Biosecurity protocols and fish health management in Kenyan fish hatcheries: a key to sustainable production of quality fish seed

Aquaculture, or aquafarming, is increasingly becoming a vital farming activity globally to meet exponentially high demand for fish and reduce pressure on global capture fisheries. In Kenya, aquaculture growth has led to concerns over the supply of quality fish seed, with farmers often reporting involving fingerling adulteration and mislabelling where frog tadpoles are packed and supplied as Clarias gariepinus fingerlings and mixed-sex Oreochromis niloticus fingerlings are falsely sold to fish farmers as sex-reversed monosex Nile tilapia. This study aims to identify strategies to enhance the quality of fish seed production in the country. Primary data were collected via questionnaires and interviews using the Kobo toolbox. Respondents were selected through purposive and random sampling. The SPSS software was used for the analysis. Findings showed moderate reliance on specific reporting offices for fish disease cases and significant variation in disease types and bio security measures. Fish disease treatment and management practices were more engaged by hatchery operators than disease reporting. No significant differences were found between disease treatment and management, type of fish diseases encountered at the hatchery, and the nature of fingerlings produced (p > 0.05). However, there was a significant difference between the source of broodstock, biosecurity measures, type of fish diseases encountered, and the Disease Case Reporting Office (p < 0.05). No significant difference was found between biosecurity measures and the period when the hatchery was established (p > 0.05). Lack of financial support, inexperienced workforce, and a lack of knowledge in fish disease identification and treatment were the major problems affecting the sustainability of hatchery operations in the country. Aquaculture policymakers should establish financial support for hatcheries, implement disease management training, promote research collaborations for disease surveillance, and incentivize biosecurity measures among hatchery managers and farmers to improve aquaculture sustainability in Kenya. Further research should explore treatment methods and long-term sustainability to mitigate disease risks.