Characterization of Fish Farming in Cages in the Anã Community – Tapajós- Arapiuns Extractive Reserve, Santarém, Pará

Abstract

Brazil is considered one of the countries with the greatest potential for aquaculture, mainly due to the favorable tropical climate and good water availability, with areas favorable to the construction of ponds, dams, and installation of cages. The objective of this work was to characterize the fish farming carried out in the Anã community Tapajós-Arapiuns Extractive Reserve, identifying positive and negative points of this production. Interviews were carried out assisted by semi-structured forms. The survey revealed that fish farming is a secondary activity in obtaining income for all 14 respondents, whose ages ranged between 25 and 65 years; 64% of them have completed high school and most are female. The activity generates food, income and assists in community tourism. The main difficulty presented is the high cost of the feed, and to solve this problem, the manufacture of the feed itself would be the only alternative, enabling the expansion of the activity. Besides the high cost of commercial feed, difficulties related to animal management and water quality were also identified, for which solutions must be sought.