INCREASED SHRIMP PERFORMANCE USING PASSIVE ACOUSTIC FEEDING CONTROL
In shrimp farming the cost of feed can be up to 60-70% of the farm input. Therefore it's very important to control feeding accurately to avoid waste. Feeding shrimp can occur for 12-24 hours per day. Feeding control systems can operate 24/7 and have demonstrated significant improvements in production performance in growth, FCR, survival and biomass compared to traditional methods. New technology (AQ1 - SF200, Sonic Feeding system) uses a hydrophone (passive acoustics) to monitor and control feed intake by measuring the sound of shrimp feeding (response).
The SF200 feeding control system can be used in all pond types. The system delivers pellets at a rate that matches the actual intake of the shrimp. It does not allow feed to accumulate in the pond as it controls feeding "real time". Traditional farming methods use feed tray observation every 3 hours which can lead to under or over feeding.
Oxygen, temperature and rain intensity can also be added to the system and used to control feed intake as well as manage pond
aerators to save on electrical power if desired (Fig. 1).
Data from 32 farms over 9 countries is summarised (Table 1), from a range of
ponds 0.2ha - 20ha, includes intensive (>40 pl's/m2), semi-intensive (15-40 pl's/m2) and extensive "pellet fed" (<15 pl's/m2) ponds on P. monodon, P. vannamei, L. stylirostris and P. japonicus has demonstrated a clear benefit of using the "response" as a key indicator of feed intake. Improvements in growth (~24%), FCR (~20%), survival (~14%) and an increase in biomass (~27%) are being seen over existing methods, commercially and in research studies. This has contributed to significant financial gains for farmers.
In other animal production sectors such as salmon, poultry and pigs there is high utilisation of automation in the feeding process, which has lead to improved performance. Shrimp production is at the beginning of this inevitable step towards automation and its associated efficiencies.