How to Start a Bangus (Milkfish) Farm - Part 2

How to Start a Bangus (Milkfish) Farm - Part 2

Fish Farm Overseer/Caretaker
 
Some owners or lessees of bangus farms stay 24/7 in the farm and personally run the business themselves. For those who can, it’s the way to go. The family members work on the farm and keep watch of the ponds. They don’t have to rely on anyone, except for some temporary hired workers, especially during harvesting, major dike repair, or pond draining.

Other fish farm owners or lessees visit their ponds often enough but don't stay there all the time. In our case, I go to my farm (218 kilometers away from Manila) every other week and stay there for 5 to 6 days each trip.

In my absence, my farm overseer ("katiwala") takes over. She's assisted by an assistant caretaker (“kompunidor”).

            My farm overseer tossing lumut into the pond

Exercise due diligence in screening and selecting your overseer/caretaker because it's a position of utmost trust. Do a background check. The overseer/caretaker is a major success factor in bangus farming.

With a trusted and hardworking caretaker, fish farming is good business, especially if you have Class A or B ponds. With a dishonest one, it's really tough to make decent profits. A caretaker may adopt sound farming techniques, but if the controls are poor and the caretaker is crooked, business will not take off. He'll find ingenious ways to cheat and then explain away the loss. It's not easy to catch him in the act. But the pattern of losses and poor harvests will speak for themselves. 

Those who are new in the business may be vulnerable, as they're still gaining experience and may be swayed by the dishonest caretaker. So beware. Click this for my blog post on the Dirty Tricks to Avoid in Fish Farming to alert you on what can happen. Being forewarned will let you put in place the needed safeguards or avoid being victimized.

When you tap the services of caretaker, compensation and housing needs must be addressed.

A small hut (alulong) in the middle of the ponds (with red roof) 

For housing, it means building a small hut (“alulong” in Pangasinense) usually made of bamboo posts and walls with GI sheet or “pawid” roofing (usually made of "nipa" leaves). Wall is made of “sawali” (woven split bamboo mats). Floor is raised and also made of bamboo. A budget of Php40,000 to 50,000 for materials and labor of a small “alulong” should suffice especially if the caretaker is part of the building crew. Or spend even less if you do it yourself (click this on how to build your own bamboo farm hut).

For compensation, caretakers in our locality usually receive any of the following:

· A third of profits (“tersia”)(after deducting operating expenses, including pond rental) plus half of the sale of extraneous fish entering the pond (“sari-sari” in Pangasinan). This is the usual arrangement for Class A ponds. Can also be applied to Class B and C ponds although no “sari-sari” fishes are caught in those ponds.

· Fifty (50) % of profits (net of operating expenses, including pond rental).

· Monthly pay of Php3,500-4,000 plus free rice, occasional bonus.

· Monthly pay of Php4,000 plus 50% share of extraneous fish (“sari-sari”) (for Class A ponds)

A pond shed “alulong” may or may not have a supply of electricity. Access to a hand water pump is a must though. But if you build a small house for yourself, you’ll need to have power and water installed by local utility providers.

Electricity connection offers a lot of advantages and costs about Php1,000/mo. of normal use, including farm lighting. Monthly bill for metered water should be much lower. In the absence of both however, at least a hand water pump for drawing water is a must. Well water is used for washing colored clothes, watering plants, cleaning and washing farm implements, etc. 
 

A hand water pump drawing water into a drum and basin

With an owned or leased pond, a trusty caretaker to watch over your bangus, a small hut over his head, and basic utilities, your fish farm is good to go.

Basic Fish Farm Implements

Now that you have your pond (leased or owned) and your caretaker, you'll need some basic farming tools and implements. These are readily available locally, either in nearby cities of Dagupan or Lingayen. Nets can also be custom-made for you by local net weavers.

1. Haul or drag seine ("kalokor") net – a fishing net that hangs vertically in the water with the bottom edge held down by weights and the top edge buoyed by floats. It is hauled or dragged manually at both ends by a harvest crew throughout the length of the pond and catches fish by enclosing and trapping them in a pocket. 

It is normally rented from seine ("kalokor") rental shops and needed during harvest only (12 hours rate is anywhere from Php100 to 400 depending on size).

