7 Characteristics of Quality Catfish Seeds for Smooth Cultivation

Budidaya ikan lele menjadi salah satu bisnis budidaya ikan yang memiliki harga jual stabil dan berpotensi menghasilkan profit cukup tinggi. Untuk menghasilkan ikan lele konsumsi berkualitas terbaik, Bapak/Ibu perlu mengetahui cara memilih bibit ikan lele. Sebab, sukses dan gagalnya budidaya ikan lele tergantung dari bagaimana cara memelihara benih atau bibit ikan lele dan teknik pembibitan ikan lele itu sendiri.

Catfish is a type of freshwater fish that is much sought after for re-cultivation or consumption. The cultivation scale has reached the smallest scale, namely the household scale. Especially since the pandemic in early 2020 yesterday, where many people spend more time at home. That's when catfish became one of the choices urban farming or suitable for planting at home other than vegetables.

Apart from that, finding catfish seed cultivators is currently also quite easy, and can even be done online on line. However, in order for the catfish breeding process to be successful, you need to choose a good type of catfish seed.

The following is complete information about the prospects for the catfish seed business, how to choose catfish seeds, and tips for success on how to cultivate catfish nurseries.

Business Potential of Catfish Seeds

Before knowing how to choose and how to care for catfish seeds so they don't die, you need to know the prospects for the catfish farming business; whether it will generate profit or just the opposite. You also need to understand the segmentation of the catfish market and the right way to market catfish farming products.

The demand for catfish on the scale of beginner farmers has reached 50-100 catfish fingerlings. Meanwhile, if the seedlings are to be grown in biofloc ponds, earthen ponds, or other types of cultivation ponds, usually the demand can increase up to 1,000 catfish seeds.

The demand for catfish seeds on a household scale is quite a lot at this time. trend urban farming or cultivation at home began to develop in the community, so that it was not only vegetables that were cultivated at home, catfish seeds also began to be maintained.

On the highest scale, you can export catfish to countries outside Indonesia. Compared to other types of consumption fish, the demand for catfish for consumption tends to increase. However, the opportunity to export catfish is only for large quantities and the best quality catfish.

There are several types of catfish that have good nursery prospects for cultivation, namely African catfish, python catfish, sangkuriang catfish, Java catfish, and pearl catfish. However, the success of its cultivation does not only come from selecting the type of seed, but also from the method of catfish breeding.

Here are some stages that affect the success of a catfish breeding business:

1. Prepare nursery ponds in accordance with the required pond size standards.
2. Choose brood catfish carefully.
3. Use proper catfish spawning techniques.

How to Choose Quality Catfish Seeds

There are five criteria for good types of catfish seeds to be used as catfish cultivation seeds. Here is the full explanation:

1. Origin of Catfish Seeds

The first criterion for catfish seeds is the origin of the catfish seeds. By knowing the origin of the catfish seeds, you can find out the quality of the seeds.

Seeds that have guaranteed quality are seeds that come directly from high-quality catfish seed cultivators. With guaranteed quality catfish broodstock, the resulting catfish seeds will also be of high quality.

In addition, you need to know how to properly care for catfish seeds, starting from the intensive maintenance process until the seedlings become mature catfish, with the best body weight ready for sale.

2. Movement of Catfish Seeds

Movement that is agile and agile is one of the characteristics that your catfish seeds are healthy. Such seeds must be chosen to be used as catfish cultivation seeds. The way to ensure that catfish seeds move nimbly and agile is to catch one seed and pay attention to its movements.

If the seeds swim agile and agile so that it is difficult for you to catch them, then these seeds are of the best quality. If the seeds only swim in one place or swim slowly, it means the catfish seeds are not good.

The second way to ensure the movement of the catfish seeds is to tilt the container filled with catfish seeds and watch their movements. If catfish seeds swim against the current, then these seeds are of the best quality. If the catfish seeds are carried away by the current, then the catfish seeds are not good.

