50 MARCH 2026 • WORLD AQUACULTURE • WWW.WAS.ORG FIGURE 1. Cost saving in fish feed ingredients using Linear Programming. drive this production, and their operations have been evolving from subsistence-oriented to commercial, intensive farming practices (Rossignoli et al., 2023). Recent studies have classified small-scale carp farms into varying categories of intensification and noted a clear shift toward improved fish strains, higher inputs, and market-oriented production. As small-scale carp farming intensifies, the demand for formulated aquafeed has increased commensurately. While previous studies have explored cost-saving strategies in aquaculture, our study focuses on applying linear programming (LP), a well-established optimization method, to Bangladesh’s carp sector, calibrated with local market prices and nutritional standards. Bangladesh currently produces some 4.8 million tons of freshwater fish annually (Mahmud, 2024) and the country’s aquaculture industry contributes approximately USD 9.42 billion to the national GDP. The country is the world’s fifth-largest aquaculture producer and third-largest inland fish producer (FAO, 2024). Farmed fish production has quadrupled from 657 thousand tons in 2000 to 2,731 thousand live tons in 2022 (FAO, 2024) and aquaculture accounts for over half of Bangladesh’s total fish production. Within this sector, Indian major carps (rohu, catla, mrigal) are often cultivated with other carp species, comprising about 60% of the country’s freshwater aquaculture output. Small-scale farmers largely Cost-Efficient Fish Feed Formulation: Insights from Linear Programming Applications in Bangladesh FMS Abdal and Uttam Deb TABLE 1. Annual averages of variable and fixed cost items and contribution to the total cost of surveyed carp polyculture farms (n = 183). ORIGINAL COST NEW COST Cost items Total cost Contribution to Total cost Contribution to (USD ha-1 year-1) total cost (%) (USD ha-1 year-1) total cost (%) Variable cost items Fingerlings cost 1264.22 13.84 1264.22 14.80 Temporary labor cost 242.65 2.66 242.65 2.84 Feed cost 2710.92 29.67 2114.52 24.76 Fertilizer cost 192.27 2.1 192.27 2.25 Water cleaning and disease control cost 648.83 7.1 648.83 7.60 Fuel cost 170.14 1.86 170.14 1.99 Insecticide and vitamin cost 209.16 2.29 209.16 2.45 Transportation cost 144.39 1.58 144.39 1.69 Miscellaneous cost 162.71 1.78 162.71 1.91 Total variable cost 5745.28 62.88 5148.89 60.28 Fixed cost items, Permanent labor cost 968.1 10.59 968.1 11.33 Depreciation cost 308.34 3.37 308.34 3.61 Land use cost 2035.08 22.27 2035.08 23.83 Interest paid 80.6 0.88 80.6 0.94 Total fixed cost 3392.12 37.12 3392.12 39.72 Total cost (USD ha-1 year-1) 9137.4 8541.01 Productivity (Kg/Ha) 5632 5632 Cost of Production (USD/Kg) 1.62 1.52 Source: Hossain et al. (2021) & authors’ calculationstreatments.
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