                    A "kalokor" (seine) net being hauled in by hired harvest workers


2. Sorting net ("saplar") – have at least three pieces of this with one extra large sized (made to order). Net weavers are readily available in the locality. This is used for transferring catch from the seine net after one pass, so the seine net can be used again. Meanwhile, the captured fish in the sorting net is taken to a larger "saplar" in the fish processing area. 

3. Scoop nets ("tapigo") – have a minimum of three (either buy ready-made in Lingayen or have it custom-made). Used for scooping fish from the sorting net into a jute sack or plastic bag or to a chilling vat or tub.

4. Plastic bags – for transferring fingerlings from one pond to another; bought in a specialty kitchen supplies store in Dagupan City.

5. Plastic strainers – used for sorting out fingerlings; can be bought in a kitchen supplies shop. Buy at least 6 pieces.

Clockwise from top: blue sorting net ("saplar"), 2 scoop nets ("tapigo"), 2 strainers, plastic bags
 
6. Gill nets ("tabal", "lambat") – usually rented but you can have some made for you after you buy the materials. Size of mesh or hole varies, usually size 5, 6, 7 or 8. Twine size is .015 for tilapia and .020 for bangus. This is used during post-harvest to catch remaining fish. The net catches fish that pass through it by snagging it at the gills, with the trapped fish unable to swim forward or retreat.

7. Protective nets – for nets installed in low lying areas or dikes for flood protection purposes; also used in inlet pipes or culverts to prevent escape of fish. Can be bought in rolls, single or double width size. If you can go to Divisoria, Manila, you can get cheaper price.

8. Long bamboo stakes ("onoon") – buy the entire bamboo from the local bamboo supplier. Cut it to pieces lengthwise, smooth the edges and sharpen at one end. These are used to secure the sorting net in the pond. Also used to attach protective nets.

 
Blue protective net installed on a low dike separating my East Pond and North Pond. Net is attached to long bamboo stakes ("onoon") 

9. Short bamboo stakes ("tulaing") – short (less than a foot long) stakes used to anchor the bottom line of a protective net (for protection against floods) to the ground.

 

 Short bamboo stakes (tulaing) are used to anchor the bottom line of protective nets to the ground. Also shown are jute sacks.

10. Plastic chilling vats or tubs – container filled with shaved ice and some water and used to kill fish in ice; can be bought cheaper in household goods stores in Dagupan.

                                                      A chilling tub or vat 

 11. Metal saucer - for scooping and spreading ice; bought in kitchen supplies stores in Dagupan City.

12. Jute sacks – for hauling harvested fish from the pond's fish processing area to waiting tricycles or jeepneys. Use your empty feeds sacks. Or you can buy sacks at Php 5 apiece.

13. Trolley or hand truck – for moving heavy or bulky objects; with handles at top, two wheels at the base, and a small ledge which carries the load.

                                    A trolley or hand truck  

14. Transport equipment (either tricycle or jeepney) – Use a tricycle or two (motorcycle with a wheeled sidecar cabin for passengers or goods) for transporting lower volume catch (up to 2,000 pcs. depending on size). Hire a jeepney (a modified jeep with two long extended seats at the back, popular means of cheap transport in the Philippines). This is for high volume catch say, 3,500 pcs. and above, depending on size.

Jeepney hire rate is about Php800 per trip (say from Binmaley to Dagupan fish center). Tricycle hire is around Php180 to 200 per trip with driver. It would be a good investment to have your own tricycle. It’s a popular means of transport in the provinces (including Pangasinan) among ordinary folks and is very useful for fish farm operators. 

15. Water pump diesel engine with aluminum tubing – a Chinese-made 14 or 16 HP diesel water pump engine can be bought for around Php14,000 to 16,000 and a brand new aluminum tubing or hose can be bought at Php40,000 to 50,000 (much cheaper if second-hand).

Hired Manpower

The fish farm caretaker attends to the day-to-day work in the pond including feeding, monitoring, and maintenance. But he would need extra hand (temporary hired workers) for certain types of farm activities, such as harvesting, fingerling transfer, etc.

1. For harvesting or fingerling transfer

· Harvest ("kalokor") workers – (usually 6 hired workers at Php150 to 200/day) hired only for harvesting purposes or when transferring fingerlings

· Transport workers (1 or 2 tricycle drivers depending on harvest volume)

· Pond support (cooking, cleaning, errands, watchers, etc.) – maybe spouse, child, or relative of caretaker

· Marketing crew to take harvest to fish center in Dagupan City – (operator, caretaker, 2 drivers, 1 extra hand), depending on volume of fish to be sold.

