January 6, 2008

Lower production costs for Philippine pangasius urged

Production costs of pangasius should be lowered to entice more growers to engage in the activity, said an official of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) in Southern Mindanao, Philippines.

BFAR director George Campeon said the private sector should make ways to lower down the cost of production for pangasius farming.

Campeon also said that buyer companies should also increase its buying price of the fish variety so that pangasius farming will also be beneficial to the farmers.

He explained that pangasius is bought by the buyer from the grower for P55 per kilogramme while a grower must incur high costs for feeds and fingerlings, making profit gains for growers very minimal.

He added that today, pangasius is bought by the Vitarich Corporation which processes it for fillet for export and for local consumption.