The crayfish business is a relatively new but profitable industry. You can start doing this in the conditions of a home farm, having previously drawn up all the necessary documentation. Among the advantages of this kind of activity can be noted low competition and high demand.
General characteristics of the business
A cancer breeding business is an activity that will allow you to get a stable profit at any time of the year. This is due to the fact that crustaceans are not delivered in too large batches to Russia, and there are not so many suppliers. The market of mollusks and crustaceans is filled in the Krasnodar and Altai Territories, and Ukraine and Kazakhstan supply crayfish from abroad.
The low level of supply and market occupancy is due to the fact that under natural conditions, cancers grow slowly: they gain “marketable” weight only for 4-5 years of life.
That is why an entrepreneur who decides to engage in the cultivation of crustaceans industrially in covered ponds and ponds, gets the opportunity to make a profit in a year and a half, when each individual grows and its weight reaches 300 g.
The advantages of activities in the cultivation of crayfish for subsequent implementation include the following:
- low level of competition and high demand;
- minimal labor in the process of caring for crustaceans;
- lack of problems with the sale of products;
- prospects for further expansion of activities.
The disadvantages of this type of activity are:
- seasonality of product sales (from May to October), which is relevant for the conditions under which crayfish are grown in open waters;
- the payback period of the business, which can drag on up to 3-4 years;
- large cash investments for organizing a business.
The legal side of the issue
Breeding crustaceans for sale and profit is a farming activity. To begin to engage in such a business, you must register as an individual entrepreneur.
Crustacean breeding in artificially created ponds belongs to the group of agricultural activities. The form of taxation used is the Unified Agricultural Tax.
Business plan: necessary investments, payback and profitability
Before you start breeding crayfish for sale, you need to draw up a detailed business plan. The following points should be considered:
- the most suitable way to grow crayfish;
- farm plan;
- expenditure;
- product distribution channels.
Estimates of organizing a business for the cultivation of crayfish include such items of expenditure:
- organization and equipment of water bodies - about 300,000 rubles;
- equipment and components for water bodies - from 100,000 to 2,500,000 rubles (depending on the size of the business);
- acquisition of a land plot, if there is no personal one, about 60,000 rubles;
- feed and additives for crayfish - 100,000 rubles;
- other expenses (transportation, veterinary, payment of electricity) - 100,000 rubles.
The closed method of breeding crayfish, although it requires significant initial investment, but will allow you to make a profit 2 years after the start. The profitability of such a business will be 300%.
Options for equipping a reservoir for breeding crayfish
At the stage of preparing a business plan, you need to think about how to better equip a pond. Depending on this, the following main methods of growing crayfish are distinguished:
- Factory. In this case, breeding is carried out indoors, in special large aquariums. The advantage of this method is to provide the conditions necessary for the rapid growth of cancers. This is due to the fact that artificially created conditions do not allow the crayfish to fall into hibernation. If crayfish are grown in aquariums, the premises in which they are found should be warm and well-lit.
- Home. This method involves the breeding of crustaceans in special cancer pits, artificially created ponds, cellars. This method requires large investments for the installation and organization of a high-quality water circulation system.
- Natural, or crayfish breeding in a natural pond. The advantage of this method is that in this case the crayfish will be provided with natural food (algae, sludge). But with natural breeding, it should be remembered that the quality of water in this case can leave much to be desired, and crayfish are very demanding on it. That is why you should regularly clean the bottom and monitor the composition of the water.
It is necessary to equip the pond, following these recommendations:
- the bottom must be flat;
- the shape of the pond should be strictly rectangular;
- the depth of the reservoir should be at least 2 m;
- the side walls of the pond should be flat, at an angle of 90 degrees relative to the bottom.
It is recommended to use polypropylene sheets for casing the pond, as they protect water from pollution, unlike wood or reinforced concrete. Sheet thickness should be at least 8 mm.
It is recommended that 10 covered ponds and the same number of open ponds be erected on the land allotted for a crayfish farm.
Covered ponds are necessary for the intensive cultivation of crayfish: the water in them will not freeze even in cold weather, so the crayfish do not fall into suspended animation and constantly gain weight. Open ponds are used to breed crayfish in a natural way.
Necessary equipment
For the full functioning of the cancer breeding farm, you will need the following equipment:
- air compressor (aerator);
- an oxidizing agent that saturates water with oxygen;
- filtration system;
- measuring instruments for determining the properties and composition of water (conductometer, oximeter, salimeter).
A drainage must be organized in the pond with a solid fine mesh on the pipe, which will not allow the crayfish to leave the pond.
At the bottom of reservoirs that are created artificially, there must be clay, stones and river sand.
For the cultivation of crayfish in a limited area of home conditions, it is possible to build an ultrasonic protection system (installation of closed water supply):
The nuances of breeding crustaceans in a domestic farm
When purchasing crayfish for breeding, you need to take an equal number of females and males. The most prolific and unpretentious to the conditions of detention are long-toed crayfish. They gain weight much faster than broad-toed individuals.
Calculate the required number of crayfish is necessary based on the area of the reservoir. For 1 square. m, 6 individuals are required, 2 of which are males.
The water in which the crayfish live and breed must be clean, with a small amount of minerals. 0.3-0.5 g of sea salt is added per liter of artesian water.
Under natural conditions, long-toed cancer multiplies in October and November, while the water temperature is 4-6 degrees. Caviar throwing begins in late spring, when the water warms up to 15 degrees. In an artificial pond, crayfish mate in early spring.
In addition to long-toed, in artificial conditions, you can breed such varieties of cancers, such as:
- Cuban blue. Representatives of this species reach considerable size in six months, but at the same time they require a high water temperature (22-26 degrees), as well as a low planting density: at least 20 liters should be allocated for one individual.
- Australian red claw. These cancers grow quickly and have large amounts of meat. They are also thermophilic, therefore for them it is necessary to provide a suitable water temperature - about 23-28 degrees.
With the intensive cultivation of crayfish for sale, you need to organize proper nutrition. The composition of the feed depends on the age of the crayfish. Recipes for mixtures may include the following components:
- wheat;
- barley;
- wheat bran;
- vegetable oil;
- powdered milk;
- soybean and sunflower meal;
- meat and bone meal;
- fish flour.
Also, vitamin supplements are periodically added to the feed. Crayfish are fed at the same time, morning and evening.
It is necessary to ensure that there is not a large amount of food debris left in the water - when decomposed, they release toxins that can cause cancer death.
Product Sales
After receiving the first batch of crayfish, you need to use all possible distribution channels. Wholesale customers are restaurants and cafes, pubs, supermarkets. Specialty shops selling fish and seafood will certainly be interested in these types of products.
You can also find customers who will purchase crayfish at retail. At the initial stage, neighbors and acquaintances who will distribute product information to their friends and acquaintances can become potential buyers.
To successfully sell products, you can think about organizing your own outlet in the market.
There are various types of crayfish. Buyers may be interested in both live and boiled or boiled-frozen crayfish. When realizing crayfish in finished form, it is necessary to pre-pack them in a plastic container, which should be filled with brine.
It is important to remember that the implementation of crayfish requires the following documents:
- certificate of conformity (GOST);
- sanitary passport for transporting products;
- veterinary certificate;
- declaration of conformity of quality.
Breeding crayfish is a promising type of business. Products are in demand, while demand currently exceeds supply. Growing crayfish in artificial ponds makes it possible for them to grow continuously without hibernation.