Guys, this is my story. I have lived in London for 15years, went a good university, Bsc Business administration and international management , good job, family and all that. I decided to move to Nigeria to start a farming business after getting tired of the rat race in western world. This might sound crazy to a lot of people but there are far more opportunities in Nigeria than anywhere in Europe.

My friends think am mad but my family especially my mum thinks am making a great move. Friends are saying " with all the political unrest and recession, you must be out of your mind, some said I have been hit with juju to force me come back home to be a farmer"

During one of my visit to Nigeria in April this year, on my way to my village , i noticed how beautiful the leaves are, how green they look and happy they are ( that sound weird..right? But is it so true, next time you are going to your village, look at the plants and you will notice the leaves are so green and happy, to me that is a sign that our land is so fertile and that is all we need to be successful as a nation.

August this year, I decided to go back home and be a farmer, my plan is to start as a catfish farmer then move to other value added farm produce. I noticed the biggest opportunity lies in value adding, so many products perished because there no value added to it and the old guys in farm do not have the knowledge to do it and our youths are to " sophisticated " to go to farm, everybody want to be Wizkid or Davido.

Guys, at this point I have no idea of how to farm catfish but I was determined. In my dad's house, we have a big space at the back garden and my first thought was to make a concrete pond but a chance meeting with an uncle changed all that. This my uncle has been in catfish farming for 11years and he has been able to use the farm proceed to build house and send his children to University. He advised me against going for concrete pond for so many reasons:

1. The cost of making a concrete pond.
2. The cost of pumping water.
3. Pond is not a natural habitat for catfish.
4. Cost of electricity
5. I need to change the water
6. Pond construction is not simple and you need an expert to prevent wear and tear.

The next day, he took me to see his earthen pond and I was really impressed.

Stay with me...I will be back.

Oga come finish wetin u started O....and again u fit help me enter london......if I hustle get enough capital,I will come back home and establish. That's my plan. I don't plan staying abroad for ever,no matter what. Once I make some reasonable amount of money that can establish a business for me here in Nigeria,I will come back. These re d business I have in mind

- pure water business,then after some years of gain,I will attach it with bread factory

- boutique both men's and ladies wear.....in a big way. As in way house shop not shade stuff

- cat fish is my last option.

So if u can help me enter london,so I can hustle ad raise enough capital. I will appreciate u and God will equally appreciate u by not allowing any of ur fish to die lol !!!

The opportunities in Nigeria are limitless as a whole lot of things are yet to be touched! A kenyan was asking me about Ogun State because of its proximity to the huge Lagos market as she has a desire to some day invest in setting up a big vegetable farm there to grow cabbage, lettuce, carrots, radish, cucumber, parsley, aubergine etc all year round.

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Guys, at this point I have no idea of how to farm catfish but I was determined. In my dad's house, we have a big space at the back garden and my first thought was to make a concrete pond but a chance meeting with an uncle changed all that. This my uncle has been in catfish farming for 11years and he has been able to use the farm proceed to build house and send his children to University. He advised me against going for concrete pond for so many reasons:

1. The cost of making a concrete pond.
2. The cost of pumping water.
3. Pond is not a natural habitat for catfish.
4. Cost of electricity
5. I need to change the water
6. Pond construction is not simple and you need an expert to prevent wear and tear.

The next day, he took me to see his earthen pond and I was really impressed.

Stay with me...I will be back.




I think you should be open to information and not limit yourself because Mr A believe earthen pond is better. I will tell you that the biggest and largest catfish farm in Nigeria are majorly concrete and cage pond. If you doubt me ask, Durantee in Abuja and i think they operate in Ibadan or so and come back to tell me what you see.

While you think there are disadvantages of concrete pond, others also nurse the fear of earthen pond such as
a. Difficult to manage
b. Difficulty in fish sorting
c. Inability to detect problems on time
d. Cannibalism
e. Prone to theft
f. Prone to flood etc.

This is not to say earthen pond is not good. It depends on your knowledge of the system you are operating. I operate concrete pond and i will tell you that it has been rewarding.

People say fish in earthen pond grow bigger than concrete and i laugh. I have seen hetero in concrete that weigh above 40kg. I have fish of 7month that weigh 2.3kg. When you know what you are doing and with technology inputs that enhances the performance of fish, i tell you, cage farming is now and the future

Good move.

Ttalk:
Guys, at this point I have no idea of how to farm catfish but I was determined. In my dad's house, we have a big space at the back garden and my first thought was to make a concrete pond but a chance meeting with an uncle changed all that. This my uncle has been in catfish farming for 11years and he has been able to use the farm proceed to build house and send his children to University. He advised me against going for concrete pond for so many reasons:

1. The cost of making a concrete pond.
2. The cost of pumping water.
3. Pond is not a natural habitat for catfish.
4. Cost of electricity
5. I need to change the water
6. Pond construction is not simple and you need an expert to prevent wear and tear.

