August 13, 2024

 

Namibia struggles with fish feed shortage amid aquaculture expansion plans

Namibia's aquaculture industry is facing challenges as a dwindling supply of ingredients needed to manufacture fish feed threatens the country's ambitious growth plans, SeafoodSource reported.

 

The industry is scrambling to secure feed quickly enough to sustain its expansion goals.

 

Namibia's Deputy Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Sylvia Makgone, expressed concern over the impact of a prolonged drought in Namibia and neighbouring Zambia, from which Namibia imports some of its feed. The drought has severely affected agricultural operations that produce the raw materials necessary for aquafeed production, such as corn and pearl millet.

 

As a result, the Namibian government has been actively seeking solutions to produce fish feed locally. However, the shortage of raw materials remains a significant obstacle. "No one in Namibia is producing fish feed; the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources on its own started producing, but because of the type of fish we produce, we need corn and pearl millet to produce," Makgone explained.

 

Namibia's 10-year National Aquaculture Master Plan, which concluded in 2023, prioritised access to quality fish feed. The plan outlined that, given the required fish feed volumes, the private sector is unlikely to produce aquafeed in the short term, and the government would need to take the lead in securing and improving aquafeed supplies.

 

The plan also included initiatives to support research and development aimed at creating cost-effective aquaculture feeds to reduce production costs, especially for small to medium-scale producers.

 

Despite these efforts, Namibia has faced inadequate rainfall in 2024. Even in regions that received rain, such as Omusati, Oshana, Ohangwena, Oshikoto, Kavango East, Kavango West, and Zambezi, the rains have caused flash floods and resulted in poor harvests.

 

Namibia currently relies on a single government-operated fish feed plant located in Onavivi, which was built in 2009 with support from the Spanish government. The plant has the capacity to produce 1,200 metric tonnes (MT) of feed annually, supporting the production of at least 600 MT of fish each year.

 

Looking ahead, Namibian Director of Aquaculture and Inland Fisheries, Rudolph Cloetesaid, stated that the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources is ready to support private companies willing to establish fish-feed plants in Namibia.

 

Namibia aims to achieve aquaculture production volumes of 4,000 MT of fish, with government estimates indicating that 6,000 MT of feed will be required to reach this target.

 

-      SeafoodSource