General Santos City. A Pangasius catfish demo farm has been launched recently at Brgy. Katangawan, General Santos City. The event was a joint effort of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources 12 (BFAR12), the SOCSARGEN Catfish Farmers Multipurpose Cooperative, the Department of Trade and Industry 12 (DTI 12), Tateh Premium Corporation and RDEX Foods International Philippines, Incorporated.
Pangasius, or iridescent shark catfish(Pangasius hypopthalmus), is common in Southeast Asia especially in Vietnam and Thailand. It is known for its white meat which is marketed in fillet form.
According to Sukarno Anayatin, the focal person of BFAR on pangasius culture, growing pangasius is similar to farming African catfish. The only difference is that deeper water is recommended. He said that there are about 20 pangasius growers in the region and this is the first in General Santos City.According to him, the growth of Pangasius farming is very aggressive in region 12 because of the private sector.
Diomede Bucog, of Tateh Premium Corporation, said that they are eyeing pangasius as a very important species in the future. It will dislodge or replace the African catfish. This is because African catfish breeding, growth and survival rate has become problematic. According to him, this is attributed to inbreeding of stocks and loss of breeder quality. Pangasius stocks, on the other hand, are new and of good quality.
Sukarno Anayatin of BFAR 12 and Diomede Bucog of Tateh gave lectures on Pangasius Farming Technology and Feeding Methods, respectively.
Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP), One Network Bank and the Development Bank of the Philippines (DPB) sent their representatives to present their support and assistance programs for agriculture and fisheries projects.
Rey Gorre, the recipient of the demo project, said that he hopes that the lectures and the techno-demo project will help other farmers to decide to engage in farming pangasius. Gorre is a member of the SOCSARGEN Catfish Farmers Multipurpose Cooperative whose members mainly farm African catfish or hito.
BFAR 12 Director Sani Macabalang said that the primary purpose for the demo farm is to make enable the farmers to be familiar with the fish, how does it live, and how to grow it. The second purpose is economic - it will enable the farmers to see if they can profit from it.
The guests and participants were treated to a pangasius lunch. Pangasius cooked in various styles were served to the guests and participants. For many, this was the first time they ever tasted the fish. Some commented that it tastes just like hito or African catfish but has fewer bones. Most found the soft white meat of pangasius quite tasty.
A Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) which enumerates the roles and responsibilities of each party involved in the project was signed. According to the MOA, the Farmer-grower will provide the pond requirements for the project and will purchase the fingerlings, BFAR 12 will provide technical assistance during the techno transfer and management of the pangasius technology pond, TATEH will provide appropriate feeds needed for the project, estimate and allocate maximum volume of feeds needed for the project, RDEX Foods International Philippines, Incorporated, will purchase the produce from the farmer-grower which will be as much as P70 per Kilo, and DTI 12 will disseminate information to existing and potential farmer-growers, fish processors, exporters, buyers, government agencies and private sectors and also to render assistance and support in market development, trainings and market research.
A ribbon cutting ceremony was also held wherein Director Macabalang cut the ribbon signifying the opening of the demo farm. Twenty-thousand pangasius fingerlings were then released into the demo pond. (gpadro) | 
AQUACULTURE