Once the decision has been made to acquire the optimal automated feeding system for your fish farm, its price may seem, a priori, an expensive and unprofitable solution. Especially when compared to other individual feeding systems used in aquaculture with a lower degree of automation.
In our post about Types of Feeders for aquaculture it is possible to conclude that feeders with a higher degree of automation require a greater investment. On the other hand, we must speak about their benefits from the moment of their installation in a fish or shrimp farm.
So before making the decision of what type of feeder to purchase, there are multiple indicators that must be considered. Due to its economic impact and to the return on investment, we highlight two elements:
- Savings in feed consumption, and that way an improvement in FCR.
- Savings in labour costs dedicated to feeding.
Savings in Labour and Feed Consumption with Automated Systems for Aquaculture
The investment requirements for feeding automation can be seem expensive at first appearance. But when we analyze the savings and improvements in feeding procedures that can be obtained by automated feeders, over time it is a very profitable investment.
So let´s look on the most relevant advantages and savings of automated feeding systems before selecting an feeder for your farm:
- WORKFORCE
An automated feeding system should be operated and maintained by a single worker. So, if your farm needs more workers for feeding activities at the moment, you can expect important cost reduction in this area. For having an estimation what savings are achieved with a centralized feeder, all you need to know is the answer to the question: How many workers would be saved annually? - FEED CONSUMPTION
An automated feeding system should also improve the FCR, which can lead to savings in annual feed consumption of not less than 5%.
Therefore, for estimating the savings in feed, the following question must be answered: How many tons of feed, and its cost, would be saved annually?
It is possible to include other savings, related with implementation of automated feeding systems, that appear because of less pollution, more biosecurity, etc. at your farm. Even with just with these two main criteria it is possible to calculate the return on investment in a short period of time.
Objective: Return on Investment for Fish Farm in Less Than 3 Years
When is it worth buying a centralized feeder for a fish or shrimp farm? Ideal is, if the amounts of savings expected in a period of 3 years is less or equal to the amount of installing an automated feeding system. And why?
The reason is that a centralized fish or shrimp feeding system will be in operation for 10 to 15 years. Therefore, financing an automatic feeding system is an investment with very high profitability.