2. For major dike repair – caretaker can do minor repair of dikes. But for major ones, you need to hire dike repair workers to do land fill work ("tambak") usually on labor contract basis. If you need dike reinforcement requiring earth-filled sacks, you can negotiate based on piecemeal rate - usual rate is Php10 to 12 per sack.

Doing a major repair of a dike, i.e. land filling to add to its height and width

Dike after undergoing a major improvement

3. For deepening of pond – normally done by the same group you hire for dike repair. You can negotiate the job on labor contract basis or if you want only a limited area of your pond deepened, you can negotiate on piecemeal basis. The term used locally is “tramo”, equivalent to an area 5 meters by 15 meters and about a foot deep. Rate charged is Php800 to 900 per one “tramo” work and goes up as digging moves farther away from the dike.

4. For removal of pond water (“limas” in Pangsinense)– In our case (Class C ponds), we remove water from the pond once a year before doing pond preparation for the next cropping season. Unless you have your own water pump and hose, you need to hire one or two pumps at a current rate of Php700 for about 8 hours/per pump. Two water pump operators already come with the pump rental. What you need to hire are the temporary harvest workers who will pick up ("kemel" in Pangasinense) the remaining bangus, tilapia, prawns, when pond water is removed. Click this for the related post on how to do pond draining ("limas").
 
5. For post-harvest removal of remaining fish – After a regular harvest, you may opt to take out remaining bangus or tilapia that remain in the pond using gill nets. You need to hire 2 or 3 gill net workers for this purpose. As payment, workers get a third of the net proceeds of the sale (less expenses) of whatever they catch. A rental of Php50 per gill net is also paid for the use of the net. The gill net may be owned by you or may be rented from a gill net owner.

For a complete list of Fish Pond Buddy blog posts on fish farm-related topics, please click the Index page.

 

How to Start A Bangus (Milkfish) Farm - Part 1

How to Start a Bangus (Milkfish) Farm - Part 1

Fish Pond - Buy or Lease

Make use of an existing brackish water pond, if you own one. If not, the choice is to either buy or lease as a start-up. 

For example, Binmaley (where we grow bangus) is known for its numerous fishponds and river system. According to the official website of Pangasinan, Binmaley is a first class municipality, with a population of 98,430 in 33 barangays occupying 6,120 hectares.

More than half (53%) are devoted to fishponds, which can be found almost in any barangay (village). The Agno River and its several tributaries and branches cut across our entire municipality. If you drive along the highway from Binmaley to Dagupan City, you’ll cross Manat Bridge and see Manat River, which is a major branch.

Viewing Binmaley through Google Earth/Map, you’ll see fishponds dotting the entire municipality from the northeast (adjacent Dagupan City), southeast (adjacent Calasiao), south (adjacent San Carlos City), and up to the west (adjacent Lingayen City). They are so numerous that Binmaley is dubbed the “fishbowl of Pangasinan” or the “Bangus Queen of the Philippines”.

For those who would like to pursue bangus farming, the option is either to lease or buy. Here in our locality we have a choice of leasing Class A, B, or C with the annual rental usually fixed on per year and per hectare basis.

The class depends on the location.

·  Class A ponds are situated alongside a river, its branch, or a tributary. A quarter of around 3,000 hectares fishponds in Binmaley is considered first class or Class A. For the features of a Class A pond, click this.

·  Class B is very near a river, branch or tributary but not abutting it. Some may have its own long canal from a tributary. Other Class B ponds (similar to what I lease) draw brackish water from a Class A pond. But the important thing is that pond water comes in and out depending on the tide. About a third of around 3,000 hectares Binmaley fishponds are considered second class or Class B.

·  Class C (which is what we own and operate) is a closed system. It takes in salt water only once a year for one month through a public canal, then for the rest of the year, relies on rain water. It normally shares the common canal with a number of other Class C ponds. About 40% of Binmaley fishponds are deemed third class or Class C.

My Class C brackish water bangus pond

We suggest using Google Earth/Map to scan the specific area and pinpoint the pond location vis-à-vis the nearest river source. Later on, after talking to the owner, visit the site itself. Do an ocular inspection. Talk to neighbors, locals, barangay (village) officials, etc.

