Integrated fish fodder livestock farming: Integrated Fish Farming

Fish farmers in India are attempting to optimize their use of farm resources in order to maximize their returns.The cost of fish feed and pond fertilizers in aquaculture accounts for approximately 60% of total farm expenditures and these costs can be sharply reduced by integrating this system with other farming systems when it is appropriate to do so.Fish culture in India has undergone gradual change during the past few decades and there has recently been some movement to integrate livestock and crop farming. The benefits of integrated fish farming extend beyond improved fish production and include an increase in the production of livestock and eggs.Fodder and other horticultural crops grown on terraced embankments of fish ponds are used to feed livestock and fish and are also consumed by farm families ,while the increase in costs incurred to raise additional animals is offset by the sale of meat and eggs.Apart from providing fish,a mixed farming also provides a new way of life for the farmers.