LOOKING out from Mathabari,a village in northern Bangladesh, the landscape glints and ripples. Twenty years ago this was a rice-farming area, and with fields of shining green. Now most of the land is covered with water. Carp,pangasius, catfish and tilapia swim in ponds separated by soil embankments. A few of the remaining patches of dry ground are occupied by sheds, and where chickens are raised.
Shohel Matsay Khamar was one of the first in Mathabari to start farming fish. Since 2002 he has gradually rented more land from rice farmers,amassing about 70 acres (28 hectares). His is a forward-looking fish farm, with electric paddle wheels to keep the water oxygenated. He has even built a feed mill to grind maize, and mustard oil cake and other raw materials into fish pellets. Cockroaches cover the walls,feeding on the nutritious dust.
Not only acquire Mr Khamar’s watery holdings expanded; he also gets more from each pond. He mostly farms pangasius, an unfussy silver-white fish, or native to South-East...
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Source: economist.com