Annual rental rate per hectare per year (as far as we know) is now around Php25,000 (Class C), Php25,000 to 30,000 (Class B), and Php45,000 to 50,000 or more for Class A. Lessors usually publish their rental rates through popular local online sites (like sulit.com, ayosdito.com, olx.com, etc.). Rates are usually negotiable. However, you can learn about ponds for lease through word-of-mouth in the locality. Just a reminder. You can lease a pond not only from an owner, but also a lessee (who sometimes sublease the pond).

If you have enough capital to own a pond and operate it, the other option is to buy.

Class A usually sells for at least Php 130 to 150 per square meter upwards depending on location and amount of improvements already in place. Class B ranges from Php120, 130 upwards. Class C now sells at Php100 or 110 per square meter or Php 1 to 1.1 M per hectare or slightly more. As always, it all depends on the location, seller, and the reason for selling. It’s possible to get a price lower than the going rate, but one needs to negotiate, or if it’s a rush sale.

For a complete list of Fish Pond Buddy blog posts on fish farm-related topics, please click the Index page.

Bangus (Milkfish) Basics

Bangus (Milkfish) Basics

To fish experts and taxonomists, it’s known as Chanos chanos; to me, my wife, and my workers it’s simply“bangus” in Tagalog and Pangasinense (the Pangasinan language), and milkfish in English. It’s the national fish of the Philippines. Plentiful and relatively easy to grow, bangus is found almost anywhere in the country. It’s cheaper than most other fish, except tilapia which is equally abundant and popular.

Popular Bangus Dishes

We personally like bangus as a routine meal at the farm. It is one of the best tasting fish and lends itself well to many mouth-watering dishes. For the health-conscious, it gives high quality protein. And with its low calorie, sodium, saturated fat and cholesterol content, it is definitely heart-friendly. 
 

Freshly caught bangus from my pond grilled in an improvised basin ("batya")
 
Below are our favorite bangus dishes. They are also among the most popular among locals (Note: According to the Dagupan Bangus Festival people, there are 101 ways to cook it!) Wow! but we’re content with just the following:

· “inihaw” (charcoal grilled bangus usually stuffed with diced onions, tomatoes). This is one of our personal favorites, especially if fresh from the pond and still hot and juicy from the grill.

· “sinigang” (a traditional soup dish with bangus as the main ingredient and cooked either in tamarind, soybean paste, kamias, etc.)

· “paksiw” (bangus in vinegar and spices – garlic, onion, ginger, peppercorn)

· fried boneless daing (deboned bangus marinated in vinegar and garlic)

· “tinapa” (smoked bangus - a native delicacy cooked or preserved through smoking)

· “sisig” (delicious sizzling bangus concoction served in hot plate)

· “kilawin” (raw bangus in vinegar, onions, ginger)

· sardinas (bangus which had been pressure-cooked a la sardines in tomato sauce or olive oil served outright or sold bottled)

· relleno (bangus with stuffing inside)

· bangus lumpiang shanghai – Filipino spring rolls made of milkfish instead of the traditional ground meat.

Although most locals can eat bangus dishes still with all the fish bones intact, quite a number of consumers prefer the deboned bangus or its deboned fillet.

If you want to try deboning a bangus fish yourself, here's one way to do it (click this.)

Later I’ll write about how our fish farm workers prepare their version of each of the above dishes.

How to Make Sure Bangus is Fresh

Learn how to buy your bangus fresh to get your money’s worth. Here are some tips.

At the Dagupan fish center, while selling my harvest we see astute retailers and bulk buyers pick up a sample bangus from the “banyera” (big plastic tub). Using their sense of smell, touch, and sight, they decide if the batch of bangus on sale is fresh (as opposed to bangus that came from fish kill or died in water). What are these clues?
 

Newly caught bangus from my pond, killed in ice

· touch - body should feel firm and elastic, if pressed with fingers, flesh bounces back; spoiled ones are soft and retain finger impressions

· eyes - should be clear and bright, bulging; not grey, white, cloudy, sunken

· gills - should be bright red

· scales - should be shiny and adhere tightly to the body with thin mucous layering; scales of spoiled bangus easily detach or are loose

· smell - should be fresh, like fish just hauled in from the sea; no rancid unpleasant odor.

Word of Caution

Some unscrupulous bangus retailers or even growers try to preserve or extend the shelf life of bangus (i.e. prevent it from rotting) by immersing the same in water laced with formalin (a known carcinogen). This is a deplorable practice as it puts the health of bangus buyers in serious jeopardy.

