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Aquaculture Technician TrainingThe following is a overview of the elements that a training program for Aquaculture workers should include. The information on this page is based on a program that we have successfully used in employee training at our own operations. In practice this training program would involve a great deal of practical hands on experience within a working commercial scale Aqua farm combined with classroom type sessions and reference study. |
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What Should a Training Program Include?An Aquaculture training program should be designed to include both practical and classroom type instruction. A successful workable program must include objectives that would see participates develop skills in the operation and management of fish rearing facilities and processing plants. As a starting point students should receive general instruction in the biology of fish, farming methods and basic care of the fish, along with knowledge of the needs of different fish species. The training objectives must also include identification of health issues and disease control, fish species nutrition requirements and feeding plans, fish stock handling practices, farm equipment operation and maintenance, trouble shooting, fish growth measurements and size sampling procedures, record keeping, and operational planning. Of course, trainees should also learn how to harvest fish and handle the product after harvesting. Product processing standards and methods should also be addressed in a training program. Even the janitor of a food producing business should know the importance and value of product quality. The interaction of one job process to another should not be overlooked. Training programs for hatchery workers or land based farm technicians should also include as part of a study plan, familiarization with newer present day facility designs. Students should gain knowledge on the operation and maintenance of water management and environmental control systems, identification and control of land based facility water quality needs, and the unit process systems involved with the successful operation of new and innovative land based fish farms. No matter the nature or design, consideration must always be given to ensuring safety issues while working at an Aquaculture operation. As in most fields of employment workers need to be informed of the how to work safely and minimize the chances of accidents. Example Subjects and ContentIf you seek to be a fish farmer you may wish to consider the following as an acceptable knowledge base. If those subjects cause you concern, then you may have issues with being an aqua farmer. This example outlines the knowledge base that I would look for in a prospective person, that understands this industry and has the desire and wishes to pursue a career in fish farming. Here are the personal attributes and training deliveries that you should expect from a training program and from yourself, they should include:
Potential Candidates and RequirementsParticipates could include fisher persons, agriculture workers, existing farm owners, high school grads, self employed oriented persons, adult education participates and others. Employment in this industry is at times strenuous, and work could be undertaken during different weather and environmental conditions. Ideally participates should be among other things, physically fit, exhibit good common sense, be enthusiastic, have good to excellent manual dexterity, be capable of working unsupervised at times, be patient, responsible and self disciplined. A genuine desire to learn and progress in the workplace would also be a strong attribute. Both male and females work in the aquaculture industry. Training Objectives The primary objective of any program should be to train individuals to become competent Aquaculture Technicians by developing the skills set required, though instruction and practical on the job experience. Once fully trained individuals would be equipped to;
The example training program as outlined above, would ideally be 16 - 20 weeks in duration. Depending upon the objectives of a selected training program, there could be many possible variations of the above, in both content and duration. This article isn't presented as a curriculum or as a set
standard. Readers should consider that the following is written by a
farm owner and operator and is meant as a discussion of the knowledge
needs desired from an employee. In this example students learn how to
be responsible fish farmers. The presentation above is a condensed
version of an employee training program that was developed for Central
Aquaculture Inc. |
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