Epicore Networks is continuing to expand its market in shrimp farming. Recent efforts include the testing and demonstration of several new products in hatcheries for Penaeus monodon in Indonesia and for P. vannamei in Ecuador and Mexico. "Our hatchery product range continues to increase and now stands at five," Epicore told FFI. "All these products also have applications for use in high value finfish and mollusc hatcheries."
The first is Epicin, whose use in the hatchery at 10ppm applications every two days from the mysis stage onwards has been shown to rapidly remove ammonia from the water, prevent the build-up of organic wastes on the tank floors, and act as an effective probiotic against Vibrio species. Under commercial conditions, this enhances water quality and thus reduces requirements for water exchange and increases larval survival and growth rates.
Epicore's Algae Growth Promoter, Epizym-AGP, is a liquid mixture of chelated micro-nutrients, microbial and marine algal extracts and cellular stimulants, which is added at low dose rates to the normal fertilizing nutrients used in algal culture. It has been tested on various species of microalgae and natural blooms containing a mixture of species from seawater. "Its effects have become visible after only two to three days," says the company. "They include a 10-60 per cent increase in cell density (depending on species) and a marked improvement in cell quality in terms of pigmentation, cytoplasm fullness and cell cleaness."
Epizym-AGP can also be used in the culture of zooplankton for hatcheries, where it acts to stimulate structural integrity, protoplasmic synthesis, growth rate, vigour and immune response. Epicore's other three products for hatchery use are all feedstuffs designed for marine crustaceans, but also applicable to fish and molluscs. The products include two sizes of specially formulated larval diets and one size of dry granulated diet for use with port-larval states of penaeid shrimp. "The liquid feeds are a new concept in larval feeding and are emulsions of highly digestible, high-grade protein, lipid and carbohydrate sources," it says. "They are bound with growth stimulants in a new process to form a neutrally buoyant and stable emulsion. "With these properties, the liquid feeds are always available for consumption by the larvae; they will not decompose, leach into or pollute the water and, because of their neutral buoyancy, they will not foul even flat bottomed larval tanks."
The first liquid feed, Epizym LHF 1, has 10-30 micron particles considered ideal for zoea and mysis stage penaeids, and as enrichment for Artemia nauplii.
The next Epizym LHF 2, has 50-100 micron particles and is designed for use in late mysis and early port-larval stages. Epicore says that it can replace all dry diets and a portion of the Artemia nauplii normally fed at this stage.
Its third feed, Epizym GHF, is a granulated nursery diet, which is also made up of highly digestible, high quality feedstuffs. "Unlike traditional feeds," Epicore explains, "it is processed at ambient temperatures to preserve the delicate protein vitamins, polyunsaturated acids and growth stimulants. It is finely ground for enhanced digestibility into particles of 200-600 microns to suit the wide range of particle size requirements of post-larval penaeids before they are transferred to ponds. "
These specially designed hatchery feeds have been tested in eastern and western hatcheries.
"The results," the company adds, "have proved them to be of extremely high quality, totally replacing hatchery dependence on a bewildering range of dry diets, as well as reducing requirements for Artemia and algal live diets.
(excerpt from Fish Farming International, December 1996)
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