Before buying bangus, make sure to check them out. You may suspect use of formalin in bangus if the flesh of the fish is stiff like hard rubber, with hard scales, no fishy smell, and no flies hovering around.   
 

Unique Features of Dagupan City’s Bonuan Bangus

Not all bangus are created equal. It depends on the place of culture. Just as bangus raised in other parts of the Philippines can’t claim to be Pangasinan bangus, not all Pangasinan milkfish can be labeled Dagupan bangus. Pangasinan bangus compared to others in the country are acknowledged to be superior. Dagupan bangus - due to its culture location in the unique brackish water river system south of the Lingayen Gulf - is considered a class higher than those raised in other towns and cities of the province, such as Western Pangasinan.

But the cream of the crop, so to speak, is the legendary Bonuan bangus from Dapupan. Why is this so? How do the famous Bonuan bangus (which is said to have the best taste in the world and command a premium price) differ from the rest?

According to a study conducted by Mr. Westley Rosario, head of the National Integrated Fisheries Technology Development Center and a top milkfish expert, the unique features of Bonuan bangus are:

· shorter lower tail (compared to higher tail)

· small round head

· protruding belly

· fine, shiny scales

· short mouth

· juicy and tender flesh (fat is evenly spread throughout and not just found in the belly)

· sweetish milky taste
 
The taste is attributed to the "lablab" natural food (a complex of micro benthic algae, filamentous algae, and diatoms) that it feeds on, as well as the unique clay soil and brackish water qualities in the river systems that can only be found in Dagupan and adjacent areas.
 
Although demand for the fabled Bonuan bangus is high, the reality is that they’re becoming a rarity. Fewer and fewer Bonuan milkfish farmers are still growing Bonuan bangus in fishponds the traditional way. Seldom can you find a Bonuan pond operator who rely mainly on "lablab" to grow his prized bangus as it will take 5 to 6 months before he can harvest. So profit is not maximized.
 
The more efficient way to grow market-sized bangus in brackish water pond is to apply commercial feeds to supplement natural food ("lablab", "lumut" or filamentous grass-green algae, and planktons). Most pond owners have shifted to growing only fingerlings in their Bonuan fishponds and then transferring them to fish pens and cages where the fingerlings can subsist on commercial floater feeds. The faster turnover means more profits.

If the rare Bonuan bangus is getting harder to come by, just go for Dagupan bangus instead. Or why not enjoy the milkfish of Binmaley (which we grow) since it’s the closest neighbor, culturally and geographically of Dagupan bangus.

From Fry to Adult

When I started as bangus farmer, we learned how important it was to be familiar with the bangus natural growth phases. For practical and business purposes, we learned to focus more on the fry, fingerlings, juveniles, and adults.

Milkfish fry ("kawag-kawag") is what fish farmers buy from a hatchery, a fry broker (who sells hatchery, wild or imported fry), or directly from a fry importer. Physically, the fry or baby bangus has the following traits:

· Has length of 1 to 2 centimeters

· Translucent, you can see through their body; looks like glass

· Elongated

· Black eyes in the transparent head

These are stocked in the pond nursery where they are reared usually from 4 to 6 weeks, where they grow into 2” to 3” fingerlings (“hatirin”).

Size of fingerlings actually vary anywhere from 1” to 2”, 3” and 4” in length, respectively. We call this in our locality as Size 1, 2, 3 and 4 ("uno/dos", "tres/cuatro") (comparing them to the length sizes of an ordinary construction nail).

These are then transferred to transition ponds where they grow usually in 45 days to juveniles ("garungan"). We refer to these as size 14 and 12, and even size 10 and 8 (Note: as the number decreases, the size gets bigger). Size 14 juveniles have bodies as thick as a person’s index, middle, or ring finger. Size 12 juveniles’ body is as thick as either (a) a thumb or (b) a ring and pinkie put together. The index and middle fingers together can also be considered a size 12 fingerling, although a tad bigger.

Bangus fish farmers usually stock juveniles with size 14 to 12 (weighing 30 to 50g) in their grow-out ponds and rear them until they grow into market-size adults. For fish pen operators, the size they stock is usually 14,12, 10, depending on net size. Smaller sizes are not advisable since they will just escape through the net. But in bangus ponds, smaller sizes can be stocked.

From size 14 to 12, bangus fingerlings grow in ponds into market-size adults and are usually harvested after 3 to 3.5 months (feeding mainly on natural food ("lumut") and some commercial feeds). They reach 20 to 40 cm in length, with weight of 250 to 500 grams apiece.



