JAKARTA: When Teguh Satrio chanced upon a video on breeding dozens of catfish in a plastic bucket in late May, he was intrigued.
“All it took to breed catfish was a space no bigger than a bucket? Is that true?”
Advertisement
Advertisement
“I found myself browsing article after article on how to breed catfish. I spent hours that night watching tutorial videos. I wanted to know everything I could about breeding catfish. That night, I even calculated how much it would cost to breed catfish on my own,” he told CNA
READ: Interest in urban farming sprouts amid COVID-19 outbreak
Over the next few days, Satrio ordered a 6 sq m tarpaulin sheet, a water pump, a water purifier and several PVC pipes.
The 40-year-old heavy equipment salesman then constructed the braces for his makeshift pond and brackets for his water pump out of used wooden planks he got from a neighbour who was renovating his home.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Teguh Satrio, 40, watching the 100 catfish he keeps in a makeshift fish pond at his home in Jakarta. (Photo: Nivell Rayda)
Two weeks after he first saw the video, he was breeding 100 catfish on an open air deck at his two-storey house in the suburbs of Jakarta.
With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing people to work from home and businesses to close, some people in Jakarta who suddenly have lots of time to spare find themselves breeding fishes either for fun or for extra income.
An aquarium fish store in Jakarta reported up to 50 per cent increase in sales since Indonesia began imposing the large-scale social restrictions to curb the spread of COVID-19 on Apr 10.
Meanwhile, fish hatchery owners said they have seen a rise in the number of individuals looking to breed edible fishes from their homes, particularly catfish and tilapia which can live in small spaces and require less maintenance.
Before the pandemic, the hatcheries clients were large fish farm owners who buy fish fingerlings in the thousands.
LUCRATIVE BUSINESS
Between Apr 10 and Jun 8, non-essential services were not allowed to open, which spelled disaster for Akif Nugroho, the owner of a batik store inside a shopping mall in Central Jakarta.
“I had to close my store because of the social restrictions. My income was completely gone,” he told CNA. “So when a friend had the idea of starting a betta fish business together, I immediately said yes.”
The two then bought dozens of young betta fish of the more common varieties to raise and resell when they are older.
Akif Nugroho, 28, feeding some of the 300 betta fish he keeps at home. (Photo courtesy of Akif Nugroho)
Although the business is starting to see some profit, it will still take several months before they see real money.
The 28-year-old said that he and his friend have invested in 12 more exotic breeds in the hopes of cross-breeding them to produce new varieties.
“From the cross-breeding effort, we have 300 fingerlings. They are now one month old. It will take two to three more months before their colours start to show. Only then will we see if the young ones resemble their fathers, their mothers, a combination of both genes or have neither of their parents traits,” he said.
While common breeds of betta fish can fetch between 50,000 and 75,000 rupiah (US$3.50 and US$5.20) each, the more exotic ones can be worth ten times more.
READ: Jakarta residents venture out with caution as recreational spots reopen at reduced capacity
“Sometimes they can command a price of 15 million rupiah each if we produce a color combination and traits no one has ever seen before. So it will be one to two months before we see real money,” he said.
Satrio is also thinking about someday capitalising on his new pastime but it will be a long time before he would break even.
He said he had so far spent 700,000 rupiah to get his makeshift fish pond set up and buy 100 fingerlings.
Catfish in Teguh Satrio's makeshift fish pond. (Photo: Nivell Rayda)
When his fishes would be ready to be harvested in late August, his 100 catfish would only fetch a total retail price of between 200,000 to 300,000 rupiah.
“I plan to eat some and give the rest to my neighbours and friends. I consider the first few batches as a learning experience,” he said. “If I have three successful batches with small death rates, I plan on building a bigger pond.”
THE JOY OF FISH-KEEPING
But not everyone is keeping their fish for profit.
Jap Kam Fat, 56, said he merely enjoyed the discipline and care that go into owning flower horn fish.
“I can spend hours a day just staring at my aquarium. Looking at the fish is just like looking at your kids. It gives me joy to see how much they have grown and how much they have changed,” Jap told CNA.
The retiree said he was drawn to flower horns vivid colours, patterns and distinctive head shapes when he began keeping them early last month.
Jap Kam Fat, 56, watching his flower horns at his home in Jakarta, Indonesia. (Photo: Nivell Rayda)
Since then, he has been giving his six flower horn fish different combinations of food – fish feed, earthworms, crickets and mealworms – as he believed that the feed would affect the fishs sizes, head shapes and colour vibrancy.
“Thats the joy of raising flower horns. Theres an art behind raising the perfect flower horns. And that is what I am really drawn to when I started keeping these fishes,” he said.
Jap said some friends of his had expressed interests in his young flower horns. “So far, Im not interested in selling. But if a right buyer comes offering the right price, I would consider selling,” he said.
An adult flower horn aged more than eight months can command a lofty price of between 3 million and 15 million rupiah each.
One of Jap Kam Fat's flower horns. (Photo: Nivell Rayda)
Another Jakarta resident, Budi Wibowo said initially he never thought of making money from his newfound hobby.
Since being told to work remotely in late March, the 53-year-old began keeping arowanas at home to keep himself busy.
“It wasnt long until a colleague took interest in my arowanas and asked if I was willing to sell,” he told CNA.
Wibowo said he eventually sold one of his four fish to his friend for nearly twice its initial price.
“Since then, I have been breeding more and more arowanas and started branching out to other types of fish.”
But Wibowo said that profiting from his latest passion is more of a bonus than a goal.
“I didnt do this to make money,” he said. “I enjoy keeping the fish. I get a sense of satisfaction watching them grow.”
“I even enjoy going from one fish store to the next looking for rare arowana feed like live shrimps or centipedes. I also like going to the markets trying to sell my tilapias and learn just what exactly the vendors are looking for.Read More – Source
[contf]
[contfnew]
channel news asia
[contfnewc]
[contfnewc]
