Fish health knowledge, management practices and prophylactic health products usage in aquaculture systems in Kenya

ABSTRACT

This study assessed knowledge in fish health, management practices and usage of prophylactic health products (PHPs) in pond and cage aquaculture systems in Kenya. Data were collected using semi-structured questionnaires in 220 fish farms randomly selected from six counties, which were previously recorded to be producing high quantities of cultured fish in the country. Prophylactic health products used for fish health management in the farms surveyed were mainly water and soil treatment compounds, disinfectants, antibiotics, and probiotics. Among the farmers surveyed, only 11.9% of the pond fish farms sought advice on fish health issues from specialists compared to 59.3% in the cage culture systems. Thirty-seven percent of cage culture farmers were aware of probiotics and their benefits compared to 5.7% of the pond farmers. The study concluded that knowledge of fish health management practices by fish farmers is still inadequate and there is a need to train fish farmers and fisheries staff to build their capacity on fish health and management.

KEYWORDS:

• Aquaculture
• fish health
• prophylactic health products

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the guidance by Francis Murray in the design and implementation of the research. The authors would also like to sincerely thank all the fisheries officers for their support during data collection in their respective counties.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare no known competing interests in this paper

Additional information

Funding

The research study was conducted under IMAQulate project “Evaluating Costs and Benefits of Prophylactic Health Products and Novel Alternatives on Smallholder Aquaculture Farmers in Asia and Africa”. The project was funded by Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council/ Department for International Development (BBSRC/DfID), UK and the Department of Biotechnology, India, Grant number: BB/N005082/1.