For a complete list of Fish Pond Buddy blog posts on fish farm-related topics, please click the Index page.

About Me

About Me

Hi! Welcome to Fish Pond Buddy! I’m a fish farmer who grows the famous Philippine Dagupan bangus (milk fish), white leg shrimp or Pacific white shrimp (p. vannamei) and brackishwater Molobicus and Nilotica tilapia.

In 2006, I started to grow bangus in our own 2.3 hectare fish farm property and took a lease of a 1.4 hectare pond. Both in Binmaley, Pangasinan (a province in the southern cost of Lingayen Gulf in northern Luzon, Philippines).

That was three years after I retired from my day job in Metro Manila at age 50. 
 
Year 2006 was my first time running the fish farms in Binmaley. As a first timer in a rural area, I needed to make some adjustments. But after a few weeks, I adapted and soon relished the simple farm life. The clean air, fresh fish,  fruits and vegetables, the peaceful rustic ambiance of the "pokok" (fish pond).  

Main grow-out pond as viewed from the feeding area, one of 6 ponds in my 2.3 hectare fish farm.
 
I learned to work and live in the farm, eating fresh, home-cooked meals, living modestly like the rest. Found the simplicity of rural folks quite refreshing. 

For sure, there are challenges. Lots of manual work to maintain and operate the ponds, lack of experience, erratic weather, pond predators, sourcing of capable trusty workers, supplies and materials, etc. To me, fish farm life is both challenging and fun.

I keep a small farm house, with Manila as my family base. Every other week at the farm, the rest in Manila with my wife, children and grandchildren. That’s my routine. Works quite well based on my experience.

When I started in 2006, I was positive despite the language barrier (Pangasinense is the local dialect which I hardly spoke then), with no formal training in aquaculture. I was hopeful but realistic at the same time.
 
I’ve had beginner's mistakes, experiences, adventures and lessons too useful not to share. This blog site aims to chronicle them all.

About the Site

Fish Pond Buddy aims to reach: (a) bangus growers - to share personal tips on raising fish farm productivity and profits, cutting costs, preventing losses (b) would-be fish farmers (such as retirees, overseas returnees or aspiring millennial farmers) - on how to start fish farming (c) other interested parties, such as fish farm suppliers, vendors, traders, buyers, weekend/hobby farmers, students, etc.

Fish Pond Buddy shares tips on how to buy, sell, lease, transfer inherited fish farm property. We hope to share valuable experience on our personal dealings with the government agencies. 

We also have blog posts on plants and trees in Fish Pond Buddy. My wife and I are both plant hobbyists. Seven years ago, except for the old coconut and mango trees, the farm started almost bare. Over the years, we added myriads of ornamental plants and other fruit trees around the farm property. As a result, they have made it more fun and relaxing staying in the farm. 

My favorite breakfast/coffee nook - under the mango tree overlooking the pond

As added feature, this blog site devotes some posts on local dishes and delicacies, must-see travel sites, as well as other farm-related activities, focusing on traditional practices, skills and know-how.

Pangasinan is now my second home. A third of the time, I stay there and enjoy it. So come over and have fun in this lovely part of northern Luzon at the southern coast of Lingayen Gulf with its popular tourist sites, eating places, and unique products. Learn more about this place later through Fish Pond Buddy.

About the Content

All contents in this blog are my original work culled from personal observations, interviews, experiences, and researches. To provide perspective, contents may sometimes cite, refer, or quote selected technical materials from authoritative studies from such entities as Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center (SEAFDEC), and United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UN FAO). In these instances, the reference author and book/site for such materials will be duly acknowledged. 

Observations in this site are strictly my own, focused more on the personal experiences I want to share and some management and business aspects. They are not meant to be expert technical opinion.

This blog, like others, is copyright-protected under Philippine laws and enjoys automatic protection under the Berne Convention (of which the Philippines is a signatory).

However, I share the contents for free with whoever has use for them and can learn useful tips from the articles. It’s more fun in Pangasinan!

For a compete list of Fish Pond Buddy blog posts on fish farm-related topics, please click the Index page.

Here's a recent photo of one of our grow-out ponds (February 2019).

A grow-out pond, used as cover photo for my Facebook blog page

You can visit me at my Facebook page at Facebook.com/fishpondbuddy.