Pork Production in Nigeria: The ability to create a business. Part One.

Although for various reasons, a  lot of Nigerians find it very difficult to make pig meat ( Pork) a substitute for beef, chicken or goat meat. For others,  pigs are perceived to be very dirty animals and as such highly prone to worms and bacterial infections. Whether for religious or scientific reasons, we cannot undermine the fact that pork is highly rich in protein and can be a very good substitute for other sources of meat protein in our diet.

Fish Farming in Nigeria.

The Nigerian Agriculture sector is fast experiencing a major shift especially in the area of Aquaculture. Fish farming has gain popularity over the years and lots of people are beginning to see the significance of culturing fishes for commercial purposes. Most of the fishes commonly cultured here in Nigeria are fresh water fishes which are ; African Catfish (Clarias Gariepinus) and Tilapia . With the aid of foreign experts from Thailand and Vietnam some farms are venturing into other species like the Pangasius (Asian Catfish) and Koi which is also known as common carp.

The new catfish in Nigeria called Pangasius.

My first experience with the pangasius was at Talon agro park, located at Omilende near Dangote cement factory at Ibese in Ogun state (south western part of Nigeria). It was very attractive at first with its silver mixed with a polished black colour. My curiosity led me to ask the farm manager what type of fish it was. He wasted no time in replying the question by saying "Oh , its called the Pangasius " and he went further to proudly declare "We are the only breeders of this species of catfish in Nigeria for now" , As i went further with my research on this fish, i discovered it is usually imported as frozen from Asia and the market women prefers to call it 'Obokun'.

The Origin of the Pangasius.

Pangasius belongs to the family of catfish living in the Mekong river and its estuaries in Vietnam. There are two members of these family that started the aquaculture success that is Pangasius hypophthalmus (Tra) and Pangasius bocourti (Basa).