The next day, he took me to see his earthen pond and I was really impressed.

Stay with me...I will be back.




I think you should be open to information and not limit yourself because Mr A believe earthen pond is better. I will tell you that the biggest and largest catfish farm in Nigeria are majorly concrete and cage pond. If you doubt me ask, Durantee in Abuja and i think they operate in Ibadan or so and come back to tell me what you see.

While you think there are disadvantages of concrete pond, others also nurse the fear of earthen pond such as
a. Difficult to manage
b. Difficulty in fish sorting
c. Inability to detect problems on time
d. Cannibalism
e. Prone to theft
f. Prone to flood etc.

This is not to say earthen pond is not good. It depends on your knowledge of the system you are operating. I operate concrete pond and i will tell you that it has been rewarding.

People say fish in earthen pond grow bigger than concrete and i laugh. I have seen hetero in concrete that weigh above 40kg. I have fish of 7month that weigh 2.3kg. When you know what you are doing and with technology inputs that enhances the performance of fish, i tell you, cage farming is now and the future

You are right....it all depends on the system that works for you. I believe the fish should be in thier natural habitat that why I chose earthen pond. It seems the fish are more happier with enough room to move.

What I saw at his earthen pond farm was impressive, well managed with abundant flow of water. I decided right there that is what I wanted. I lease three ponds immediately and the re construction of the pond started. At this point, I was taking in as much information as I can, I went to visit so many pond and farmers. I asked so many questions ( it is impressive how much Nigerians are happy to help with free information).

Photo of the pond I lease.

I learnt so many things along the way but the most important is fish farm management. From pond construction to pegging and netting. Channeling is very important too. Another advantage of starting business in Nigeria is that labour is very cheap.

Photo. Earthen pond expert during construction stage.

cruzclinton1:
Oga come finish wetin u started O....and again u fit help me enter london......if I hustle get enough capital,I will come back home and establish. That's my plan. I don't plan staying abroad for ever,no matter what. Once I make some reasonable amount of money that can establish a business for me here in Nigeria,I will come back. These re d business I have in mind

- pure water business,then after some years of gain,I will attach it with bread factory

- boutique both men's and ladies wear.....in a big way. As in way house shop not shade stuff

- cat fish is my last option.

So if u can help me enter london,so I can hustle ad raise enough capital. I will appreciate u and God will equally appreciate u by not allowing any of ur fish to die lol !!!

Oga.....don't let capital be your barrier. If this is what you want then you can go for it. Yes...catfish farming is capital intensive if you want a good size fish but you can make money by adding value to it.

We are currently looking for distributors for our dried catfish. Let me know if this of interest to you.

welcome home

They are different kinds of pond but I chose earthen because I was fortunate enough to secure a good location with good security. The location is a community of fish and pig farmers so am safe. We have security men that patrol the farm at night.

I put pipes to control the flow of water and make sure the pond is not overflowing during heavy rain.

Pond taking shape. At this point I was getting so excited. I have already paid for 3,300 juveniles for a start. Am keeping one pond empty to use later for drying and catfish canning. Am dreaming big.

Netting: For earthen pond , it's important to net your pond to avoid predators like snakes, birds and any other crawling animals.

Another netting photo

Ladbisfarm:
Pond taking shape. At this point I was getting so excited. I have already paid for 3,300 juveniles for a start. Am keeping one pond empty to use later for drying and catfish canning. Am dreaming big.

I will suggest that you keep the juveniles in a surface pond or tank till they mature a bit more and you sort them before transferring them to your earthen pond. It will be easier to sort and manage that way. By the way, where is your farm located?

From every look of things,u really mean business.i pray your effort will be rewarded by God almighty.
Myself am warming up for goat farming. I have a long term investment plan.

One of the ponds is ready. Full netted, looking beautiful.

Ready to introduce catfish. It very important to know the source of your fingerling. Go to the breeder, if possible check any farm he has supplied. I got mine from a very honest man and he took me to one of his customers.

lastmessenger:
From every look of things,u really mean business.i pray your effort will be rewarded by God almighty.
Myself am warming up for goat farming. I have a long term investment plan.

Thank you. Our aim is to be the biggest catfish farmer in southwest including value added chain.

catfish farmers and sales agents in and around kaduna. jenzik farms offers fingerings, post fingerlings, jumbo and post jumbo sizes of catfish. we also offer brood stock, clarias batrechus for sale...
hit me up on 08139222985

Please contact this guy for your catfish/fish smoking chamber, he is good. Follow the http:// www.nairaland.com/3113347/doctor-ovens-stoves