Determining Feed Quantity from Stocking to Harvest

The Nigerian market consistently rewards catfish from 800g upward, so managing stocking density and feeding rate to reach a bigger harvest size pays off at the point of sale.

As a rule of thumb, every 100 catfish need roughly 100–111kg of feed across their full cycle from stocking to harvest. That figure assumes a feed-conversion ratio of about 1kg of feed to 0.9kg of fish gained — a reasonable target for a well-managed pond.

In practice, many farmers work from a simpler, more affordable planning figure: 4.5–5 bags of feed (15kg each) per 100 fish for the full cycle. This tracks close to the FCR-based estimate while being easier to budget and order against.

Feed cost is typically the largest single input in catfish production, so getting this number right at the planning stage — before fingerlings even go into the pond — is one of the highest-leverage decisions a farmer makes.