3. Condition and Physical Form of Catfish Seeds

The third way to choose catfish seeds is to pay attention to the condition and physical form of the seeds. The first is the balance and completeness of the body organs of catfish seeds. The morphology of the head and body of the catfish fry must be balanced. The limbs of the catfish seeds must also be complete.

This factor determines the size and weight of catfish that are ready to be harvested as adults. If there is a defect, no consumer will buy the catfish.

In addition to perfect body condition, color and body smoothness of catfish fry also need to be observed. Ideally, catfish fingerlings have a uniform dark brown or reddish black color, with a bright and shiny skin texture.

4. Size of Catfish Seeds

In addition to uniform color, similar size of catfish is also a determining factor for the success of catfish breeding. With a uniform size of catfish fingerlings, you avoid losses due to cannibalism. Large catfish will prey on small catfish, causing mass death in your cultivation.

To choose uniform catfish seeds, pay attention to the size of the seeds to be purchased. Ideally, the size of catfish seeds for cultivation is between 2 cm, 4 cm or 7 cm.

For example, if you are going to buy seeds with a size of 4 cm, then the tolerance for the size of the seeds is 3 cm, 4 cm and 5 cm. If there is one seedling that is 7 cm and above, separate it from the others to avoid cannibalism.

5. Health History of Catfish Seeds

After knowing that the condition, shape and size of the catfish seeds are in accordance with the standards and declared healthy, you need to know the history of the health conditions of the catfish seeds.

To find out the history of the health condition of catfish seeds, ask the cultivator whether the seeds have ever been sick. If yes, then ask about the healing procedure, for example, how long it will take to quarantine and whether it is necessary to take the antibiotics/drugs needed according to the dosage.

This is important to ask because excessive drug administration to catfish seeds can interfere with the development of seedlings and the development of bacterial and disease immunity in the catfish's body.

6. History of Catfish Broodstock

As previously mentioned, buying catfish seeds directly from catfish cultivators is relatively safer because the catfish seeds come from catfish brooders whose quality and superiority are guaranteed.

We recommend that you buy seeds from marriage inbreeding and the origin of catfish broodstock is from the best type of catfish. This is done so that you can sell cultivated catfish more easily and at a higher price.

For example, local types of catfish and pearl catfish are the types that are often sold in the market. On the other hand, sangkuriang catfish and African catfish are claimed to have better quality than local catfish and pearl, so they are sold at quite expensive prices. This type of African catfish has also received genetic improvement directly from the Freshwater Cultivation Development Center (BBPBAT), so that its quality is guaranteed.

7.CPIB Certified

The last way to choose catfish seeds is to check the ownership of the Good Fish Hatchery Practices (CPIM) certificate. However, this criterion is an additional criterion and cannot be used as a benchmark for selecting the best catfish seeds.

So, it doesn't matter if the cultivator does not have this certificate, as long as the other criteria for catfish seeds have been met, such as physical condition, color, parent origin, and size.

Tips for Success in the Catfish Seed Business

You already know how to choose the right catfish seeds so that the catfish can develop according to their ideal size and weight. To complement the cultivation business to be more successful, here are the tips.

1. Mempersiapkan Modal Bisnis

Like starting a business in general, you also need to prepare capital to start a catfish farming business. Capital is needed to build media or cultivation ponds, buy catfish seeds, buy catfish seed food, buy vitamins, and other unexpected operational costs.

2. Standar Kebutuhan Kolam Budidaya

Kolam budidaya harus dibangun di lokasi yang mudah mendapatkan paparan sinar matahari. Kolam yang telah dibangun harus memiliki suhu antara 20-28 0C. Kolam tidak boleh dangkal ataupun jadi keruh akibat lumut.

Tips for caring for aquaculture ponds are to put taro or water hyacinth leaves in the pond so they can absorb the toxins in the water.

3. Aturan Pemberian Pakan Lele

There are separate rules for feeding catfish seeds, for example the duration of feeding and good nutritional content in the feed, such as the protein needed for the growth of catfish seeds. Ideally, type 781-1 centrate feed is given to catfish three times a day at 7 am, 5 pm and 10 pm.