First fish farms open in Guyana

Fish farming is increasingly the way to feed the worldwide appetite for seafood, as overfishing depletes wild stocks. Guyana’s plentiful land and water make it a natural environment for this industry and with advice and assistance from GTIS and other donors, the country now has its first aquaculture venture: Maharaja Hatchery, which is producing 20,000 hormone-free juvenile male tilapia every 10 days. These fish are then put in stock ponds, where in six months they reach maturity and can be harvested for local consumption and export.

Guyana is exploring both domestic and international markets: a 1,000l pound harvest was sold in local supermarkets in June, and a sample order was flown to a potential buyer in Antigua. Meanwhile, two other farms are jumping in, preparing their own ponds, which one has already stocked with young fish from Maharaja. As demand grows, the next step will be a processing plant to prepare the fish for regular exports. alt

To make aquaculture in Guyana a reality, GTIS has worked for nearly four years with the national government and DFID, the UK donor agency, to train farmers and finance equipment, brood stock and fish feed. If all goes well, said GTIS’ Igal Magen and Justin Helton, aquaculture in Guyana could produce up to one to two thousand tons of fish a year, making it an important source of food security and—with going farmgate prices of $1.60 a kilogram—farmer income. The industry could also branch out from tilapia to shrimp and other species.

“Once the facility is built, it can grow anything,” Magen said.