Improving aquaculture in Zambia: A path to poverty alleviation and nutritional security

In Zambia, aquaculture is being championed as a solution to pressing challenges like poverty, hunger, and undernutrition while also fostering rural economic growth. Among the various fish species Zambian farmers cultivated, tilapia is the most prevalent. However, raising tilapia requires an adequate supply of essential nutrients like proteins, amino acids, vitamins, and energy sourced from carbohydrates and fats. To achieve optimal productivity, farmers must ensure their fish receive high-quality feed in sufficient quantities.

Tilapia feeding approaches are typically categorized into three types: natural feeding, complete feeding, and supplemental feeding. While complete feeding offers the most comprehensive nutritional solution, it remains largely inaccessible to farmers in northern Zambia due to limited infrastructure, undeveloped markets for commercial aquaculture inputs, and low household purchasing power.

Smallholder farmers often rely on supplementary feeds such as fishmeal, maize meal, and soybean meal, which, despite their nutritional benefits, are frequently unaffordable, unavailable, or directly competing with household food security needs. This challenge has driven research to focus on locally sourced, farm-generated feed alternatives that are affordable, nutritionally adequate, and non-competitive with human food needs.

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