Some aquaculture experts have advised farmers to adequately harness the potential of the Catfish value chain for increased productivity and profitability.
They made the call in interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Lagos.
The experts also emphasised capacity building to enable farmers to harness the benefits in catfish oil value chain.
An aquaculture consultant, Mr Okon Amah, highlighted the benefits of the catfish oil.
“Catfish oil can be used for cooking, pharmaceuticals production, fish feed production and cosmetics production.
“The challenge we have with fish farming and harnessing the potentialities of the catfish value-chain is poor enlightenment of local farmers.
“We need an aquaculture training centre to harness the potentialities in the value-chain.
“No part of catfish is a waste. From the skin to the flesh, the bones and even down to the offals and intestines,” he said.
The consultant said that Catfish farmers would need thorough knowledge of the value-chain to increase profitability.
“Catfish oil contains a large quantity of Omega 3 fatty acid, which is one of the best oils ever.
“It is unsaturated and does not congeal.
Another aquaculture expert, Mr Abdulrazak Owolabi, urged governments to train fish farmers so they could make more profits.
“The demand for catfish oil is there, but most farmers are unable to harvest enough to meet the demand.
“We do not have enough production volume of catfish oil. We need training for the farmers to be able to produce enough and increase the profitability of the sector.
“Government can help local farmers to harness the potentialities of catfish by building their capacities through training.
“Farmers can be trained in various aspects of the value-chain – from deboning to oil harvesting and preservation, etc.
“They need to the learn the entire value-chain of catfish to increase the profitability of the sector,” Owolabi said.
