans is dependent on fish farming, so with proper management we continue to provide a sustainable support system.

Continuous and exhaustive field trials guarantee our client base the satisfaction of meeting their targets. We feel the pulsating nerve of Mother Nature herself! At NatureNerve, we dance to the rhythm of the earth. From the laboratory and the fields we bring to you agricultural technology that is easy to grasp and a flair to flourish in.