Pond culture for finfish, utilizing either freshwater, brackishwater, or marine situations, is the most widely practised type of operation in aquaculture.
It is estimated that 3.7 million tons or 75 percent of the world production through aquaculture, covering 2.3 million ha or 90 percent of the total area used for aquaculture, is derived from this type of system. It is also estimated that pond culture for finfish has stimulated an investment for capital expenses equivalent to U.S.$ 3 500 million. Furthermore, the potential for increased production from this sector is very high (Ling, 1973). It is estimated, for example, that in southeast Asia alone there are about 22 million ha suitable for development of ponds for finfish culture.
The object of this paper is to analyse the economics of this well established and economically viable form of culture. It is hoped that this analysis will aid in: (1) finding methods of improved management that will make the industry more profitable; and (ii) guiding the formulation of policies and programmes which affect its development.
Data for this type of study are extremely limited and often difficult to obtain. The economics of only those species of finfish with data readily available to the authors is treated in this paper.
The species of finfish discussed here are listed below:
| Common name | Scientific name | Family name |
| Milkfish | Chanos chanos | Chanidae |
| Common carp | Cyprinus carpio | Cyprinidae |
| Chinese carps | ||
| Grass carp | Ctenopharyngodon idella | Cyprinidae |
| Silver carp | Hypophthalmichthys molitrix | Cyprinidae |
| Bighead | Aristichthys nobilis | Cyprinidae |
| Indian major carps Catfishes | Various species | Cyprinidae |
| Channel catfish | Ictalurus punctatus | Ictaluridae |
| Clarias catfish | Clarias spp. | Clariidae |
| Pangasid catfish | Pangasius spp. | Pangasidae |
| Tilapia | Tilapia spp. | Cichlidae |
| Grey mullets | Mugil spp. | Mugilidae |
| Eels | Anguilla spp. | Anguillidae |
| Rainbow trout | Salmo gairdneri | Salmonidae |
The species first listed, milkfish, is raised commercially in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Taiwan, Province of China. Common carp culture is widely practised in Europe, Israel, Japan and mainland China as monoculture. The use of the herbivorous/omnivorous Chinese carps with common carp in polyculture is practised in some European countries as well as in Southeast Asia. Polyculture with the Indian major carps is common in India and neighbouring countries where these species are indigenous. The ictalurid channel catfish is an important commercially-cultured fish in the United States. Clariid and pangasid catfishes are raised intensively in Thailand and their culture is spreading in Southeast Asia.
Other widely cultivated warmwater fish are the tilapias cultivated not only in their native areas Africa and the Middle East, but also in the Asiatic part of the U.S.S.R., parts of Europe and the United States, and in many Latin American countries. The ubiquitous mullets found in tropical and semi-tropical waters around the world are also widely cultivated. Eels, which are high-valued species, are cultivated intensively in the Far East, and generally less intensively in Europe. Another highly-valued species is the rainbow trout, the species most widely cultured commercially of the trouts.
In addition to listing the fishes mentioned in this paper, a number of definitions are required as preliminary to the economic analysis that follows:
Monoculture - cultivation of a single species within a pond. (Animals high on the food chain and often supported by direct feeding, such as trout, are usually monocultured, but any species can be so cultivated.)
Polyculture - the simultaneous rearing of a number of different species (or age-groups, in some instances) to make more efficient use of the entire pond environment. (The culture of the Chinese carps is a classic example of polyculture designed to fill most of the available feeding niches.)
Intensive culture - one which utilizes improved techniques (including scientific pond design, fertilization, supplemental feeding, stock manipulation and pest control) resulting in high production.
Extensive culture - one which utilizes only traditional techniques (such as, dependence upon the natural productivity of the water and little control over the stocks) usually resulting in low production.
The economic analysis that follows will make numerous comparisons between the methods outlined above.
