The diversification of brackishwater aquaculture is gaining considerable momentum in India in general, and in Kerala in particular, with several species farmed in brackish waters in Kerala. However, the major bottleneck for large-scale brackishwater aquaculture is the availability of quality and cost-effective feeds, as the formulated feeds are shipped from the east coast. 

In an effort to promote brackishwater aquaculture in the country, ICAR-CIBA partnered with Wellgrow Feeds from Kerala by signing a MoU to establish an integrated feed mill to produce indigenous-formulated, functional and grow-out feeds for farmed species on the west coast.

Dr. K.K. Vijayan, director of CIBA, said that this integrated feed mill initiative is the first of its kind on the west coast and would be a boon for aquaculture farmers in the region. Augusthy Varghese from Wellgrow Feeds said that there is a considerable demand for quality feeds on the west coast and this initiative will help small and medium farmers.