WWW.WAS.ORG • WORLD AQUACULTURE • MARCH 2017 51 Marketing fresh milkfish in coastal Kenya. Packing milkfish fry for transport to culture ponds. Marketing For the last decade milkfish sales were dependent on the quantities harvested from farms (Mirera and Ngugi 2009). During harvest days, a message was sent to group members in the village to create awareness of the planed harvest event. Those interested in the fish gathered at the farms and fish were auctioned after harvest at current market prices (Fig. 7). Most milkfish is sold fresh, but a small quantity is fried by women farmers and sold to the population at a relatively higher price due to value addition (Fig. 8). This marketing system is suitable for the small quantities of fish that were produced previously. With the increased production as a result of KCDP support over the last two years, the marketing system for milkfish has changed considerably. The organized community groups have opened fish shops with deep freezers to enable milkfish sales over a long time without wastage (Fig. 9). Milkfish sales mainly focus on local markets because it is a low-value fish. Due to the limited production volume, less effort has been made on fish processing and packaging. However, with the trend of increased production, developing aspects of processing and packaging are essential to further expansion of milkfish farming in Kenya. Notes David O. Mirera, Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) P.O. Box 81651-80100, Mombasa-Kenya, Email: dimirera@yahoo. com, Mobile: +254 – 722646270 The author is grateful to the Kenya Coastal Development Project (KCDP), Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI), Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association (WIOMSA) and the various projects that have provided data for this article. Other information was obtained from various communities and stakeholders who have worked at the coast to whom I register my appreciation. References Banno, J.E. 1980. The food and feeding habits of the milkfish (Chanos chanos Forskal) fry collected along the coast of Hamtik, Antique. UP-SEAFDEC Graduate Study Program, Iloilo, Philippines. MSc Thesis, 77 pp. Mirera, D.O. 2007a. Inventory of mariculture activities along the Kenyan coast. WIOMSA SUCCESS project report. 27 pp. Mirera, D.O. and C.C. Ngugi. 2009. Sustainability and income opportunities of farming milkfish (Chanos chanos) to local communities in Kenya: Assessment of initial trials of earthen ponds. Ec Fp7 Project Sarnissa. P. 24. Mirera, D. O. 2011a. Experimental polyculture of milkfish (Chanos chanos) and mullet (Mugil cephalus) using earthen ponds in Kenya. Western Indian Ocean Journal of Marine Science 10:59-71. Mirera, D.O. 2012. Mariculture development in Kenya-an overview In Troell, M., Hecht, T., Beveridge, M., Stead, S., Bryceson, I., Kautsky, N., Mmochi, A., Ollevier, F. (eds) (2011) Mariculture in the WIO region – challenges and prospects. WIOMSA Book Series No. 11. viii+59 pp. Mirera, D.O., ed. 2016. Status of mariculture: Kenya – towards improved economy and sustainable food security. WIOMSA Project Report. 65 pp. Mwaluma, J. 2003. Culture experiments on the growth and production of mud crabs, mullets, milkfish and prawns in Mtwapa mangrove system, Kenya. MSRG I Research Project Report. 26 pp www.wiomsa.org Rönnbäck, P., I. Bryceson, and N. Kautsky. 2002. Aquaculture development in eastern Africa and the Western Indian Ocean: Prospects and problems for food security and local economies. AMBIO 31(7-8):537 – 542. Shimpton, T. and T. Hecht. 2007. Coastal Mariculture Assessment Mission Final Report. Regional Programme for the Sustainable Management of the Coastal Zones of the Indian Ocean Countries (ReCoMaP), p. 65. Sivalingam, S. 1981. Mariculture as a method of using coastal zones. Government of Kenya/UNDP/FAO Pilot Project No. (KEN/77/014), 10 pp. UNEP. 1998. Eastern Africa Atlas of Coastal Resources: UNEP Regional Reports and Studies, No. 1 Nairobi, Kenya. Yap.W. and J. Landony. 1986. Report on a Survey of the Coastal Areas of Kenya for Shrimp Farm Development. FAO.
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