A field-based collaboration

With 20 years of experience under his belt, Pan designed adapted solutions for about 50 farmers like Gurupira, with whom he is still in contact.

One of their major concerns was how to better feed fish. After doing his research, Pan realized that there is only one fish food producer in the country and that a ton of fish food pellets can cost up to $1,500. With such high production costs, aquaculture farmers have to ration food pellets, which hampers their production.

To solve this problem, Pan suggested that the farms make their own food pellets with the help of the Chinese Government, which provided the necessary machinery.

“Even very simple tools can bring great help to us farmers [in Zimbabwe], because they help to lower production costs. This allows consumers to have access to cheaper fish,” said Tim Viilnen, a local farmer.