Sourcing· Jun 2026·5 min read

The aquaculture buyer's own checklist — get this right first

Farm owner defining project goals at the edge of a pond

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Half of failed aquaculture sourcing projects fail on the buyer side, not the supplier side. The brief is unclear, the site is undefined, the species is undecided. Use this checklist to put yourself in a position where good suppliers want to quote you.

What every brief needs

Target species and tonnage. Site location, water source and water quality data. Power availability and tariff. Climate band. Project type (greenfield, brownfield, expansion). Target start date. Budget envelope (with a contingency line).

What a great brief adds

A market study or off-take outline. A financing plan or funding gap. A named project owner and decision authority. A timeline with major milestones.

How FishMatch helps

Buyers who submit even half of this list get better bids, faster. The FishMatch team helps refine the brief before going to market.

Aquaculture planning benchmarks

Indicative global planning ranges used in FishMatch Group calculators. Supplier quotes and site data confirm final values.
Figure	Value	Context
CAPEX — RAS	USD 9,000–14,000 per tonne/yr	Global baseline before country cost factor.
CAPEX — Ponds	USD 1,800–4,000 per tonne/yr	Lined or earthen ponds, excluding land.
CAPEX — Cages	USD 2,500–5,500 per tonne/yr	Cages, moorings, nets and service equipment.
CAPEX — Flow-through	USD 4,000–7,000 per tonne/yr	Raceways and water intake works.
Energy use	RAS ~6 kWh/kg; ponds ~1.2; flow-through ~1.5; cages ~0.3	Per kg of fish produced.
Typical FCR	Trout 1.1; salmon 1.2; shrimp 1.4; tilapia 1.6; carp 1.8	kg feed per kg growth; varies with feed and management.
Farm size where FishMatch reviews projects	From ~USD 250,000 total project value	Commercial fish and shrimp projects.

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Where this fits in a real project

Every FishMatch project runs through the same five reviewed stages, from a first enquiry to comparable quotations. See the full buyer journey.

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