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Floating pellet feed for aquaculture

Floating pellet feed is an extruded aquaculture feed engineered with a low bulk density so that the pellet remains at the water surface long enough for visual feed-intake monitoring. The format reduces feed wastage compared with sinking pellets, gives the farmer a direct measure of fish appetite, and is the recommended feed type for Indian major carps, tilapia and ornamental fish in pond culture.

Composition

ICAR-CIFA, Bhubaneswar, has developed and commercialised two reference grades:

  • CIFA Carp Grower (grow-out feed): approximately 28% crude protein, formulated for an FCR of 1.5-1.6 in the grow-out phase of Indian major carps.
  • Nursery feed: 34-35% crude protein and 5-6% ether extract, formulated for fingerling and nursery stages.

Pellets are produced through twin-screw extrusion in size grades of 2-8 mm matched to fish size, with starch gelatinisation providing the floating property and improving digestibility.

Mode of action

Extrusion at high temperature (110-140 deg C) and pressure expands the pellet structure and gelatinises starch, giving the finished pellet a porous, low-density matrix that traps air and floats. As fish feed, the pellet absorbs water progressively but remains intact for 10-15 minutes, giving the farmer time to assess intake.

Target use

Used in pond culture of Indian major carps (catla, rohu, mrigal), tilapia, pangasius and ornamental fish. The nursery feed is given during the first month after stocking; the grow-out feed is given from fingerling stage through to harvest. Feeding rate is typically 3-5% of body weight per day for fingerlings, tapering to 1-2% for adults, applied twice daily at fixed feeding stations.

Adoption

CIFA-developed pellet feeds and their commercial licensees are now widely used across major aquaculture states including Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. The technology has been licensed to multiple manufacturers under ICAR-CIFA Agri-Business Incubator agreements.

This entry is one of a few aquaculture-feed bundles in the encyclopedia.

References

  1. Application and Practices of Fish Feed. ICAR-Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture.
  2. Floating Carp Feed Carp Grower. ICAR-CIFA, Bhubaneswar.